fitness articles

,  Font size

Motivation Point

Nicki Minaj : World's Highest Paid Hip Hop Women Artist

Nicki Minaj earned about $29 million in the year 2013 as per Forbes. She is fourth in Forbes Worlds Highest Paid Hip Hop Artists list both of men and women and number one in women category.

Two years after becoming the first female artist to make the Hip-Hop Cash Kings list, Minaj is nearing the top thanks to income from touring, steady music sales, a lucrative American Idol gig and endorsements with Pepsi and others. Nicki Minaj Is The Only Lady On The Cash Kings List. In fact, Minaj, who made her 2011 debut raking in $6.5 million has been the only female to ever make the Cash Kings list since its inception in 2007.

This year, Minaj nearly doubled last year�s $15.5 million pay check by clocking impressive tour numbers to go with her American Idol gig and endorsements with Mac, OPI and Pepsi. She also owns a stake in Myx Fusions Moscato, a sweet wine now making its way into her music videos and rap verses. These deals rank Minaj far higher than any of her male Cash Money labelmates, including Drake, Lil Wayne, and YMCMB head honcho Birdman.

Onika Tanya Maraj was born on December 8, 1982, She is known by her stage name Nicki Minaj, She is a Trinidadian-born American rapper, singer, songwriter, actress, and television personality. Born in Saint James, Port of Spain and raised in Jamaica, Queens, New York City, she enrolled in performing art schools as a child. After success with three mixtapes released between 2007 and 2009, Minaj signed to Young Money Entertainment.

Minaj's debut studio album Pink Friday peaked at number one on the US Billboard 200 and was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Its most successful single "Super Bass" was certified quadruple-platinum and has sold over four million copies, becoming one of the best-selling singles in the United States. During this time, Minaj became the first female solo artist to have seven singles simultaneously charting on the Billboard Hot 100. Her second studio album Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded topped the Billboard 200 and became one of the best-selling albums of that year. Its lead single "Starships" peaked at number 5 in the United States and became one of the best-selling singles of 2012. As of 2013, Minaj has sold over 5 million albums globally. That same year, Minaj served as a judge during the twelfth season of American Idol.

Minaj is the first female artist included on MTV's Annual Hottest MC List, with The New York Times suggesting that some consider her "the most influential female rapper of all time." Her rapping is distinctive for its fast flow, use of alter egos and accents, notably British cockney. Her outlandish and colorful costumes, wigs and clothing have given her recognition as a fashion icon. In April 2013, Minaj became the most-charted female rapper in the history of the Billboard Hot 100, with over forty-four appearances. She has endorsed Adidas, MAC Cosmetics, and Pepsi. Revisiting her roots in drama, Minaj has ventured into work as a voice actress in Ice Age: Continental Drift and is making her acting debut in the 2014 film The Other Woman. She has earned seven BET Awards, four American Music Awards, two MTV Music Awards, an MTV Europe Music Award, five Billboard Music Awards and Billboard's 2011 Rising Star. Nicki Minaj was the tenth most played Top 40 artists on Mediabase.

Onika Tanya Maraj was born in Saint James, a suburb of Port of Spain, the capital of Trinidad and Tobago, on December 8, 1982, to parents Carol and Robert Maraj. She is of mixed Indian and Afro-Trinidadian ancestry and has two siblings. Minaj's mother held numerous jobs, including an accounting clerk, a foreign exchange teller, and a gospel singer. Her father worked for American Express, suffered from alcohol and drug addictions, and once attempted to kill her mother by setting their house on fire. Until she was five years old, Minaj lived with her grandmother in Saint James, and was occasionally visited by her mother. She and her mother later moved to Queens, a borough in New York City.Minaj stated that her upbringing lacked discipline, and caused her to "seek out and practice self discipline".

Minaj attended P.S 045 Clarence Witherspoon School during her elementary years, and later attended Elizabeth Blackwell Middle School 210, where she played the clarinet. She then graduated from LaGuardia High School, which specializes in music and the visual and performing arts. Minaj participated in the drama program and initially planned to sing at LaGuardia, but lost her voice on the day of the audition. Minaj described her high school life as being distracted from her academics by �acting and boys�. Minaj wanted to become an actress, and in 2001, she was cast in the Off-Broadway play, "In Case You Forget". After her acting career failed to take off, Minaj worked at Red Lobster in the Bronx at the age of 19 as a waitress. Minaj was fired from Red Lobster because of her discourteousness to customers. She stated she had been fired from "at least fifteen jobs" for similar antics. Other jobs Minaj held were administrative assistant, customer service, and an office manager position at an unknown business located on Wall Street.

Minaj briefly signed with Brooklyn group Full Force, in which Minaj rapped in a foursome group called "Hoodstars," which consisted of group members Lou$tar (son of "Bowlegged Lou"), Scaff Beezy (Minaj's current hype man) , and 7even Up. In 2004 the group recorded the entrance song for WWE Diva Victoria titled "Don't Mess With," it was featured on the compilation album ThemeAddict: WWE The Music, Vol.6. Minaj left the group, unsatisfied with their lack of success. During this time, Minaj uploaded a few songs on her Myspace profile and sent a few of her songs to people in the music industry. At the time, she was managed by Debra Antney. Fendi, CEO of the Brooklyn label Dirty Money Entertainment, who also found rapper Gravy, discovered the music and contacted Minaj, signing her to his label. Initially, Minaj adopted the pseudonym "Nicki Maraj", later changing to "Nicki Minaj", stating "My real name is Maraj. Fendi flipped it when he met me because I had such a nasty flow! I eat bitches!" Under Fendi's label, Minaj appeared on the popular street DVD "The Come Up Volume 11" that featured underground rappers from New York.

After a major record label bidding war, Young Money Entertainment announced on August 31, 2009 that Minaj had been released from a 360 deal with the label in which she retains and owns all of her 360 rights, including merchandising, sponsorships, endorsements, touring and publishing. Minaj was featured on Rihanna's "Raining Men" from her album Loud, which would lead to a second collaboration on Minaj's "Fly" from her album Pink Friday. Hip-hop rap artist and producer Kanye West was also confirmed for the album. On August 3, 2010, Minaj revealed on an Ustream.tv channel that the album's name would be Pink Friday, a nod to Black Friday.

Pink Friday was released on November 19, 2010. A buzz single, "Massive Attack", was released in April. In August, Minaj released "Your Love" as the first official single from her debut album. The single peaked at 14 on the Billboard Hot 100, 7 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, and topped the Rap Songs chart. Minaj became the first female artist to be included on MTV's Annual Hottest MC List and the first female artist to top the chart unaccompanied since 2002.

In October 2010, Minaj became the first female solo artist to have seven songs on the Billboard Hot 100 chart simultaneously. She released two singles in September 2010; one a joint single with The Black Eyed Peas front man, will.i.am titled, "Check It Out," and the other "Right Thru Me." The music videos for both were released in late October. "Moment 4 Life" was released as the fourth single on December 7, 2010, featuring Canadian rapper Drake, becoming a success on the Billboard Hot 100. The single peaked at number 5 on the Hot Rap Songs.

The album gained Platinum certification in the United States a month after the release. On January 29, 2011, Minaj appeared on Saturday Night Live as the musical guest, performing "Right Thru Me" and "Moment 4 Life". On February 9, 2011, Pink Friday reached number one on the Billboard 200 in its eleventh week on the chart. Minaj turned down an offer to become a judge on The X Factor, as rapped on her song "Roman Reloaded", due to its salary. In June 2011, Minaj was an opening act along with Jessie and the Toy Boys and Nervo on Britney Spears' sixth concert tour, the Femme Fatale Tour, in support of her seventh studio album, Femme Fatale. She and singer Kesha were featured on the remix of Spears' track "Till the World Ends," which charted at number 3 in the US in April 2011.

"Super Bass" was released from Pink Friday in May 2011. The single charted within the top 10 in many countries including the United Kingdom, United States, Australia and Canada, and later was certified as quadruple-platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The song gained positive reviews from critics. Minaj went on to attribute the success of the single in part to Taylor Swift, saying in an interview with American radio station 102.7 KIIS FM, "Taylor Swift did her little interview about 'Super Bass' and it took off in the States with the people sort of knowing it...It�s just really uncanny how all that stuff happens...We didn�t plan it like that." Minaj voiced a character in the 3D animated film, Ice Age: Continental Drift, as Steffie, a woolly mammoth. Minaj is also featured on French DJ David Guetta's 2011 album, Nothing but the Beat, on the singles "Where Them Girls At" and "Turn Me On".

In September 2012, Minaj was confirmed to join the judging panel of the twelfth season of American Idol, alongsidge fellow new hires Mariah Carey and Keith Urban and returning judge Randy Jackson, with a salary of $12 million. Minaj and Carey have received much media attention for their on-set tension, most notably with a leaked video of the two in the midst of a heated argument during Charlotte, North Carolina auditions. The following day, Carey alleged that Minaj had threatened to "shoot her" during the aforementioned incident, though Minaj and producer Nigel Lythgoe denied such claims. Minaj left the series upon the conclusion of the season. On April 12, 2013, Minaj became the most-charted female rapper in the history of the Billboard Hot 100, with forty-four appearances.

Minaj has confirmed plans to launch her own record label, having signed Parker Ighile, Brinx, and Keisha as artists and Blackout Movement as a producer. The title "Pink Friday Records" was intended, but was scrapped because it was "Not fair 2 (sic) the dudes", with the new name to be released "very soon". Minaj is currently working on her third studio album, which she describes as "a continuation of The Re-Up with a lot more". Minaj speaking of her third album also stated her will focus back to her "hip-hop roots" Minaj has announced plans to appear in her first live-action theatrical film The Other Woman; filming began in spring 2013, with an anticipated release date set for April 25, 2014.Minaj is set to appear as actress Cameron Diaz's assistant. Minaj led nominations for rap musicians at the Billboard Music Awards 2013 having seven nominations. Minaj won Best Female Hip-Hop Artist at the BET Awards 2013, making history as the first female rapper to win the award four times consecutively. Minaj was sued by Chicagoan artist Clive Tanaka for copyright infringement over the single "Starships"

Minaj has been noted by the media for her curvaceous figure. Minaj has signed contracts with a variety of corporate interests and manufacturing companies. Minaj created her own app titled after her official website "MyPinkFriday" which featured her self-created slang dictionary the "Nictionary" for Android and iPhone users in 2010. In April 2011, she helped launch Casio's TRYX digital camera in Times Square, along with The Roots. In April 2012, Minaj launched the Nokia Lumia 900 in Times Square followed by a performance of "Starships," "Super Bass," and "Right by My Side." Minaj contracted a promotional deal with Pepsi in February 2012, in which she appeared in a commercial, which was shot in Argentina for the global LiveForNow campaign, and internet advertisements. The commercial featured a remix of "Moment 4 Life." In December 2011, Mattel produced a custom Nicki Minaj-themed Barbie to be auctioned on charitybuzz and was valued at an estimate of $US15,000 dollars.

MAC Cosmetics collaborated with Minaj on many business ventures, such as a limited edition lipstick called Pink 4 Friday that went on sale for four consecutive Fridays starting November 26, 2010 to promote the release of Pink Friday, and also as part of the Viva Glam campaign with Ricky Martin in Latin America, which has raised $US270 million dollars for MAC AIDS Fund. Minaj fronted their Viva Glam 2013 campaign, releasing a new shade of lipstick "Nicki 2" and matching lip-gloss. Minaj announced that her clothing line would be launched through retailer Kmart on January 9, 2013. Minaj has collaborated with OPI Products on a six-piece nail polish collection with colors named after her songs.

With designer Jeremy Scott, Minaj signed an endorsement deal with Adidas' fall and winter 2012 campaign to appear in Internet advertisements and commercials for Adidas Originals. The ad was filmed in a disclosed location in Brooklyn, also featuring Big Sean, Derrick Rose, Sky Ferreira and 2NE1, all around the world wearing Adidas attire. The commercial used Minaj's song "Masquerade" as the theme song for the ad. On February 14, 2013, Bluewater Comics revealed Minaj would star in the "Fame" biographical comic series, and would make her debut in the comic book titled Fame: Nicki Minaj that was released to stores February 13, 2013. In April 2013, Minaj partnered with Beats Electronics to launch the "Pink Pill" speaker, sold exclusively through AT&T; she and actor DeRay Davis appeared in its commercial later that month. On June 6, 2013, Minaj released a press release regarding the moscato beverage called "Myx Fusions". The press release revealed that Minaj would not only front the campaign, but also has shared ownership of the company.

In an interview with VIBE, Minaj discussed her sexual image, stating, "When I grew up I saw females doing certain things, and I thought I had to do that exactly. The female rappers of my day spoke about sex a lot... and I thought that to have the success they got, I would have to represent the same thing. When in fact I didn�t have to represent the same thing," later adding, "I made a conscious decision to try to tone down the sexiness, I want people�especially young girls�to know that in life, nothing is going to be based on sex appeal. You got to have something else to go with that." Minaj has made "signing boobs" part of her movement to empower women. In an interview with The Guardian, Minaj says she is competing with both male and female rappers. "That's why I say stuff like, 'Dick in your face', because I don't even wanna refer to female genitalia any more. I just feel I have bigger balls than the boys," Minaj said, referencing the song "Come on a Cone" from Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded. In her song "Moment 4 Life", she refers to herself as a king instead of a "queen".

Minaj has been described as the "black Lady Gaga" due to her use of outlandish costumes and wigs, though Minaj refutes such comparisons. She cites Alexander McQueen, Gianni Versace and Christian Louboutin as her favorite designers. The Huffington Post described Minaj's fashion as "risk-taking", "bold sartorial choices", and "far-out", with Yahoo! commenting that her costume was "colorful" and "crazy", and stated that "the world would certainly be very quiet without Ms Minaj". Minaj has been invited to attend various events for fashion designers. Donatella Versace invited Minaj to perform for the launch of the collaboration of Versace for H&M alongside Prince. She also performed "Super Bass" at a Victoria Secret fashion show in November 2011. Minaj was personally invited to be seated with Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour during New York Fashion Week to see designers such as Oscar de la Renta and Carolina Herrera.

With over 17,000 tweets and 16 million followers, Billboard ranked Minaj the sixth-most active user of microblogging website Twitter. In March 2011, Billboard named Minaj the fourth most active musician on social media, through their Social 50 chart. The chart tracks Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, YouTube, and Instagram usage. On Twitter, she is the most followed rapper in the world. Upon Twitter and in public appearances and interviews, Minaj refers to her fans collectively as "Barbz" and her male heterosexual and LGBT following as "Boyz" and "Ken Barbz", respectively, alluding to her "Harajaku Barbie" persona. Minaj deleted her Twitter account for eight days in April 2012, following a dispute between her and her fans who wanted to leak snippets of her then-unreleased album. At the time, she possessed 11 million followers and lost over a million followers as a result of the ordeal.

In 2012, amateur cartoonist David Monger authored a popular web series based on Nicki Minaj called The Nekci Menij Show. Featuring pop icons from Madonna to Marina and the Diamonds, the characters are illustrated in an intentionally crude manner accompanied by SMS language so as to mirror the Internet meme Dolan Duck. Since September 2012, the show has garnered more than 2,500,000 views on YouTube. Primarily crafted using Microsoft Paint, the show is intended as a satire of celebrity syndrome and stan culture. Minaj is the first, and only, female rapper to reach over one billion video views on YouTube. For the 2013 Met Gala, designer Tommy Hilfiger gifted Minaj a Rolex watch valued at $32,000. In 2013 Minaj's style underwent transformation, into a more "natural" look she described in order to be take more seriously, including less colorful makeup and wigs which made its debut during the later episodes of American Idol.

Her official website is http://mypinkfriday.com

Dated 26  September 2013