I'm Nicki Minaj, Nicki Lewinsky, Nicki the Ninja, Nicki the Boss, Nicki the Harajuku Barbie

her interviews depress me because she comes off pretty humble and self-effacing for a rapper (especially a female rapper, considering how psycho most of the big ones have been historically), and i agree with a lot of what she says about how rap shouldn't take itself too seriously, i just really can't stand her idea of fun.

that song is kind of !

i love nicki in theory, it's just that she's so bad in practice.
would love to hear her do something well scripted.

Not feeling this at all. Feels kind of clunky.

damn, rich four four went extremely hard (in a post about mariah)

Nicki Minaj, whose catchphrases, self-fellating comparisons, and Family Guy approach to referencing (it doesn’t matter if it’s smart or applicable, so long as it’s a reference!) make her an ideal collaborator for this project. Minaj doesn’t only shit on the notion of artistry, she does so on the entire notion of communication. (I’ll say a lot more about this scourge on pop music when her album comes out, as I like her less each day that goes by. For now, my assessment of Minaj is that she is a geyser of unclever nonsense, and as such, a human waste of time.)

"family guy approach to referencing" is exactly the right way to describe the young money era

always loathed family guy so yeah, i would agree. 'unclever' wrt this stuff is a nicely precise turn of phrase too, moreso than stoopid or whatever etc.

otoh the artistry/communication line seems flawed in the sense that minaj is plainly an ultimate representation of the culture around her rather than some sort of lurid solo maverick (whatever some might feel) - ie clearly a communication is being made, even if it is shitty in comparison to what we as oldsters hold dear.

(stranger still is running with that angle whilst at the same time writing off mariah's memoirs in opposition to her not keeping up with the times like she did on e=mc2; if mariah had managed to pull a more collaborative album off successfully in 2010 how would the artistry and communication involved therein been any more valid than minaj's? would the "creative energy" sparked off by working with drake really have been something to savour?)

i'm with lex, awesome song. and i don't know, i'm all for taking young money to court for next-level dumb shit but i kind of feel like you guys are missing the point for being all "swinging from a vine mango LOL" one a song like this tbh.

guys this song is hideous

it's just a total mess, altho the bridge is nice

i don't really think the "you're missing the point by paying attention to the lyrics!" argument applies to this single at all considering it's barely catchy and mostly totally unpleasant to listen to (and sean garrett is involved, who woulda thunk?!) -- that argument applies to, say, "every girl"

Family Guy approach to referencing (it doesn’t matter if it’s smart or applicable, so long as it’s a reference!)

i don't know who this guy is but i am appropriating this perfect summation of that style of joke as needed in the future

Let's discuss the new M.I.A. single: "London Bridge"

I guess I'll concede to having missed the point... INDEX FINGER

"massive attack" is way more pleasant to listen to than "every girl" (and i like "every girl" fine) - it could use a touch less garrett vocals, but it's no more a mess than "i'm that chick" or "bird flu" or any number of stop-start drum-heavy tracks. and coming up with something like this is a huge relief considering it could've been something like "spotlight".

'Bird Flu' felt so much more natural than this, which feels clumsy and half-formed.

i'm not sure if i LIKE this record yet, but i was kind of expecting some kind of generic cash moneyish thing probably about sex: the fact that it's weird and massive-drummed and abrasive and aggressive are all making it !!! to me. also: sounds really terrible on PC speakers, massive on headphones, i only wish i led a life that would involve hearing it on a massive soundsystem somewhere this week

also the 'mango' line is followed by an off-mic voice going "mango?" as if to be, like, really? i kind of lol'd at this

well, the video is somehow more messy & half-realized than the song is

http://videos.onsmash.com/v/qsexlwwAJJZjNLqe

the bridge on this joint is pretty good -- i kinda wish they had used that beat for the beat and nicki singing as the chorus

ok, kinda great...like the goofed-out kid version of "Hard" or something. Did she just say it wouldn't be "proper" to shoot someone with a rocket launcher? a+

"the bridge on this joint is pretty good -- i kinda wish they had used that beat for the beat and nicki singing as the chorus"

yes exactly. she has such a good voice and so much to offer in this direction (that's largely gone unexplored)--it's kinda baffling they didn't have her singing a hook. like where was drake when they were recording this? maybe that'll be the next single in the pipeline though.

also lex ur crazy. no way in the world this is "pleasant" to listen to, in any sense of the word. interesting, mayyyyybe.

but yeah this mostly sucks. i'd rather listen to the last 45 seconds or whatever looped for 3 minutes than the song itself.

the stop-start clunkiness of the song is exacerbated by the radio edit too

the radio edit is o_0 - you can't say "jumbo" any more??

still disagree it's a mess, the stop-start beat and the weird explosions and shots and shit going off everywhere really suit the song. it's meant to be disorientating!

i really like the video too (and how is that confused...it's just situating minaj's pink-wigged barbie steez in middle east/jungle settings) - makes it totally clear that her angle is less "rap gaga" as "new missy". i don't find her humour any more senseless than some of missy's lyrics tbh.

also, a mug's game trying to predict commercial success but i def think this is the right strategy for minaj

I can't make up my mind about this

wow yikes the video for this is a total disaster. minaj looking really awkward for like the first time ever and hype williams sapping all the rest of the focus out of it with endless slow fades to random shit and ridiculous-ass sean garrett.

http://videos.onsmash.com/v/qsexlwwAJJZjNLqe

i also gr8tly appreciate the last few posts, hard for me to remember what i already wrote a week ago yesterday sometimes

― r|t|c, Thursday, April 1, 2010 1:33 PM (5 hours ago) Bookmark

but you're right, minaj looks suuuper awkward & uncomfortable at the end doing her shakria rip off thing

minaj looking really awkward for like the first time ever

uh

i'm serious - i mean she may look awkward by yours or anyone else's standards generally but at least she always seemed in control of whatever it is she wanted to be up until now

(lol yeah ok jordan but i did fluke saying different stuff tbf)

i agree with rtc -- even tho i think she's been shameless & a biter, she's def seemed in control -- the shakira panting at the end of the video looks like some jenna parody sketch out of 30 rock

tbh her schtick comes across to me way better when the whole song/video/style is all hers and she's not just grafting it onto some generic Yo Gotti or Mariah song. i don't know if i like it per se, but i respect that that's her single instead of something more like what she's been featured on.

otm

see i think whatever momentum she's developed has been exactly because she's been this ludicrous force of nature affectation that's been popping up everywhere and bouncing off everything stealing scenes, so the solo cut respect aspect imo bears little meaning if it only turns out to be a mistranslation - obviously i'm leaning more on the video than the song now - of that antic appeal. (ie her guest slots are more "all her" than this video is basically.)

actually it's not just the video, the song itself is pretty aimless anyway.
but then otoh i'm not sure what an accurate minaj solo song would even be like tbh.

I think this song is great and pretty pleasant to listen to - opinions man, gotta have em

omg 1:47 in that video, someone make that into a .gif please

http://tumblinerb.com/post/485560944/is-it-just-me-or-does-nicki-minaj-swag-remind-u-of-fire

forgot the important part

http://29.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_l04j8qrFHx1qb90glo1_500.jpg

I kinda feel like right now Nicki, as far as her visual aesthetic goes, is kind of at the level of those first Gaga videos, where she has all these crazy ideas and doesn't have the budget to pull them off without it looking cheap and tacky.

did "Just Dance" have any crazy ideas? i thoguht it was just generic party video with hey there's a lightening bolt on my cheek lol

Nicki's video budget now is about as big as it'll ever get probably, don't think money's holding her back

I say what's wrong with cheap and tacky if it is all in good fun. Most female rappers (as talented as they all are) have to take themselves so serious because of anal rap fans who wish rap music was stuck in 1994 or have to sex it up for those same rap fans to call them sluts and hos.

I love Nicki because she as close to Missy as we are going to get now. I mean yeah I wish someone like Jean Grae would be equally as popular as Nicki to balance things out but it seems like the US can only take one big female rap star at a time.

Plus Massive Attack rocks due to the fact that Nicki is trying something new on her first official single.

i dont think the quota for female rap stars is really whats keeping jean grae from mass appeal

Well yeah duh I know that. There are multiple factors to that but still in a perfect world Jean Grae should be as popular as Nicki so in order to have different female perspectives in hip hop. But since hip hop fans generally don't like females in general it's hard for either type of female rappers to have full acceptance.

God sorry for the too many generals. I'm in a cranky mood (doesn't detract from my opinion).

don't be sorry for Jean Grae's Generals

thing about nikki is theres a bunch of things about her that u mention that make me want to give a shit -- like, im rooting for her, objectively -- but aesthetically the music really isnt doing it for me. i dont like the rap shes taking cues from as it is -- havent been feeling lil wayne tracks for a couple years

yeah one on hand i think it was good for her to get out of nyc rap circles, but on the other hand i agree that being around wayne/young money has been a detriment to her as a rapper qua rapper (as a potential pop star or personality or w/e might be a different story) -- like, i'm not sure if i'll ever like a nicki verse more than her one on drought 3

thing about nikki is theres a bunch of things about her that u mention that make me want to give a shit -- like, im rooting for her, objectively -- but aesthetically the music really isnt doing it for me. i dont like the rap shes taking cues from as it is -- havent been feeling lil wayne tracks for a couple years

Well no one said you had to love Nicki to not be sympathetic to the rock and the hard place female rappers go through. Or a matter of fact black female artists go through as a whole. I think between this and Erykah Badu's Window Seat Video I'm finding it increasingly annoying how a black women need to limit themselves to be acceptable. If you stray artistically a little bit you get lambasted for it. Or in Nicki's and Erykah's case a long mile and you really hear the complaining. I say whether you like them or not, it should be encouraged that they take these risks even if they fail.

yeah one on hand i think it was good for her to get out of nyc rap circles, but on the other hand i agree that being around wayne/young money has been a detriment to her as a rapper qua rapper (as a potential pop star or personality or w/e might be a different story) -- like, i'm not sure if i'll ever like a nicki verse more than her one on drought 3

I totally disagree with this statement. I felt like if Nicki stayed in NYC her name wouldn't get out of the city. NYC hip hop isn't as dominant as it once was so how could she be a potential pop star with a region that has long been declining in popularity. Also who knows whether the Young Money style would last another year. I frankly don't care because I'm enjoying it right now. I think its comical, fun, and the crew seems to be having fun with it. If it wasn't for Young Money I wouldn't be listen to hip hop again honestly. After my "back packer" phase and having to suffer through the 50 Cent's domination, I needed something ridiculous to pull me back in. However, I do think Nicki has potential to break out of the Young Money mold, just her timing has to be right. But time will tell for that.

I felt like if Nicki stayed in NYC her name wouldn't get out of the city. NYC hip hop isn't as dominant as it once was so how could she be a potential pop star with a region that has long been declining in popularity.

wait, this is what i said

I think its comical, fun, and the crew seems to be having fun with it.

this is true for college improv comedy troupes, but that doesn't make me want to watch them

having to suffer through the 50 Cent's domination

i think it goes w/o saying that g-unit > young money in every conceivable fashion

Well matter of opinion and different experiences. What are you going to do?