There’s a lot we don’t know about the reigning queen of Rap, Onika Tanya Maraj, popularly known as Nicki Minaj.
She didn’t have the perfect childhood, and growing up was tough, as she once revealed by the star. She’s had to fight for everything and has always been successful.
Here, we will be giving you ten unpopular facts about the Queen. These facts are just a glimpse of who she truly is, how she was shaped, and what she’s gone through.
10 Facts About Nicki Minaj
1. Her father was a gospel singer.
Nicki Minaj’s father was a gospel singer. Aside from being a gospel artiste, he was sadly an alcoholic and a drug addict, who not only beat their mother but also set their house on fire in December 1987. This broke Nicki Minaj in the time she was just young and coming of age.
Onika Tanya Maraj was born on December 8, 1982, in the Saint James district of Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago.
She has an older brother named Jelani, a younger brother named Micaiah, and a younger sister named Ming.
Her father died in February 2021 when a hit-and-run driver knocked him down – he was 64 years of age.
2. She came to America as an illegal immigrant.
She revealed in 2024 that she is not a US citizen and at the time she came to the states, her father and mother had a lawful permanent residency. She has so far made history in the U.S despite not being a citizen herself.
3. She was fired from at least 15 jobs for discourtesy.
At the age of 19, as she struggled with her acting career, she worked as a waitress at a Red Lobster in the Bronx, but was fired for discourtesy to customers. According to Nicki Minaj, she wasn’t taking the disrespect that came with the job, so she quit.
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4. She was discovered by Lil Wayne.
After Minaj was discovered by fellow rapper Lil Wayne, she signed a recording contract with his Young Money Entertainment. That November, she appeared with Gucci Mane and Trina on the remix of “5 Star Bitch” by Yo Gotti. Her album “Pink Friday” had big features, all thanks to Lil Wayne, whom she remains loyal to.
5. Her first identity was “Cookie” before moving to “ Harajuku Barbie” and finally “Nicki Minaj”.
She’s had so many names and alter egos. These represented different sides of her that she feels inspire her when making her music.
6. In May 2017, Minaj offered via Twitter to pay college tuition fees and student loans for 30 of her fans.
She appeared to grant their requests, ranging from $500 for school supplies to $6,000 for tuition, promising to respond to more requests in a month or two.
7. In an interview with Rollingstone, Minaj revealed that she had an abortion as a teenager and She said that it was the hardest thing she had gone through, and although it “haunted” her, she stands by her decision as she “didn’t have anything to offer a child”.
8. She and Cardi B had been at war for years now.
At a New York Fashion Week after-party in 2018, rapper Cardi B threw one of her high-heeled shoes in Minaj’s direction and attempted to physically attack her; bodyguards intervened, leaving Cardi B with a bump on her forehead.
She, Cardi, went on an Instagram rant that Minaj had “liked” negative social media comments about her ability to take care of her newborn daughter. Minaj denied the allegations on her Queen Radio show. It was later revealed that Nicki Minaj never liked a tweet shading Cardi B and that Cardi B had probably been misled by her fans.
9. On May 25, 2024, Minaj was detained when marijuana was found in her luggage at Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam, Netherlands.
Nicki Minaj was detained for over 30 minutes during her tour in a shocking way. Officials said ‘weed’ was found in one of her luggage. This led to her being kept for some minutes. She was detained while she was boarding a plane to perform a concert in Manchester, England. She was fined and released the same day.
10. She dated Meek Mills from early 2015 until January 2017, and in October, she announced her marriage to her childhood friend, Kenneth Petty, and they have a child now, whose name is “Papa Bear.”