My favorite song from high school: ‘Five Star Chick Remix’ by Yo Gotti
The first time I heard Nicki Minaj, my life was changed.
I was hanging out in the school gym before basketball practice in ninth grade and one of my friends said, ‘You’re voice is so high and squeaky, you sound like the girl on Yo Gotti’s new song.’ I had never heard the song before so I asked my friend to play it for me. He passed me his headphones and pressed play on “Five Star Chick Remix” featuring Gucci Mane, Trina, and my soon-to-be obsession Nicki Minaj.
As soon as I heard, “I just had an epiphany I need to go to Tiffany’s,” it was over. I downloaded the song on my iPod Nano that night and could rap her entire verse by the next day. It didn’t take too long before about a third of my iPod consisted of songs that she either had a hot verse on, like Young Money’s “Bedrock” or songs where she would spit over someone else’s beat — I know y’all know the words to her “Donk” freestyle a.k.a. “Itty Bitty Piggy.”
My dad always had G-unit playing in the car when he would pick me up on weekends and I started writing poetry when I was eight, so naturally I developed a love of rap really early. Female rappers like Missy Elliott, Trina, Lil’ Kim, Eve, the third member of 3LW who nobody remembers, and Remy Ma (don’t even get me started) all had places in my mixed CD collection as a kid.
Nicki represents all of the possibilities of what a woman can accomplish in a space that is overwhelmingly dominated by men.
However, Nicki’s music did something different for me. Never had I seen a female rapper climb the charts so quickly. Being featured on songs with Ludacris, Soulja Boy, and Lil’ Wayne had me patiently waiting for her debut album to drop. When Pink Friday was released in late 2010, I played it on repeat in my car for months. To this day I can rap you any verse from any song, not just from that album, but every one since then too.
For me, Nicki represents all of the possibilities of what a woman can accomplish in a space that is overwhelmingly dominated by men. Her unapologetic sex appeal, business savvy approach to the industry, and hard-hitting punchlines keep me forever wanting more. She’s come a long way since the Yo Gotti collab, winning countless awards, expanding her empire to include perfume and clothing, taking on movie roles, and appearing on Billboard’s Hot 100 more times than any other female artist. She’s the queen, period.
