Nicki Minaj is on the latest cover of Marie Claire magazine this month. In the candid Q&A, writer Amy Wallace picked fan questions from the Barbz themselves to ask Nicki. Throughout the interview, Nicki expanded on the relationship she has with fans, the power of social media, and her many roles—in music, movies, and more.
"I'm very aware that millions of people on Twitter have no idea what we're talking about," she told Wallace. "That's because "we kind of have our own language. I used to think it was just a Queens language or a New York language or an East Coast language, but now it's a Barb Nation language. I have South African Barbz. Japanese. German. Saudi Arabian. You can be a Barb wherever you live."
But what's truly incredible about the Barbz is that Nicki does, in fact, have a very close relationship with them, something you can witness daily on Twitter.
I tell my Barbz, 'You guys know the difference between rap, play, and dead-ass serious.' They know the difference between those three Nickis. And they're so smart.
"With social media, there's a difference in the fan-artist relationship," she says. "When someone can hear you speaking through your thoughts and words, they get to make a very quick judgment—quicker than they'd have been able to make in the '80s or '90s. They get to feel: Are you real? Is this you? I tell my Barbz, 'You guys know the difference between rap, play, and dead-ass serious.' They know the difference between those three Nickis. And they're so smart. They teach me every day. They're the meat and potatoes of who Nicki Minaj is."
Nicki also spoke on her multi-faceted career, including her role in the upcoming movie The Other Woman and her album, tentatively called The Pink Print, which she expects to drop next year. "I at least want to do three more albums. If I can do that, I'll feel complete," she says, later adding that she's become the poster child for doing the things that no one expects.
Read more of her interview over at Marie Claire and watch her shoot below:
