UPDATED 1/8, 9:50 p.m. ET: RedOne, the producer behind Nicki Minaj’s “Starships,” says he’s cool with her not wanting to perform the single anymore.
“I have the utmost respect for Nicki Minaj and I love her work very much. I will always respect an artist’s wishes…I feel very proud to have made that record with her along with the global success it made,” he told TMZ.
The producer, legally known as Nadir Khayat, lent his talents to “Starships” for Minaj’s second studio album, Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded, in 2012. The single went on to become one of her most successful and recognizable hits and has been certified platinum nine times, per the Recording Industry Association of America.
Khayat’s other collaborations with Minaj include “Pound the Alarm,” “Whip It” and “Automatic,” all from Roman Reloaded. The two have apparently not worked together since.
The producer has an extensive list of hits, including many of Lady Gaga’s early singles, including, “Just Dance,” “Poker Face,” and “Bad Romance.” He also worked with the likes of Usher, Jennifer Lopez, Pitbull, and others.
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Nicki Minaj has indicated that she won't be performing her smash hit "Starships" anytime soon.
The Pink Friday 2 rapper rang in the New Year with a headlining performance at Miami nightclub E11EVEN on Sunday, Dec. 31, but she stopped the show at one point to address the crowd when "Starships" started to play briefly. "Psyche, psyche, psyche," she said as the music stopped. "I don't perform that song no more, y'all." She was met with jeers from the audience, to which she replied, "I don't like it, what y'all want me to do?"
She didn't directly address her decision to skip the track, but she did share a series of photos and videos from the performance in a post on Instagram.
"If you’re reading this; Wishing you blessings on blessings, prosperity, peace, joy, great health & wisdom. You did it. You made it," she captioned the post. "You got through 2023 even when you didn’t think you had it in you. Look at you being the best you you’ve ever been! Go easy on yourself. This is only the beginning. It’s ok. You can breathe. 🎀 2024 is your time. Show TF OUT!!! DONT WASTE ANOTHER MINUTE!!!!! It’s GO SZN!!!! LETS GO!!!!!!"
It's completely fair for Minaj to skip over past popular material if she's not feeling it anymore—Radiohead famously refuse to play their hit track "Creep" at their shows—but there's been drama surrounding "Starships" in the past.
The anthemic pop track, which peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100, sparked a beef between her and Hot 97 host Peter Rosenberg in 2012 when he called the song "bullshit." The two later sat down to squash the beef, per The Hollywood Reporter, and she admitted that she felt the song overshadowed some of her better, more rap-driven music. Considering Pink Friday 2, her latest album, goes for a more hip-hop-oriented sound for the most part, it's perhaps no surprise that she's not big on "Starships" anymore.
