Recently, rapper Nicki Minaj released a new song, “Lookin A** N*gga” and dropped a video for the track yesterday. Despite her revealing outfit and her usual lyrics implying sex; in this song, she raps, “I don’t want sex, give a f*ck about your ex, I don’t even want a text from y’all n*ggas.” Who pissed Ms. Minaj off this time?
At the end of the video, we see the 31-year old female rapper shooting two guns into the air and then, presumably at a male, whose eyes we see throughout the entire clip. For most of us who are used to Nicki Minaj’s crazy personas, this is nothing new—she is just reminding us that yes, somedays she can be a Barbie, but then other days, she is a crazy boss bitch that you do not want to mess with!
The video itself is not too offensive. The lyrics to the song may be, as many critics do not find value in her repeating the n word over and over. However, what’s definitely offensive is that Minaj posted a photo of Malcolm X on her website with the name of her song, which made the Malcolm x picture look like artwork for the single. It’s strange for the ‘Pink Friday’ singer to connect her material and Malcolm X’s legacy–in fact, it’s very strange.
She posted an apology on Instagram earlier today that read,
“What seems to be the issue now? Do you have a problem with me referring to the people Malcolm X was ready to pull his gun out on as Lookin A** Ni***z? Well, I apologize. That was never the official artwork nor is this an official single. This is a conversation. Not a single, I am in the video shooting at Lookin A** Ni**z and there happened to be an iconic photo of Malcolm X ready to do the same thing for what he believed in!!!! It is in no way to undermine his efforts and legacy. I apologize to the Malcolm X estate if the meaning of the photo was misconstrued. The word “ni**a” causes so much debate in our community while the “ni**a” behavior gets praised and worship. Let’s not. Apologies again to his family. I have nothing but respect an adoration for u. The photo was removed hours ago. Thank you.”
Even if the picture was used only to promote the song (and not the official artwork), it seems inappropriate considering the clip has nothing to do with Malcolm X’s legacy. Several organizations have already started boycotting Nicki Minaj and her track. We’re not sure if the apology will change things. Furthermore, as of right now, the Malcolm X photo is still on her website. We know Nicki makes her own decisions and usually doesn’t care about the opinions of others, but this may be a good time to remove the picture completely, considering the amount of backlash she has received.
Source: Wall Street Journal/Nicki Minaj Website
Author: Elise Englander
Follow her on Twitter: @EliseRachel_
2 Comments
What did she do wrong at the end of the day?
Ummm…that was some apology…her tone was not coming from an sincere place.