Alright, everyone, it’s finally time. I wasn’t really looking forward to this, but here we go: it’s time for a review of the new Nicki Minaj album “Queen.”
You guys know I usually start these reviews by introducing the artist if I didn’t review any of their previous works, but I don’t really think I need to do that here because chances are, you know who Nicki Minaj is: she's been one of the most popular hip-hop artists (and arguably the most noteworthy female hip-hop artist in the 2010s, if not of all time) ever since she was discovered by Lil Wayne in 2009 and featured on the popular Young Money song “BedRock.” She released a trio of highly successful albums in the early 2010s, with “Pink Friday,” “Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded” and “The Pinkprint,” and she’s also released a bevy of massive-charting singles like “Your Love,” “Moment 4 Life,” “Super Bass,” “Starships,” “Stupid Hoe,” “Beez in the Trap,” “Pound The Alarm,” “Anaconda,” “Only,” “Truffle Butter,” “No Frauds,” and many, many more. She’s also had several big features and collaborations on songs like “Bottomz Up,” “Monster,” “Make Me Proud,” “Dance (A$$),” “Turn Me On,” “Beauty and a Beat,” “Bang Bang,” “Hey Mama,” “Side To Side,” “Rake It Up,” “MotorSport,” and a whole lot more.
Now, I’ve admittedly defended Nicki a bit against some of the criticism she’s received among some friends of mine who hate every single thing about her because I’m not gonna lie, there is most certainly appeal to her music and some of her songs are quite fun. However, while I’ve come to her defense quite a few times, I can’t say I was very excited going into this record. While the leadoff single “Chun-Li” was fun (if a bit goofy), it felt like all I heard out of her afterward was controversy after controversy, from appearing on the cover of Russia’s “Harper’s Bazaar” in light of the country’s poor treatment of LGBTQ+ citizens (as an LGBTQ+ myself, I definitely don’t think that was the best move) to her heated, aggressive messages towards writer Wanna Thompson and her interview with Elle where she seemed to shame sex workers despite basing her career around being sex-positive.
And not only did that already turn me off going into this album, but beyond hearing that it would be 20 tracks and an hour long, I also approached this with little excitement because, while it’s not her single, the last song I heard Nicki Minaj on was “FEFE” with 6ix9ine, also a hypocritical feature as she is working with, and now apparently touring with, a man who was arrested for Use of a Child in a Sexual Performance. And beyond that hypocrisy, “FEFE” just happens to be a completely hideous song (potentially the worst Billboard Hot 100 Top 10-peaking track this year), and it feels like a poor attempt by Nicki to regain some relevance as, over the last year or so, many have believed that her title of “Queen of Rap” seems to have been taken over by Mrs. Cardi B, who has put out several chart-topping hits and has released a very well-received debut album (I also really enjoyed it), possibly more so than several major hip-hop albums this year. So, while I don't like the idea of pitting female rappers against each other, I’m already walking into this thing with a sour taste in my mouth. Will Nicki actually create something great out of it? Let’s find out:
Ganja Burn: To kick off the album, Nicki takes on something rather upbeat and surprisingly inspired by afrobeat. It’s definitely a surprising direction for Nicki (or, maybe not, I guess since Drake is moving away from the dancehall and afrobeat stuff, someone else has to take it over. Is this another situation where I ask "Drake, what have you done?"), but it doesn’t really stick with me all that much. Nicki’s flow is certainly solid as always, and her vocals on the chorus sound nice, but the hook itself is just unfortunately dull, and the production, while a nice change of direction for Nicki, just feels slightly watered down to the point where it simply feels like “change for the sake of change” instead of “natural evolution.” Not a terrible track, but not really a hard-hitting starter.
Majesty (feat. Eminem & Labrinth): Nicki is joined here by Labrinth, as well as legendary MC Eminem (who she was rumored to be dating at one point), as the three create a rather braggadocious song that has a somewhat dark feel to it. Nicki’s performance is certainly confident, but her flow does little to stick with me (and her singing on the outro is honestly somewhat cringe-y), and Labrinth’s hook is nothing all that special. What really saves the song from being one of the worst on the album is Eminem’s guest verse: I love his confident tone, quick and rapid-fire flow, and his clever lyricism on here. Overall, most of the song is very forgettable, but shoutout to Eminem for reminding us all that he’s still got it after all this time!
Barbie Dreams: This is quite the tell-all track on the album. Nicki pays homage to The Notorious B.I.G. by giving her version of his song “Just Playing (Dreams),” but she also uses the track to diss a number of big-name male artists (although, apparently it’s in good fun because a number of the artists she disses are friends of hers, and some of them, like Lil Wayne and Swae Lee, are featured on the album). Admittedly, though, I do like the old-school, groovy instrumentals on this one, and I think Nicki’s lyricism is very clever here (if a little too unapologetic at some points). The feel changes on the third verse, but the more trap-inspired vibe of the second part has some cool click-clack percussion, and Nicki’s flow remains very strong here. Definitely dig this cut.
Rich Sex (feat. Lil Wayne): As I said about the last track, Lil Wayne is featured on this album, and this is the track that he is part of. It’s a very standard, dark-sounding trap track without much to keep it all that interesting. The somewhat sinister keys are kinda cool, though they definitely sound like something I’ve heard more than a few times before. Nicki’s performance is relatively boring to me (and her weird ad-libs on the outro are, again, complete cringe), and I think what really keeps this interesting to me is Lil Wayne’s really fun flow, and given that he has such a small presence on the song, he isn’t able to do the kind of saving that Eminem did. Pretty bland song, all things considered.
Hard White: Allegedly, many people believed this track was aimed at Cardi B, though given when it was written (February/March 2017, before Cardi B’s big breakout with “Bodak Yellow”), it appears that’s not the case. Instead, what it feels like she’s trying to do is have production that sounds like every other trap-rap song on the planet. Yes, her flow is still very distinct and hard-hitting, and I can tell she’s giving effort with her performance, but I feel like the combination of the very standard beat and instrumentation, combined with Nicki’s attempts at auto-crooning on the hook, just take away from the song a lot. It’s not a terrible track, it’s just unfortunately bland.
Bed (feat. Ariana Grande): Teaming with her good friend (and one of my personal favorites) Ariana Grande, Nicki and Ari talk on this very intimate and sexual track about companionship in the bed. I was really hoping that, by bringing Ariana onto this cut, we would start getting the ship back afloat here, but unfortunately, this is another very problematic track for me. I think that the very bouncy synth-driven production is pretty nice, but it definitely doesn’t feel all that special in comparison to a lot of the collaborations these two have done in the past. And while Nicki’s flow is relatively fun, I feel like Ariana doesn’t have enough of a presence on this one, and when she does come in, she’s not given enough room to really show off her vocal potential until the very end. It’s not bad, it’s just lacking.
Thought I Knew You (feat. The Weeknd): Feels like I’ve been talking about this guy a lot with his features lately, but my man The Weeknd jumps on this track to talk with Nicki about people that they thought they knew. I feel like Nicki’s attempts at singing here just don’t feel very exciting (and that’s a shame, because some of her singing has been good in the past), and the production, once again, just feels like every other trap-rap song I’ve ever heard. Once again, this is a case where Nicki is saved by her feature because The Weeknd’s vocals are great as usual, and he comes through with some great vocal melodies on his verse and pre-choruses. Even then, I feel like Nicki doesn’t really have strong enough vocal interplay with Abel (The Weeknd), so really, The Weeknd just kinda comes in and owns this song for himself. Shoutout to him for saving this from being one of the album’s worst, but it’s a shame Nicki couldn’t give him enough support.
Run & Hide: This cut sees Nicki taking some attempts at an R&B flavor while talking about some of her relationship woes. Unfortunately, I don’t find her singing on this track to really be all that compelling, and I also think that the overpowering percussion just seems to hide that the instrumentals are just so bland and forgettable. I can see how this song can appeal to some people as something sad, but for me, it’s just a painful reminder that Nicki is selling herself short on this project, both in regards to her ear for production and in her vocal performances. And given that the song ends so quickly (it’s just over two and a half minutes) without any really hard-hitting moments, it just feels like one of those cuts that will sink in with the rest of the album and be forgotten after one play.
Chun Swae (feat. Swae Lee): Allegedly the prequel to “Chun-Li,” Nicki recruits frequent collaborator and one-half of Rae Sremmurd, Swae Lee, for this SIX-MINUTE TRACK! Given that Nicki’s struggling so far with three and four-minute songs, I was terrified to see how she'd do on a 6-minute song. And honestly, I knew I was in for a bad time when I really wasn’t digging the Swae Lee feature. Most of you guys know that I generally like Rae Sremmurd, and I was one of the…okay, I was the ONLY person that found “Swaecation” to be my favorite side of “SR3MM,” but honestly, his falsetto on this track is more grating than usual, to the point where my ears honestly hurt listening to it. And while Nicki comes through with some occasionally fun flow, the slower-paced production just threatens to put me to sleep. This goes on far too long, and it’s easily one of the worst on the album.
Chun-Li: This was the first big single that released alongside the album, and on it, Nicki compares herself to the iconic “Street Fighter” character Chun-Li (although, as a gamer myself, I need to have a sit-down with Nicki because I don’t know if she realizes that Chun-Li is not the “villain” of the “Street Fighter” series). The production on this one is bouncy and fun enough, and I do like Nicki’s very confident performance and flow here, though I don’t really find the hook all that fun, and I find it repetitive when Nicki talks about how she’s King Kong, yes, she’s King Kong, really King Kong, she’s the King Kong. Still, there is some fun to be had with this track, and I think it was definitely an appropriate first single.
LLC: Apparently one of Nicki’s favorites from the album because of the precision, breath control, and overall skill of her rapping flow, if anything, I respect her commitment to this song because, after going hard on the third verse, she apparently rewrote the first two verses to go just as hard on them. And yes, I do agree that her rap flow is pretty strong, but unfortunately, as great as her technicality is, rapid-fire flow isn’t going to lift a song, and unfortunately, the rest of the track crumbles around her: the production consists of what sounds like some kind of grating xylophones, and the hook doesn’t really stick with me either. That, and I also think she blew the rapid-fire verse too early and should’ve said it for the end because that would’ve been the perfect “mic drop” kind of moment. Instead, it comes first, and after it ends, everything else just falls off with it.
Good Form: A Mike WiLL Made-It assisted banger, I admittedly do like some of the instrumentals on this one, and the overall darker vibe of the song is definitely working, as is Nicki’s fast-paced, rapid-fire flow. And while her vocal performance can be a little bit grating at times, I do think she hits hard enough overall with her wordplay and flow to keep things interesting. And again, as I said earlier, for what feels like the first time on the record, the production actually sticks and feels really exciting. I’m just saying, Nicki, even if this album ends up being disappointing, all will be forgiven if you release this as a single. Really like this track.
Nip Tuck: Okay, when I first listened to this, I had no idea what a nip tuck was, and even though I know what it is now, it just sounds silly to say. Nip tuck. Nip tuck. Oh, uh, anyway, I’m not really digging that Nicki seems to be selling herself short again by making some very standard, electronic R&B music that honestly entirely reads to me as “female discount Chris Brown.” Everything about the song, from Nicki’s autotune-assisted vocal inflection to the beat and dance production, just sounds to me like something you’d hear from Chris Brown…and given how many Chris Brown songs I’ve heard that sound almost exactly like this, I feel like Nicki should be doing far more than trying to bite his style. For being one of the most distinguished personalities in hip-hop, does she really think songs like this do her justice? Well, unfortunately, they don’t.
2 Lit 2 Late Interlude: Oh, there’s an interlude on this thing. Okay then. So, Nicki uses this interlude to basically say goodbye to an ex that underappreciated her but suddenly misses her now that it’s over. It’s a rather bright track with some kinda sweet keys, and I do like Nicki’s very pretty vocals here, but there’s not much else to say about it. It’s a nice enough interlude, it serves its purpose, nothing more and nothing less.
Come See About Me: Something more ballad-y than some of Nicki’s other stuff, this one sees her in a slightly more vulnerable state, as she talks about managing her personal life while being in the limelight. And admittedly, I do like this one. Sure, it doesn’t do much different than the usual Nicki Minaj ballad, but it does have a nice, suitably emotional vibe to it. Nicki’s vocals are very gorgeous here, the piano-driven production is equally pretty and simplistic in the best of ways, and I feel like this is actually one of the better cuts on the album. I know Nicki doesn’t really come through with these kinds of songs too often, but when she does, they usually work, and this time, it really works.
Sir (feat. Future): A surprise collaboration with Future, whom she is supposedly set to go on tour with, this one has some very dark, murky production with one of the blandest hooks on the album, and I think Nicki’s slower flow on here is, once again, sleep-inducing. And, if that’s not bad enough, Future is one of the most hit-or-miss features you can find, and in this case, he most certainly misses. His flow is boring, his vocals are not really all that fun, and overall, it’s just bad.
Miami: You know, I was shocked earlier that Nicki Minaj was touring with 6ix9ine, who used a minor in a sexual performance, but to make matters worse in terms of working with controversial artists, Nicki raps over a beat inspired by the ever-so-controversial rapper Kodak Black! Digging yourself an even deeper hole now, aren’t ya, Nicki? And once the song actually started off, I couldn’t believe that Nicki was this committed to setting the bar lower. Sure, there’s some good energy on the beat here, and I can see many of her hardcore fans just saying “ohh, this goes hard! Yes Queen!” and all that, but honestly, it just again sounds like everything that she’s done before. And even her flow, which is typically her strong suit, again feels like so many of her other songs. It doesn’t establish itself or stand out at all. I’m just glad I’m getting close to the end of the album at this point.
Coco Chanel (feat. Foxy Brown): The final full-length song on the album, Nicki experiments a bit with dancehall and even raps in Spanish on the hook. Once again, the production is really dark and somewhat sinister, but it again just feels so out-of-place with everything else on the record, since it’s really one of the only cuts that tries to experiment with a different genre or style. Nicki’s performance is rather confident (even if the hook is less than stellar), but I didn’t really care for Foxy Brown’s unfocused flow. It doesn’t really add anything to the song or make it anymore dynamic, and all in all, it just feels like Nicki trying to jump on the dancehall bandwagon because, you know, dancehall is in now that Drake showed it could top charts (I'll ask it here, Drake, what have you done?). Pretty lackluster, disappointing last full-length song.
Inspirations Outro: As it says in the title, Nicki pays tribute here to the artists that have inspired her music, from legends like Lauryn Hill to Caribbean artists like Destra Garcia. It’s got a nice beat to it as it continues from “Coco Chanel,” and Nicki’s flow is fun enough, but once again, there’s not really much beef to this or much reason to go back after one listen. It serves its purpose, and that’s about it. Decent end to the album, just not that special.
FEFE (6ix9ine ft. Nicki Minaj & Murda Beatz): As I mentioned in the update at the top of the review, "FEFE" is not Nicki's song, it's 6ix9ine's, and even though it wasn't included in the initial release of the album, apparently Nicki added the song as a bonus track to the album on streaming services to boost the record a bit on the charts. Regardless of said reason, the song is still utterly disgusting. Beyond the dull production and imagery that's rather unsettling given that 6ix9ine was arrested for using a child in a sexual performance, the vocals are equally tedious. 6ix9ine decides that, instead of screaming his head off, he'll try to jump on the auto-croon bandwagon, only to forget that he can't actually sing. Nicki's performance also simply screams "I'M SELLING OUT!" as it's clear she's not giving her all and instead is simply trying to work with a relevant artist so that she can maintain chart success in the wake of Cardi B seemingly taking most of it away. Wow, that's probably the hardest I've ever harped on a song in any of these reviews, but this one deserves it: it's truly hideous, it has no business being in the Top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 as we speak, 6ix9ine has no business being in this industry, and Nicki has no business working with someone like him.
Yeahhh, this one just REEKS of disappointment. I don’t want to hate this album, and I know Nicki stans will not be happy that I dared say something bad about their “Queen,” but unfortunately, I found the album to be very lackluster. Yes, there were a few good tracks on here, and yes, Nicki’s performances were solid (if repetitive), but all in all, a lot of this record was just blandly produced song after blandly produced song, and it also felt like a case where, a lot of the time, Nicki’s features did a lot of the heavy lifting for her. There could’ve been even more songs in my “least favorites” section below if not for some of the very strong features from artists like Eminem and The Weeknd, and while I should add points for that, I won’t, because…well, for one, the features as a whole are hit-or-miss, but also, the fact that features have to lift someone like Nicki, who’s typically a very dynamic and exciting performer, should just show how much this album is lacking. I’m sorry, I don’t want to be disrespectful towards the album, and there’s a good chance I’ll probably still defend Nicki against some of my friends that hate everything about her, but unfortunately, this just gave them some ammunition. Nicki stans will certainly fall in love with the album, but honestly…this thing just isn't doing it for me.
Sorry, Nicki.
Favorite tracks: Barbie Dreams, Good Form, Come See About Me
Least favorite tracks: Rich Sex, Run & Hide, Chun Swae, LLC, Nip Tuck, Sir, Miami, Coco Chanel, FEFE (since Nicki apparently added it to the album)
Rating: Awful
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