Nicki Minaj

Her father was Robert Maraj (1956–2021), a financial executive and part-time gospel singer of Dougla (Afro-Trinidadian mother and Indo-Trinidadian father) descent.

Her mother, Carol, is also a gospel singer with Afro-Trinidadian ancestry.

Carol worked in payroll and accounting departments during Minaj's youth.

Onika Tanya Maraj-Petty (born December 8, 1982), known professionally as Nicki Minaj, is a Trinidadian-born rapper, singer and songwriter based in the United States.

Often referred to as the "Queen of Rap", she is known for her musical versatility, animated rap flow, and alter egos.

Onika Tanya Maraj was born on December 8, 1982, in the Saint James district of Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago.

Minaj's father was addicted to alcohol and crack cocaine and had a violent temper, burning down their house in December 1987.

She has an older brother named Jelani, a younger brother named Micaiah, and a younger sister named Ming.

As a child, Minaj and Jelani grew up with their grandmother in Saint James in a household with 11 cousins.

Carol was working numerous jobs in Saint James before getting her green card at the age of 24.

She then moved to the Bronx in New York to attend Monroe College, leaving both Minaj and Jelani in Trinidad with their grandmother.

After graduation, Minaj wanted to become an actress, and she was cast in the Off-Broadway play In Case You Forget in 2001.

At the age of 19, as she struggled with her acting career, she worked as a waitress at a Red Lobster in the Bronx, but was fired for discourtesy to customers.

She said she was fired from "at least 15 jobs" for similar reasons.

Other jobs included customer service representative and office management on Wall Street.

Minaj recalls buying a BMW as a 19-year-old with the money from waitressing.

Minaj briefly signed with Brooklyn group Full Force, in which she rapped in a quartet called the Hoodstars composed of Lou$tar (son of "Bowlegged Lou"), Safaree Samuels (Scaff Beezy) and 7even Up.

In 2004, the group recorded the entrance song for WWE Diva Victoria, "Don't Mess With", which was featured on the compilation album ThemeAddict: WWE The Music, Vol.6.

Minaj later left Full Force and uploaded songs on her Myspace profile, sending several of her songs to people in the music industry.

She first gained recognition after releasing three mixtapes between 2007 and 2009.

Later, Fendi, CEO of Brooklyn label Dirty Money Entertainment, signed Minaj to his label in 2007 under a 180-day contract.

Originally adopting the stage name Nicki Maraj, she eventually changed it to Nicki Minaj stating that "my real name is Maraj. Fendi flipped it when he met me because I had such a nasty flow!"

Minaj's debut album, Pink Friday (2010), topped the US Billboard 200 chart; its single "Super Bass" reached number three on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and was later certified diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

Billboard ranked her as the top-selling female rapper of the 2010s and one of the greatest rappers of all time.

She has the most number-one albums (3) and top-ten songs (23) in the US for a female rapper.

Her various accolades include nine American Music Awards, eight MTV Video Music Awards (including the 2022 Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award), twelve BET Awards, five Billboard Music Awards, a Brit Award, three Guinness World Records, and twelve Grammy Award nominations.

Its follow-up, Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded (2012), explored dance-pop and topped the Billboard 200, spawning the hit single "Starships".

Outside of music, Minaj's film and television career has included voice roles in the animated films Ice Age: Continental Drift (2012) and The Angry Birds Movie 2 (2019), and supporting roles in the films The Other Woman (2014) and Barbershop: The Next Cut (2016)

Minaj is one of the world's best-selling music artists with over 100 million records sold.

Her next album, The Pinkprint (2014), marked a return to her hip hop roots.

Its single "Anaconda" peaked at number two on the Hot 100 and became the first music video by a solo female rapper to reach one billion views on YouTube.

Eventually, when Minaj was five, Carol got her first house, on 147th Street in South Jamaica, Queens and brought both Minaj and Jelani to live with her and their father.

Minaj claimed she came to the United States as an illegal immigrant, although by the time she moved to the United States her mother and subsequently her father had lawful permanent residency.

Minaj recalled, "I don't think I had a lot of discipline in my household. My mom motivated me, but it wasn't a strict household. I kind of wanted a strict household."

Minaj successfully auditioned for admission to Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts, which focuses on visual and performing arts.

In 2016, Time included her on their annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world.

Throughout her career, Minaj's outspoken views, feuds with other rappers, her personal life, and her fanbase have received significant media coverage and controversy.

Her 2019 collaboration with Karol G, "Tusa", became the longest-running number-one single on the Argentina Hot 100 chart.

She achieved her first two US number-one singles in 2020 with the collaborations "Say So (Remix)" with Doja Cat and "Trollz" with 6ix9ine.

In 2022, she earned her first solo number-one on the Hot 100 with "Super Freaky Girl", the lead single from her fifth album, Pink Friday 2 (2023), which also debuted atop the Billboard 200.