Nicki Minaj has dropped her new album, Queen, a week ahead of schedule. Releasing the 19-track record on August 10, to Apple’s Beats 1 radio – the biggest show in the station’s history – the rapper also provided her own track-by-track analysis.
The record itself boasts an impressive feature list – as is to be expected of “one of music’s most iconic presences” – with features from Lil Wayne, Ariana Grande, and Rae Sremmurd, among others. Of particular note is Eminem’s guest appearance on the track “Majesty”, during which which he even outpaces his famously fast verse on “Rap God”.
The Queen track that has brought the most attention, though, is “Barbie Dreams”. The song’s lyrics reference a whole host of other rappers, including Drake (“Drake worth a hundred milli, always buying me shit / But I don’t know if the pussy wet or if he cryin’ and shit”), DJ Khaled (“I had to cancel DJ Khaled, we ain’t speaking/Ain’t no fat n—a telling me what he ain’t eating”), and her ex, Meek Mill (“Meek still be in my DMs, I be having to duck him / ‘I used to pray for times like this,’ face ass when I fuck him”).
In the aforementioned track-by-track analysis, Minaj is sure to clarify that “Barbie Dreams” isn’t actually a diss track, though. “It’s just some funny shit,” she says. “I love them. I said things about people who I know can take a joke and won’t be emotional about it.”
“Reading the reactions to “Barbie Dreams” is f***ing hilarious,” she goes on. “Everyone is saying how disrespectful [it] is, and that’s why I love it.”