This is pretty huge! In part 1 of their two part interview, Nick (who Perez calls the “Reigning Queen of Rap!) and Perezito discuss Pink Friday, getting her start in the rap game, Lil Wayne, her omnipresence, rivalry with female rappers, Trina, Missy Elliot, Queen Latifah, Foxy Brown, Remy Ma and more!

On Sunday night, Lil Wayne’s colleagues, supporters, collaborators and family members got together in style in Miami at the “Welcome Home, Tunechi” party. Hip-hop luminaries like Drake, Bryan “Baby” Williams, Busta Rhymes and DJ Khaled all came out to support Weezy and express just how much they were happy to see him out of Rikers Island and back on the streets. But nobody was happier than protégé Nicki Minaj.

“I’m just so happy. I just want to hold him and hug him and kiss him,” Minaj said of Wayne. Asked about the first conversation they had when they saw each other, Minaj noted that Wayne was completely up on things.

“You know what he talked to me about? ‘Roman’s Revenge,’ ” she said, referencing the recently leaked collaboration with Eminem from her upcoming debut album, Pink Friday. “He was like, ‘What’s up, Roman?’ I was like, ‘How did you know about that?’

Though she was unsure about the immediate future for her friend and label boss, she certainly had a wish list. “I’m pretty sure he’s going to go tour,” she told Sway on the red carpet before the party. “I’d like to see him do a world tour this time. And I’d love to see him in a movie, I think. I don’t know why. I really want to see him break into that.”

No matter what is next for Wayne, Minaj felt that even though the past several months have been difficult, she feels like it was ultimately positive. “It just feels like no matter what, we always just rise above everything,” she said. “We went through this, and our team is stronger than ever. Wayne, we held you down when you were gone. That’s the craziest thing. It’s the most meaningful thing as a CEO to go away and have your team hold it down.”

Nicki Minaj stopped by San Francisco’s KMEL 106.1 for a quick chat. The pink lady spoke about which song of hers she can’t wait to hear on the radio, touring for the next two years, still feeling underground despite her success (“I really don’t feel mainstream yet”), being flown out to perform with Jay-Z and Kanye at Yankee Stadium, and signing boobs for her Barbz. “I do feel like this is a rock star era,” said Nicki.

Source: Rap-Up.com

( CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE FULL PHOTOSHOOT IN THE GALLERY )

Once a foul-mouthed tough chick with a chip on her shoulder, Nicki Minaj has blossomed into one of rap’s most arresting emcees. Now, she’s ready to prove herself with the release of her highly anticipated debut, Pink Friday.

Three years ago, Nicki Minaj sat hunched on a cramped staircase in her native Queens, her crispy black hair tucked behind a pair of chunky gold doorknockers. “Y’all bitches better sharpen ya mothafuckin’ No. 2 pencil – ‘cause I stay on point!” she shouts, waving a brick of Benjamins on reserve for a manicure. The tirade, capped by a pointy acapella freestyle, landed on 2007’s The Come Up DVD, introducing a hardened urbanite with raw, unmined talent.

Today, Nicki clicks her black stiletto heels into a bright studio in Manhattan’s Garment District. She dismisses an egg white breakfast that isn’t to her liking and sifts through a rack of couture, giving the green light to select designs. A personal handler – one of the many on her team – clears the set to make her comfortable as she ducks behind a curtain for makeup and pampering.

Ever since her mentor Lil Wayne welcomed her to his testosterone-fueled Young Money gang on the strength of her DVD appearance, the 25-year-old has sped down the hip-hop highway to become the new decade’s first rap diva. Over the past year, Nicki became the first solo female emcee to top the Rap Songs chart since 2002 with the saccharine “Your Love,” effectively ending rap’s estrogen drought. In October, she shattered a Billboard record by becoming the first rapstress to simultaneously land seven songs (a combination of both solo and featured tracks) in the Hot 100 chart and sell a combined 4.29 million copies.

The numbers are on her side, but Judgment Day arrives on November 22, the day her hyped debut Pink Friday hits stores. Earlier this year, her Cash Money cohorts nudged her into the studio to begin cold recording the LP, attempting to capitalize on the buzz from animated verses on Ludacris’ platinum-certified “My Chick Bad” and Young Money’s “BedRock.” Initially, Nicki balked at the demand, worried that her talents were better suited for 16-bar guest contributions.
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