There’s no stopping Nicki Minaj. The Young Money femcee can check Mariah Carey, Usher, and Ludacris off her growing list of collaborators, and now she’s eyeing the next prize.

The rising star’s plan of attack includes penning a song for another dominant force in pop music. “I think I could come up with some crazy stuff for Beyoncé,” she tells BET. “I have things that I write for girls, like R&B singers.”

After being co-signed by Jay-Z, Lil Wayne’s protégée wants to share some of her Barbie swagger with Mrs. Carter. “Beyoncé, she’s fearless, and I think that she could embody my crazy swag in a female R&B world,” she reveals.

But first, Minaj has her own album to tend to. She will debut her “explosive” first single “Massive Attack” later this month and will perform the Sean Garrett-produced club banger live for the first time on television during MTV Spring Break 2010 in Acapulco, Mexico, airing the week of March 22.

Source: Rap-Up.com

From the opinions of his ex-wife, to the Trey Songz contrasts, to his recent wardrobe choice as the 2010 NBA All-Star Game’s lead performer, many have questioned if Usher’s sex appeal has started to wither. But music video director, TAJ Stansberry, believes the visuals he helmed for his client’s most salacious single yet, “Lil Freak,” will dispel any doubts.

“This probably has the potential to be [his sexiest video ever],” Stansberry says of the 17-hour Tuesday shoot. “As far as people talking about his sex appeal… there was a crowd on set of mostly women and when I looked at their eyes… let’s just say I think he’s going to be okay.”

The 29-year-old director—also responsible for Usher’s Raymond vs. Raymond promo video in December—revealed to VIBE how the music video’s concept will redefine the meaning of the song’s keyword: Freak. “My general idea was to take the word and show it’s many faceted sides, twisting and turning it to where there’s really no distinguishing between one freak and another. Usher went there,” he says. “When you’re engaging in sexual activity, there are many transitions and this is not about what they look like literally, but what they look like metaphorically. It’s about luring people into a situation. Because you have your thoughts on a ménage à trois, but then we’re doing it in a non-obvious way.”

As far as the song’s female feature, Young Money front woman, Nicki Minaj—who can be heard rapping about her pursuit of a belle with “a real big ol’ ghetto booty”—Stansberry says the femcee’s lyrics mirror her role on set. “[Nicki] had a few looks that I really liked. She played the part, but still was her. If you really listen to her words in the song, you can kinda visualize her outfit.”
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Nicki Minaj is chilling on Bowery, her petite glamour neutralizing the dank of Manhattan’s original Skid Row. Buxom and physically expressive, wearing a plush black fur jacket and thigh-high patent leather stiletto pumps, she looks like a snow bunny lost in the frigid city, except instead of a designer pocketbook, she’s clutching an open box of Cinnamon Toast Crunch. Half a block from her luxury room at The Bowery Hotel, a small crowd is gathering and gawking at her silhouette, a couple dudes weakly trying to holler from across the street. One 40-something Boricua with a camera phone musters the courage to ask for a picture, excited to send it to her son, and Minaj sweetly obliges. The scene’s not quite paparazzi status, but in the middle of winter, on a block half flophouse and half condo, this buzzing group of various onlookers is a testament to Nicki Minaj’s universal appeal.

The 25-year-old rapper is hanging around town after her second appearance on BET’s 106 & Park in a week, the latest, to perform “Shakin’ it for Daddy,” her cheeky strip club anthem with Robin Thicke. Though Thicke is presently the bigger star, and it is his song, the crowd (mostly young girls by the sound of it) was clearly there for Minaj, shrieking wildly when she appeared and chanting along rapt during her Thicke-hyping call and response. Immediately after the show aired, the eye-popping, red lace bodycon minidress she wore was a trending topic on Twitter, but even more people are talking about her performance, which completely eclipsed the charismatic Thicke. She was a bespandexed ball of fire, her accents weaving as they do through feminine New York bark, lilting British brogue, valley girl gangsta and the occasional wild tones that came from who knows where but sound like the dialect of a planet not yet discovered. As Minaj emerged and rapped audacious lyrics like Money in the air it’s a festival/ Cause I ba ba ba ba ball (no testicles), her eyes grew wide and wild as if temporarily possessed. But right now she’s not sweating all of that. She’s just trying to get her photo taken as quickly as possible without freezing to death. She’s also trying to snack on some cereal. “You know when I like cereal? At 2AM, right before you go to sleep,” says Minaj. “It’s not the best tip, I don’t think, if you’re trying to lose weight, but I like it right before bed. And you know what I like when I wake up? Leftovers. Like, real food.”

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I don’t know where I fit in the spectrum of rap yet, I think now I’m kind of proving myself, but before, people thought of I was more of a sex symbol or wannabe sex symbol. Now they’re seeing. That’s why I make the goofiest faces, I don’t want people to think I’m up here trying to be cute. I’m trying to entertain, and entertaining is more than exuding sex appeal. I don’t think that’s fun. I don’t find it fun watching someone trying to be sexy. It’s wack.

Source: NecoleBitchie.com

The rapper recently joined the social networking service to much fanfare, quickly amassing more than 172,000 followers.

The prolific MC, however, hasn’t exactly tweeted with the same fury with which he released countless mixtapes. But his sparse messages have been received well, for the most part. They typically feature poetic refrains without much context.

“If we are all here for a reason, I’m just visiting,” he wrote in one message that’s been characteristic of his output.

But a backlash was started by some fans and comedian Lil Duval, who created the topic “#LilWayneDeepTweets.” The tagged posts poke fun at the overly philosophical nature of the rapper’s messages. As a result, Lil Wayne tweeted that if he wasn’t wanted on Twitter he would leave.

Lil Wayne protégé Nicki Minaj, herself a healthy Twitter user, has some advice for the “Lollipop” superstar.

“Less poetry,” she told MTV News from the red carpet of BET’s “Rip the Runway.”

But the female MC urged Wayne not to quit the service, despite the fact that he only has a few days of freedom left; he’s set to begin his one-year jail sentence in New York this week.

“We want to hear what you have to say, Lil Tunechi,” she said, using Wayne’s Twitter handle.

From the looks of things, it doesn’t appear that Wayne will give up on Twitter just yet.

About 12 hours after tweeting that he would leave, the rapper began sending messages again.

“My problem is that I aim to please, and it seems as if [I] need a higher target,” Wayne wrote. “But for now, ‘Bullseye.’ ”

Source: MTV