#Nicki Minaj Promises Return Of 'Mixtape Nicki' On New Album: 'That's What's Needed Right Now'

Nicki Minaj will be making her long-awaited return to the music scene with a new album that’s expected to arrive in 2022. It’s been four years since her last album Queen dropped, and fans have been waiting for the Queen of Rap to grace the mic again.

During a recent interview on Power 98.3’s The Dana Cortez Show, Nicki confirmed she’ll be back in the booth in full force on her upcoming project. According to the Young Money rapper, she’s doing things just like she did back in the day when she was a rookie in the game.

“There’s a little bit of full-circledness happening, because I’m creating music kinda like how I used to create music when I first started rapping on mixtapes,” she said. “Which is just having a great experience, enjoying it, being in the moment, staying present in the moment and seeing what happens.”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by DJ Akademiks (@akademiks)

Minaj went onto confirm that “Mixtape Nicki” will make a return on her next album, providing her fans with more vicious bars through which they can channel their “inner bad bitch.”

“Oh, you gotta get Mixtape Nicki! I just feel like that’s what’s needed right now. Like, oh my God!” she continued. “What I do is write raps that connect with people, that make people want to sign a long and channel their inner bad bitch … I love giving that good energy to people and make them feel like, ‘Yo, I’m speaking for you.’”

She added, “You gonna get hints of other things, of course, but yes, you’re going to get that Mixtape Nicki.”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Barbie (@nickiminaj)

Mixtape Nicki made an appearance last year thanks to the rerelease of her breakout mixtape Beam Me Up Scotty, which originally landed back in 2009. Featuring a mix of original songs, remixes and her ferocious rhymes, the project solidified Minaj as force to be reckoned with while earning her a deal with Lil Wayne’s Young Money imprint.

The 2021 reissue featured a handful of new songs, including the Drake and Wayne-assisted “Seeing Green,” and soared to No. 2 on the Billboard 200, making it the highest debuting female rap mixtape ever.

Looking ahead, Nicki Minaj is kickstarting the campaign for her new album with the release of “Do We Have a Problem?” featuring Lil Baby on Friday (February 4). During a recent interview, Nicki admitted the Atlanta rapper might have stolen the show on the song.

“Y’all know I always keep it real about verses and all of that… Lil Baby, he might have… ummm… he might have got me!” she conceded. “But listen, the point is: Lil Baby went super duper hard — pause — and it’s so refreshing to see people still care about that type of stuff. I still care about it.”