Nicki Minaj Talks Going On A “Social Media Diet,” Kobe Bryant’s Death, Regrets, New Music And More: “I Feel Like Albums Should Be A Surprise”

Nicki Minaj sat down for an hour-long conversation with her manager, Irving Azoff, and opened up about her social media feud with Meek Mill, new music, and her support for ousted former Grammy CEO Deborah Dugan.

When it comes to keeping it candid, Nicki is our girl. The Queens rapper has made headlines in the last few days with her online battle with her ex Meek Mill and her controversial lyrics from her new song #Yikes. Regardless, the alleged #NickiHateTrain never puts a damper on the 37-year-old star, who refuses to shy away from telling her point of view. And in reality, that’s what we love her for, as well as being one of the most talented and longest-standing emcees in the game. Her transparency was present in her talk with Azof this past Wednesday at the Pollstar Live conference Q&A at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.

First and foremost, Nicki said she regrets her online fight with Meek Mill, “Keep your eye on the bigger picture is what I would say. If I had to, I would have redone the whole thing and just kept my mouth shut. Put my music out and shut the hell up.” She continued, “Listen, it never fails. Every time I do it, five minutes later, I’m like, why the f— did I…? Every single time. But it’s a good lesson in knowing how to master your anger and emotions. So every time I do that, I like give myself a talking to in my head, like, okay, you played yourself, you shouldn’t have did that. You learned your lesson again. How many times did I learn that lesson? So I gave myself that talk today, sir.”

And Nicki did do that; she put out a sneak peek of her new song “Yikes,” which followed her latest collabs with #KarolG (“Tusa”) and her recent track with #MeghanTrainor (“Nice To Meet Ya”). The rapper said she has more music in store but doesn’t want to give too many details about it. “I’m sure (Republic Records chairman/CEO) Monte Lipman’s going to have a heart attack when he finds out we’re going to leak the single later tonight or tomorrow. But it’s a setup track. It’s not a single. Let me make that clear…  It’s not my single, because the single will be launched with the visual. This is a setup song with no video. Please don’t kill me, y’all. You guys asked me to put it out — don’t forget! If we drop a track on Friday, maybe we’ll do a ‘Queen Radio’ on Friday or Saturday, “said Nicki. As for an album, the celeb said fans will have to stay on their toes. “I feel like albums should be a surprise, sonically, what people can expect. But they can expect to feel like, okay, Nicki’s in a good place. That’s what I’ll say about that.”

When it comes to the drama surrounding the Grammys and its former CEO, Deborah Dugan, Nicki says Dugan has her support. “You’re asking me of all f—ing people what I think about the Grammys. Well… who was that lady that left them and started talking s— about the real deal, about what’s going on over there — what’s her name? Well, shout out to Deb. We need strong women that are willing to say what they have to say, even when they’re getting backlash for it. And every strong woman in here knows exactly what I’m talking about. But you know what? I respect anybody that’s won a Grammy; I feel you ought to be proud of that. That’s a great achievement. But I think the way we judge talent has changed. And that’s all I’ll say about that,” said Nicki.

The rapper also spoke of the loss of Kobe Bryant and his daughter #GiannaBryant, which brings Nicki to tears with just the mention of their names. “See, even right now, I can’t imagine what his wife is feeling, to lose your husband at such a young age, but your child too. We love you, Kobe, and to your wife and to your family and your friends, we are praying for you guys. …. I’m such an easy crier. I’m a crybaby. I’m sorry, y’all.” Looking back at her career, Nicki admitted there are certain songs in her catalog that she isn’t that comfortable with anymore. “I wish I had never recorded ‘Anaconda.’ I like the video, but uhhh.… My first ever solo song on Billboard was ‘Your Love.’ To this day, I hate that. I like the video, but I hate the song. I can go on and on. I hate ‘Starships.’ I mean, like, ewww — ‘starships were meant to fly’? I was like, why did I do that?”

She also mentioned that she regrets saying she was retiring last September. “Once again, another time where I shouldn’t have had had social media on my phone,” she said. “And that’s why, for the last few months, I haven’t had social media on my phone. I’ve just recently put it back in my phone; I’m about to take it back off. … Have you noticed when you take social media off your phone, you as a person feel happier or more at peace? You guys really should try it. I promise you. Because it’s too much of just nonsense and nothingness and looking at what everybody else is doing and comparing yourself to people. When you’re having a great freaking life. We wake up in the morning (and) we’re good. And then we go on social media and make ourselves depressed.”

And while she’s put retirement concerns to rest, she’s still restless about having family. “A lot of babies. And everybody’s always on pregnant belly alert with me. That’s another reason why I have to lose that damn weight. Because I’m like, wait a minute, I want to really enjoy when the pregnant belly is there. I don’t want y’all to be thinking I’m pregnant all the damn time,” she said, adding that she wants to be known as a mother and a mogul. “But you know what? When I see in 10 years, since before I had a dime, I always said I tried to watch what Jay Z did and how he handled hip-hop and  entrepreneurship. And I always look at him, and I take my notes from him. So where you see Jay is right now, that’s what I want to be, in the Nicki Minaj way. I want to still be a staple in rap, but opening doors for new people to not only rap but to do things in the tech space and stuff like that.”