Though it showed an improvement over her debut, Nicki Minaj's second album, 2012's "Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded", still inevitably felt like a sophomore slump. It debuted at number one, spawned a top ten hit in "Starships", but even a reissue, entitled "The Re-Up" couldn't save it from failing to reach the level of success that her debut did, either with the critics or the public. Minaj then had to deal with an ever-increasing criticism of her music, persona, and personal life, and when she faded a bit in the beginning of 2014, rap newcomer Iggy Azalea seemed to be poised to take the throne as hip-hop's new "it" girl. Always the self-proclaimed queen of perseverance, however, Minaj didn't take Azalea's sudden success to be a hindrance to her status, and when she collaborated with Jessie J and 2014's breakout star Ariana Grande on "Bang Bang", she quickly reminded the masses who rap's real female star was. That was a smart move on her part, although following it up with the tasteless "Anaconda" certainly was not (in regards to showing off her artistic abilities, anyway). It certainly begs the question of Minaj could ever really deliver an expansive, unified, and satisfying LP that could harken back to her mixtape days, but still draw from her recent pop-rap blends that truly have made her a star this decade.
Her third album, the Jay-Z inspired "The Pinkprint", answers this question with a resounding yes. From watching Minaj's new stripped-down look to seeing the simple and artistic cover art, this is a record that relies less on fluff and gimmicks, and instead aims to make progressive statements with the rap genre. Misguided moments thwart total perfection (besides "Anaconda", you can do just fine without "Only" or "Feeling Myself"), but as a whole, "The Pinkprint" is definitely Minaj's best album to date. Sporting a songwriter and producers list so mind-numbingly long might at first give off the impression of desperation or excessiveness, but the music that is displayed here is actually very simple, and much like Minaj's new natural image, contains little hooplah and instead nods toward the more artsy side of the pop spectrum. Nicki's flow is as fast, energetic, and aggressive as ever, but this time around she has a bit more savvy, and ebbs and flows her words in a manner that seems natural, not forced or faked. Not to mention that her singing has marginally improved, so her softer tracks like "Grand Piano" and "Pills n Potions" are just as expressive as they should be. Indeed, "The Pinkprint" is all about baring its creator raw, laying the details of her past and her inner doubts front and center. This is dazzling on the one-two jolt of "All Things Go" and "I Lied", and it certainly would've been a triumph if the whole album played off this template. Unfortunately, the needless amount of guest rappers and singers have to come eventually (big-budget records like this always have this tendency), and while some do distract from Minaj's core intentions (here's looking at you Ariana Grande), others do lend a hand in her back-to-basics makeunder (Skylar Grey assists on the excellent "Bed of Lies"). One could say that this record is Minaj's "Prism" moment, where she finds the balance between tacky and tasteful, catering to both of her core audience of mixtape lovers and mainstream pop consumers. "The Pinkprint" is still a little scattershot in how it aims to please multiple demographics, but it still does please nonetheless.
Recommended Tracks in Bold:
1. All Things Go 2. I Lied 3. The Crying Game
4. Get On
Your Knees 5.
Feeling Myself 6. Only
7. Want Some
More 8. Four Door Aventador 9. Favorite
10. Buy A
Heart 11. Trini Dem Girls 12. Anaconda
13. The Night
is Still Young 14. Pills n Potions 15.
Bed of Lies
16. Grand Piano
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