Nicki Minaj is originally from Trinidad and Tobago, but today is based in Queens, New York. She began rapping after first trying her hand at acting. When that proved disappointing, she signed with Full Force, and became part of a rap quartet with 7even Up, Scaff Beezy, and Lou$tar as the other members. The group was not successful, and Minaj left, but uploaded her work to MySpace. She caught the attention of Fendi, Dirty Money Entertainment’s CEO, who signed her.
In 2007, she released “Playtime is Over,” her debut mixtape, on the Dirty Money label, and a subsequent mixtape “Sucka Free.” In 2008, the Underground Music Awards named her “Female Artist of the Year.” Her third mixtape, “Beam Me Up Scotty,” was released in 2009.
The year 2009 proved to be her breakthrough. She signed with Lil Wayne’s Young Money Enntertainmetn, and appeared on numerous singles and mixtapes. “Pink Friday,” her debut album, opened at No. 2 on the Billboard 200. In addition, in 2012 she was the first female rapper to appear at the Grammys. A concert review says:
“The show was great, it was a delight to see the queen of hip hop live!”
Nicki Minaj will be at the KeyBank Center on September 12. Organizers who plan events like this often find using poster printing to create advertising for them works well.