Whether scribbled in history books for some good, great, or awesomely bad reasons, 2018 brought with it some of modern Pop culture’s most memorable moments.
Now, as the year draws to a close, TGJ is reflecting on 31 moments that rocked – and to some degree shaped – the Urban and Pop musical landscape as we know it.
Next, we’ll look back on Nicki Minaj‘s most controversial year to date:
Nicki may have seen her personal life take a kick at the year’s kickoff (with the revelations of her imprisoned brother’s attack and news of her breakup with Nas), but professionally the rapper/singer/actress was certainly flying high on what seemed to be mounting anticipation for her long-awaited fourth album.
Taking an extended break to finish work on her newest opus, later called ‘Queen,’ the rapper re-emerged in April with songs ‘Barbie Tingz’ and ‘Chun-Li.’ News of the long-awaited singles’ arrivals was quickly overshadowed, however, by Minaj’s own confirmation that she was beefing with fellow rapstress Cardi B.
The beef, though long suspected, was believed to be squashed courtesy of the Migos-led ‘Motorsports’ video (which prominently features both femcees). Instead, that’s where the issues escalated apparently.
After the two were photographed at May 2018’s Met Gala in a seemingly cordial embrace (click here to read more), fans thought the incident was behind them. Shifting focus to her album (pushed back to late summer), August saw Minaj finally introduce music lovers to the body of work in full – a move that , to the surprise of many, was greeted with mixed critical reviews and lower than expected commercial acclaim. Unexpectedly, she was bested for Billboard 200’s top spot by rapper Travis Scott.
In addition to earning negative press for her unsportsmanlike response to the loss, Minaj took another L just weeks later when she announced the postponement of her co-billed tour with fellow rap hitmaker, Future, designed to support the ailing LP.
As if that didn’t give detractors enough reason to celebrate, they were overjoyed when reports surfaced indicating she and Cardi were not only beefing again, but nearly came to blows at the ‘Harper’s Bazaar’ Icons Party.
Later squashing the beef (as seen below), Minaj took yet another loss when she announced support for ‘Fefe’ co-star/rapper Tekashi 69, who is facing multiple charges including racketeering, child indecency, and more.
Though the losses were aplenty, there were several noteworthy wins too. In addition to learning ‘Queen’ crossed the platinum certification threshold just months after its release, she also was awarded news she’d become the first woman in Hot 100 history to have over 100 entries.
Here’s hoping 2019’s an overall better year for our favorite Harajuku Barbie.