Machel Montano

Nicki Minaj Touches Down In Trinidad To Celebrate Carnival

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The Queen of Rap exuberantly landed in her motherland yesterday (February 19th). In celebration of the Trinidad and Tobago Carnival, Nicki Minaj returns to her roots to perform this week in her home country. She revealed her arrival on Instagram recently, with a story captioned, “They said the Queen of rap just touch down in she home country. Allyuh hear dah or wah!?”

Ahead of her forthcoming performance, the 40-year-old recently made an appearance on Machel Montano x Destra’s “Shake the Place (Remix).” Both Trinidadian artists are largely known for their contributions to Soca music (often related to the Calypso genre). Alluding to their cultural roots, “Shake the Place” creates an anthem for the Carnival, pulling from Soca’s energetic and dance-inspired beats.

Nicki Minaj Announces Her Arrival in Trinidad

Minaj was born in Saint James in 1982 but later moved to Queens, NY in her early childhood. Although the majority of her life has been spent in America, the “Super Freaky Girl” rapper continues to pay homage to her birthplace. She raps on “Shake the Place,” “Trinidad my country, the greatest carnival of all time. I’m reppin’ that red, that white, that black, I’m reppin’ my real flag.” This year won’t be Minaj’s first appearance at the Carnival, with her last being in 2020 (although she didn’t perform).

In light of Minaj’s return home, Twitter users excitedly posted about their anticipation for her upcoming performance. Fans are especially looking forward to this year’s costume, as she turned heads during her last appearance in her sexy and intricate blue and purple feather number. In reference to the Queen’s arrival video, one user wrote, “From another angle, a fan telling her she loves her and she tells him she loves him back. Hope we get to see Nicki Minaj in a costume for the carnival.”

Keep scrolling for more reactions to Nicki Minaj’s highly anticipated return to Trinidad. Let us know if you’re looking forward to watching in the comments. As always, keep in touch with HNHH for updates on the latest hip-hop news.

Twitter Reacts to Minaj’s Upcoming Concert

Nicki Minaj Drops Her First Verse Of 2023 On “Shake The Place (Remix)” With Machel Montano & Destra

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Nicki Minaj made an undeniably impressive comeback in 2022. She started the year with two coveted Lil Baby collabs – “Do We Have A Problem?” and “Bussin,” and went on to give us impressive efforts alongside guests like Coi Leray and Fivio Foreign. Later on, she dropped her biggest hit in some time, “Super Freaky Girl,” which found her channelling her inner Rick James.

In recent months, things have been relatively quiet on the mother of one’s front musically. There have been occasional updates about her forthcoming album. Still, we didn’t receive Minaj’s first verse of 2023 until Friday (February 17). Earlier this weekend, she joined Machel Montano and Destra on the upbeat remix of their “Shake the Place” single.

Nicki Minaj attends The 2019 Met Gala Celebrating Camp: Notes on Fashion at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2019, in New York City. (Photo by John Shearer/Getty Images for THR)

Throughout her lyrics, the foreign rhymer shows huge love for her Trinidadian roots. “I’m gettin’ a real bag (Kyuh), I get to them real bad / They know they can’t compete with Trini girls, they goin’ out real sad,” she markedly spits on the song’s second verse. For now, it’s available exclusively on YouTube. However, a recent post on Minaj’s Instagram makes us think that will soon change.

On Saturday (February 18) afternoon, the 40-year-old teased an accompanying music video for her “Shake the Place (Remix).” It finds her finally putting her curvaceous figure and dance moves on full display, much to fans’ pleasure. In the caption of her teaser, Minaj wrote, “If you f$&@ with ISLAND GIRLS rep your flag for me in the comments.”

“Trinidad CARNIVAL is about to #ShakeThePlace shake up di whole place. It’s an honour @machelmontano @destragarcia.” She also left a message specifically for the Barbz, promising them that she’ll be back to talk soon and sending her followers love.

Stream Machel Montano and Destra’s “Shake the Place (Remix)” featuring Nicki Minaj exclusively on YouTube below. Afterward, tell us who else you hope to see the Queen of Rap collaborate with later in 2023 in the comments. Additionally, find more release recommendations on our weekly Fire Emoji update here.

Quotable Lyrics:

I’m gettin’ a real bag (Kyuh), I get to them real bad (Brr)
They know they can’t compete with Trini girls, they goin’ out real sad
That bumper got ever bigger (Oh), so now he not even with her
I wanted a beer, I don’t mean a hug, I want to see a Guinness sticker

[Via]