- Apr32012
Album Review: Nicki Minaj – ‘Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded’
Written by Trent | Filed under Album Review,Nicki Minaj
Nicki Minaj's 'Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded' deluxe edition cover.
Schizophrenia is a mental disorder that spurs a development of crazed behaviour and a breakdown of clear thought patterns. Closely related to this phenomenon is Multiple Personality Disorder where individuals exhibit various distinct identities with little connection to each other. If you’re searching for a perfect example of these issues then look no further than Nicki Minaj and her ‘Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded’ album.
Nonsensically tottering from Dance/Pop to Hip-Hop and even R&B, ’Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded’ is depiction of artistic confusion to the extreme degree. Indeed, Minaj often boasts about the various mental characters she created to channel the multiple sides of her music but this album demonstrates that those figments of her imagination are now running wild without direction.
Clearly, one of Minaj’s identities is a fan of Jennifer Lopez and Madonna because she ventures fully into their Dance field on 6 of the 22 songs included on ’Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded’. Honestly, ‘Automatic’, ‘Whip It’ and ‘Beautiful Sinner’ could easily fit into Lopez’s ill-fated ‘Love?’ album. In fact, the synth-heavy ‘Pound the Alarm’ features an understated guest vocal that sounds almost identical to Pitbull.
Now, the Dance songs on ’Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded’ are solid efforts but as an artist who has been heralded as the “Queen of Hip-Hop” by every ignorant writers from Rolling Stone to MTV, Minaj should at least stay true to the genre. Perhaps, we should have taken the ’Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded’ artwork as an indication that she would rather follow in Ke$ha’s footsteps than MC Lyte.
Even Minaj’s current single, ‘Starships’, was overrun by jarring Dance music breaks that ruin an otherwise excellent record. Imagine Missy Elliott rapping onstage and then being dropkicked by an unmedicated Britney Spears.
However, ’Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded’ is not completely doomed to be ignored by those who want to hear Minaj flex her rap skills on core Hip-Hop tracks. Cuts such as the stunning title track, which features Lil Wayne, ‘I’m Your Leader (Ft. Cam’ron & Rick Ross)’ and ‘Champion (Ft. Drake, Young Jeezy & Nas)’ all exemplify that Minaj could spit serious bars when needed.
Of course, Minaj delivers her best work on ‘Hov Lane’. For any rapper, especially a woman, to boldly compare herself to Jay-Z is a brave act but Minaj blasts verses that remind her fans that she once eclipsed the icon on Kanye West’s ‘Monster’.
This is where I must pause and take a breath to prevent myself from writing expletives. So, feel free to reread the above paragraphs while I compose myself and do a quick round of meditation. Now, let’s get started.
”…Minaj must be suffering from a rare mental disorder because only an unstable person would grunt and shout utter filth over such an incredible beat.”
What in the name of Trinidad, Tobago, our national bird and Christopher Columbus was happening under Minaj’s wig when she made ‘Roman Holiday’? This record confirms that she must be suffering from a rare mental disorder because only an unstable person would grunt and shout utter filth over such an incredible beat. Yet, the tripe didn’t end there.
‘Come on a Cone’ is the most musically offensive song in Minaj’s entire catalogue. She starts the the record with impressive lyrics over the Hitboy-produced track before the hook completely ruins the mix. Additionally, Minaj disturbs the human spirit when she starts singing the lyrics “put my dick in your face” with her best breathy Mariah Carey impersonation.
Speaking of singing, Mianj performs almost all of the remaining songs on ’Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded’ without rapping a verse. From ‘Marilyn Monroe’ and ‘Fire Burns’ to ‘Gun Shot (Ft. Beenie Man)’ and ‘Young Forever’, she dials up the auto-tune and lets her years of vocal training as a musical theatre student shine. No, that was not a compliment.
Finally, we have the garbage that is ‘Stupid Hoe’, the painfully dull ‘Masquerade’ and the surprisingly delightful ‘Va Va Voom’. The last of those tunes should have been the lead single from ‘Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded’ but it is quite obvious that Minaj will release it later this year to score a runaway hit with those persons who do not purchase the deluxe version of the album. After all, that is what she did with ‘Super Bass’ and the original ‘Pink Friday’.
Now, what is the final verdict for ’Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded’? Minaj simply tried to do too much too soon and created a confusing mess of an album without cohesion or direction. Really, the multiple sides of her personality clashed on the record and she got lost in the confusion.
If you remember the movie ‘The Craft’ then joined me with the following chant: “We bind you Nicki from doing harm; harm against others and harm against yourself.” Repeat that spell 3 times and we just might save her career.
Standout tracks: ‘Hov Lane’, ‘Champion (Ft. Drake, Young Jeezy & Nas)’, ‘I’m Your Leader’, ‘Roman Reloaded (Ft. Lil Wayne)’ and ‘Marilyn Monroe’
Weakest track: ‘Come on a Cone’
Possible singles: ‘Roman Reloaded (Ft. Lil Wayne)’, ‘Sex in the Lounge (Ft. Lil Wayne & Bobby V)’, ‘Va Va Voom’ and ‘Marilyn Monroe’
The Lava Lizard Rating: 3/5 Stars
What do you think of the review?
28 Comments
Leave A Comment
-
-
Follow Us
Hot Stories
Latest News
-
-
-
Powered by WordPress
weakest track come on a cone? you mad? The fact taht you mention sex in the lounge as a credible single makes you look even more stupid and half of this needs a good editing…who the hell is Mianj. Get it together trent that communications degree from UWI did you no good.
really yo???
U crazy trent lol I’m rolling at the picture…smh hilar
LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The opening paragraph….the Britney mention…the GIF……….I WILL NOT WITH YOU TRENT!!! LOL!!!
Not The Craft……..*calls funeral home*
I agree with most of this review. I love Come on a Cone though lol
I completely agree with your review this album was a mess…she’s doing pop just to sell records? I don’t understand….plenty of good musicians don’t sell a lot of records…this album was so messy even the features couldn’t save it…it was like she was doing 2 different drugs on each half of the album…one made her angry one made her bubbly lol
LOL! Light as a feather, stiff as a board
Trent, you are something else with this review…LMAO!!!!!!!!
I understand not sticking to one genre but if you’re gonna try to do pop or whatever at least be good at it. In one of her tracks ( i forgot which one) she sounds like a chipmunk. The chick cannot sing but i guess if Rihanna can make it as a singer…..
I really like Hov Lane and i thin Va Va Voom would be a good pop single. I wish she would master her skills instead of being a jack of trade, master of none.
and by the way “We bind you Nicki from doing harm; harm against others and harm against yourself.” x3
Don’t people understand that Nicki Minaj is trying to be the Britney Spears of the hip-hop world? All about the commercial potential with as much crowd pleasing beats as possible? If you do, then you can enjoy the album. I honestly feel that she should have done a Beyonce, Sasha Fierce route. Have a double album, one hip-hop and one pop, and then people would most likely shut up. Overall I think the album is solid (but not a game changer) and should do extremely well commercially which she’s going for anyway. Well played Nicki on that front.
Did you guys not see her interview with muthafuckin Charlemagne. She said her first passion was theater and when that didn’t work out she started rapping. She has stated many times before she blew up that she didn’t want to be confined to Rap and she wanted to venture out into pop. She specifically said in the Charlemagne interview she doesn’t want to be a rapper, she wants to be a BRAND. You simple minded hoes.
And she still winning. She expected to debut at #1 in the UK. Which no other Female Rapper from the US has ever done.
And she was #1 on US iTunes within a matter of minutes. When will yah fave?
she has yet to master either genres, how can she be a brand? when half the world dont know what we getting….this could have been an exceptable debut, but not ur second album, no mam
One word… AMEN!
LOL! I’m not going to waste my time listening to this MESS! The Craft! LMAO!
Why does everyone want to confine her to just rapping? I don’t get it! Pound The Alarm, Va Va VOOM and Automatic are some of the best dance/club tracks I have heard this year, so why can’t she explore that avenue?
Personally I prefer variety on an album rather than everything sounding the same, and she has delivered.
U gave this 3 out of 5 which is what u gave MDNA if I remember correctly. Ur rating system is all fckd up.
I hate when visitors come to the site, they really dont understand Trent’s delivery or how he reviews and views music.
Valid points were made in the review of the album, the “garbage pail kids” refuse to accept the truth. Creatively, too much was done on this one CD. Nicki needs to focus on one genre at a time or do a double album.
love it…..
Spot on!
I think it is just her being and expressing herself…..#TeamMinajTrini ♥♥
Come on the cone is one of the stand outs and the dick in your face line is hysterical, unexpected but it works. the 1st half of the album is a 7/10, the 2nd a 4/10. Some of pop tracks like Va va voom and beautiful sinner are great but need to fit in more cohesively.
So I just listened to some of it and there’s maybe one or two songs that are cute. The problem with Nicki is that she is trying to do too much at one time. It’s fine if she wants to express herself but it has to make sense and be cohesive. If she wants people to give her their coins for her self expression, then she needs to make sure it’s worth their time and their coinage. If she wants to do hip hop and pop and all that, then she needs to make sure that she balances it out and that each song is good, not only her standards but by her audience’s standards. If she feels like she wants to do it all then by all means go ahead but she needs to do it to the best of her ability. But she has not at any point this year done so.
[...] Album Review: Nicki Minaj – ‘Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded’ [...]
[...] Album Review: Nicki Minaj – ‘Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded’ [...]
To the one below me who said “is she doing pop just to sell records?” UH YEAduhhhh… What u think she raps for to push a f’n Rav 4??? And then the person goes on to say “A lot of people are in music that don’t sell records” SMH
And that’s exactly why she can afford a mansion and they can only afford a condo. Smh you can’t be serious. Nicki do pop, rap, r&b. Whatever you gotta do to make that bread mama… From a true non-hater
Ummm @Getyamoneyup my point is no one is selling much records even the great artists…if her sole purpose is to sell records then by all means do that…but she will not go down in history as a great musician…just a person who has sold a lot and if I was an artist that’s not what I’d want…and next time at least say my name
[...] The Lava Lizard gave Roman Reloaded a total of 3/5 stars. His overall review was that while there are some good tracks, he felt that the album as a whole was confusing and lacked direction. You can read more of his review here. [...]
I Love Love this album. it’s such a good mixture. everyone’s talking about her but she’s winning. Ain’t that the reason why you really mad?!