Brent Staples argues in his New York Times column that it was just a matter of time before a hip-hop star would blow through the lines separating pop from rap and appeal to two lucrative audiences at once. Nicki Minaj just happens to be a woman.
It is too early to tell whether she has the creative power to show a way out of the current situation or open up a broader space in rap for women generally. But she has been difficult to miss, raking in music awards and posing on magazine covers in the Day-Glo wigs and makeup that summon up Japanese anime. She raps in hyperspeed in British, Caribbean and New York accents, and channels her engaging zaniness through alter egos, one known as Harajuku Barbie. She refers to the young girls among her fans as Barbs.
