Born – December 8, 1982
St. James, Trinidad and Tobago
Birth name – Onika Tanya Maraj
Singer, Rapper, wig collector.
Born in a suburb of Trinidad and Tobago's capital, Port of Spain, to working-class parents.
Lived with Grandma until mom took her to New York when she was five.
Graduated from LaGuardia High, worked at Red Lobster, dreamed of becoming an actress.
Began rapping in a group called "Hoodstars," then uploaded her own music to Myspace back when Myspace was cool. CEO of Dirty Money Entertainment signed her and she changed her name from Nicki Maraj to Nicki Minaj.
Signed with Young Money Entertainment and saw commercial success with the release of her album "Pink Friday" in 2010.
Became an "American Idol" judge for the 2012 season despite some player-hatin' from the Mariah Carey camp.
No blood today on the set of "American Idol." In fact, it was downright peaceful and professional ... sources connected with the show tell TMZ.We're told from outward appearances at least… READ MORE >
Mariah Carey fired the first shots in her "American Idol" war with Nicki Minaj ... calling the rapper a "bitch" multiple times ... this according to sources close to Minaj. According to our… READ MORE >
Nigel Lythgoe tells TMZ, "The statement [that Nicki made a death threat] is absolute rubbish. It's absolutely not true in any way, shape or form." Nigel adds that Mariah confronted Nicki… READ MORE >
There's a reason Ryan Seacrest is so rich ... he KNOWS conflict makes shows successful -- claiming yesterday's Nicki Minaj-Mariah Carey blowout is a good thing ... for "American Idol"… READ MORE >
9:47 AM PT -- Sources tell TMZ, Nicki's rant on the "American Idol" set went beyond mere name-calling Tuesday ... the rapper also threatened Mariah's life, saying, "If I had a gun, I would shoot… READ MORE >
What do you get the man who has everything? Nicki Minaj figured it out ... getting Lil Wayne one of the craziest awesome gifts ever for his 30th birthday ... a tiny 3-wheeled $70,000 sports… READ MORE >
Mariah Carey pulled Nicki Minaj aside yesterday and convinced her ... feuding would not be good for the show, and they both needed to stop the antics they pulled during Sunday's… READ MORE >
Mariah Carey wasted no time proving what we told you 2 weeks ago -- there's only room for one diva on "American Idol."Carey and Nicki Minaj went at it during the first "A.I." taping Sunday in NYC.… READ MORE >
"American Idol" judges Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj, Keith Urban and Randy Jackson wasted no time getting right to work today ... showing up in NYC alongside host Ryan Seacrest for day one of… READ MORE >
Randy Jackson's stay of execution is confirmed -- he will remain a judge on the 12th season of "American Idol" ... officially joining Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj and Keith Urban. As TMZ reported,… READ MORE >
