Barbie is back. After months away from social media and the spotlight, Nicki Minaj makes her long-awaited return with a double dose of new music. The Young Money queen unleashes two new singles, “Barbie Tingz” and “Chun-Li,” off her upcoming fourth album.
“Barbie Tingz” is an ’80s-inspired dagger directed at copycats. “Rap bitches tell they team make ’em like Barbie / Had to come off IG so they can’t stalk me,” she raps. “All they do is copy looks, steal music too / Want to see what bitches do when they lose the blueprint.”
Minaj also reps Young Money on the track. “I spoke to Jay the other day,” she raps. “He’s still the only ni**a I would have signed to / If I ain’t signed to Wayne’s perfectly designed crew / We the big 3, don’t need a big speech / We made the biggest impact, check the spreadsheets / That’s Lil Weezy, The Barbie, and Drizzy Drake.”
“Chun-Li” is a war-ready anthem inspired by “Street Fighter.” “These birds copy every word, every inch,” she raps. “But gang-gang got the hammer and the wrench.”
Later, she adds some Scarface influence to the track. “They need rappers like me,” she says in Tony Montana’s voice. “So they can get on their keyboards and make me the bad buy, Chun-Li.”
In the past, Nicki has promised that her fourth album, the follow-up to 2014’s The Pinkprint, will be a “classic.” “This era will be a billion times more epic than anything ‘Anaconda’ could have delivered,” she told DAZED last year. “I think this era will definitely be the most memorable and the most impactful of my career yet.”
In addition to her own singles, Nicki is set to appear on “Anybody,” a collaboration with Young Thug, which will debut later today.