'I love women who take control... like me!' Nicki Minaj reveals her animal side in sheer dress as she poses for V magazine
From her provocative sense of style to her powerful lyrics, Nicki Minaj is not a woman you can easily overlook.
And the rapper has spoken out about her huge success in the traditionally male-dominated field of rap, explaining she deliberately 'pushes the envelope'.
Covering V magazine's Winter 2014/15 edition, the 31-year-old talks about the importance of her work to younger girls.
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'I love women who take control': Nicki Minaj reveals her animal side as she poses in a series of outfits for V magazine's Winter 2014/15 edition, shot by Mario Testino
'I love women who take control, who set standards, and who believe in themselves enough to lead the way in terms of their career,' she said.
And Nicki has no false modesty about her own chart-topping success: 'I’ve done that.
'When I win and when I lose, I take ownership of it, because I really am in charge of what I do.
'There are a lot of strong male rappers, who’ve influenced me a great deal in terms of my skill, my flow, and my business-savvy side. But at the end of the day, I still want to inspire women.'
Opening up: Taking ownership while being successful has helped Nicki balancing being controversial while still being commercial,
Taking ownership while being successful has helped Nicki balancing being controversial while still being commercial.
'I always push the envelope because I’m Nicki Minaj. I have to.
'No matter who I’m on a song with, I feel like I have to say at least one thing that no one else is willing to say.
'Whether it’s Madonna or Britney or Beyoncé, they always tell me, "YES. Be yourself. Talk your s***."'
In the Mario Testino shot photos accompanying her interview, Nicki is seen writhing around in typical fashion clad in a series of figure-hugging designer outfits chosen to show off he famously curvy figure.
And the former American Idol judge says her love of fashion is understandable, given her musical career.
'There are attitudes in fashion and in hip-hop that match each other… it’s an almost snobby type of feeling. It’s fun!
'It’s like showing off! I think rap is a lot of showing off, and fashion is too. Versace is like, Look at me, b****. I’m here.'
Out now: Nicki is soon set to release her third studio album Pinkprint, a homage to Jay Z's Blue Print
Nicki is soon set to release her third studio album Pinkprint, a homage to Jay Z's Blue Print.
She's proud of her work.
'You can expect a great intro piece that really walks you through where my mind has been the past two years, and there’s a strong love and relationship section that has been lacking lately on the radio,' she explained.
'It’s not the glossy stuff, but the nitty-gritty, the fights, the heart- breaking things that people don’t really touch on in rap.
'And for my core, I have the hard shit. It’s the stuff that makes everyone excited and gives them the stink face in the room, and makes people bop super hard.'
And it seems Nicki impressed on the shoot, with Mario tweeting as the shots were released: ' Nicki rocked us with her looks and her strength. She was comfortable in all situations.
'I was amazed by her.'
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