Nicki Minaj has been M.I.A. from the music scene for some time (aside from her star turn on Migos’ “Motorsport” alongside Cardi B), but it looks like we’ll finally be finding out what she’s been so hard at work creating very soon. Only minutes ago, the self-declared “generous queen” of hip-hop posted a pair of single covers to her Instagram, teasing the release of both projects at 1PM EST Thursday (April 12).
The first cover for “Barbie Tingz” features Nicki in a Victorian-era ball gown, surrounded by masked, similarly-costumed women. The second, “Chun-Li,” depicts a closeup of Nicki clad in a Fendi ensemble with her hair pulled up into the iconic Street Fighter character’s signature ox-horn bun style.
While Nicki’s been radio silent as far as her own social media and public appearances since the end of last year, some of her close associates have been more forthcoming with information about her process. Producer Mike Will Made-It said that he had “fire” coming with the newly-mysterious rapper, while rapper Zoey Dollaz revealed that she’s been in the studio “every night” since shutting down her usually bustling social presence.
Meanwhile, Nicki’s official first public appearance was unexpected and somewhat anticlimactic after the three months of speculation on her whereabouts. Toward the end of March, she finally popped back up on screens across America, not with new music, but with a cameo in a Mercedes Benz commercial.
