One thing is for sure: Nicki Minaj did break the internet with her sexy Paper Magazine cover. Whether the reactions were angry, or thirsty, they were deafening and that’s exactly what the point was. Now, the accompanying cover story has been released, and even without a faux threesome between three Nicki Minajs, it’s similarly eye-popping and attention-grabbing as Nicki discusses her new album, paying college tuition for random fans, her foray into Hollywood, and more. But, there is one detail that is especially intriguing. Well, actually two: Joint albums with Beyonce and Future.
“I would be open to doing (a Watch The Throne-style album) if the time was right,” Nicki said when questioned about the possibility of a joint album with another woman of similar prominence. The first such possibility she discussed is an album with Beyonce, one she says their fans have been pining for since they first began collaborating a few years ago. She said the following:
“The only person that I’ve seen a lot of people speak on, when talking about an album of that caliber, is Beyonce ’cause we did ‘***Flawless’ [remix] and ‘Feeling Myself‘ and we’ve actually performed together. I always see a lot of people saying, ‘Oh my gosh, a joint album with you guys would be really dope,’ but, you know, those are the kinds of things that are just wishful thinking from fans…They’re far-fetched because usually artists are in such different places in their personal lives and career lives that it’s hard to make that work.”
So yeah, the album with Beyonce may have been nearly impossible to pull off, but another with Future was plausible and apparently very close to happening. Nicki said the following:
“I mean, I even at one point was about to do a mixtape with Future recently, [but] with me working on my album and with him doing other projects — and he thought we should be in the same place at one point to really vibe — it was hard. Because he was on tour and I was in the studio [and the timing didn’t work]. So even when you like an artist and you respect their work, it’s very hard to make those types of ideas come to fruition, but when they do come together like the Jay and Kanye [project], then it’s magic for sure.”
Hendrix and Nicki still pulled off a few collaborations, including “You Da Baddest” recently, but nobody knew until now that they had plans for so much more. Future eventually did knock out a joint-album with Young Thug, and while some have grown tired of that trend, it seems artists will keep collaborating for albums whenever they can work out the logistics.
You can read Nicki’s entire Paper Magazine cover store here, and check out the photos from the spread below, via Nicki’s Instagram.
