One of the most popular and financially successful rappers in the world is NICKI Minaj, but she almost went by a different moniker.
Here’s what we know about Nicki, including the fact that despite her fame and success, she does not particularly like her stage name.
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Why did Nicki Minaj change her name?
Nicki’s real surname, Maraj, was the one she used when she first began her rap career.
She explained the rationale behind the change in an interview with The Guardian in 2012.
She said: “Somebody changed my name.
I fought tooth and nail to keep my birth name when I signed one of my first production deals and the guy insisted on calling me Minaj.
“But he convinced me. I’ve always hated it”
She continued, “To me I’m not Nicki Minaj when I’m with them.” when asked if she minded if her loved ones referred to her by her stage name.
What are Nicki Minaj’s nicknames?
The “Super Bass” singer is known by many other names besides her stage moniker.
When interviewed by New York Magazine in 2010, she admitted that “Cookie” was her first pseudonym.
Nicki the Ninja, “Harajuku Barbie,” and even “Nicki Lewinsky” (after the Monica Lewinsky scandal) are all nicknames for her.
What is Nicki Minaj’s real name?
Onika Tanya Maraj, known professionally as Nicki Minaj, was born in 1982 in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago.
She also has a younger sister named Ming and two older brothers named Jelani and Micaiah.
Robert, her father, was an abusive alcoholic and drug addict who eventually checked himself into rehab.
He died aged 64 in 2021 after a hit-and-run.
Having wed convicted sexual predator Kenneth Petty, with whom she has a son, Nicki legally adopted the name Onika Maraj-Petty in 2019.
