Hip Hop

Mulatto Credits Nicki Minaj As Her Inspiration For Rapping

Mulatto says Nicki Minaj is her biggest inspiration in hip hop.

It is always nice to see successful artists give credit to the stars who paved the way for their careers, especially among female rappers who have an even harder time making it in the rap game than their male counterparts. Speaking to Fat Joe on his Instagram Live show this week, rapper Mulatto was asked who most influenced her as she worked on her craft and rose to fame.

Mulatto recalled idolizing Nicki Minaj as a child after being introduced to her music at only eight years old. She explained that Nicki’s exuberant personality and stage presence drew her in, saying, “It was just so animated so it captivated me. That’s what put the icing on the cake. That’s when I was like, ‘Oh Yeah, I wanna rap. I wanna be like Nicki.’”

Mulatto went on to add that she even emulated Nicki’s look at one point, saying, “I cut my hair in a bang. I got a Barbie chain, all that.” In previous interviews, Mulatto has mentioned Nicki as her inspiration and detailed the extent of her fangirl tendencies, admitting that she waited in line to get her hands on Pink Friday when it first dropped. She also named Minaj as her dream collaborator and called herself “a real Barb”.

After the video of Mulatto’s recent interview spread far and wide online, Nicki herself took to social media to shout out the star, writing, “My baby Big Latto. Sending all that love right back. She’s dope.”

The Barb’s biggest fan was of course thrilled to see her hero acknowledge her, and she took to Instagram Live to express her gratitude, saying, “Imagine somebody you fu*kin’ loved since a kid, somebody who got you doing what the fu*k you do for a living, and they acknowledge you? That sh*t hit different!”