Nicki Minaj opened up about her drug addiction in a new Vogue interview.
Ahead of the release of her new album Pink Friday 2, Nicki Minaj is promoting the new project with a series of rare interviews. The New York rapper is the latest celebrity to appear in Vogue’s 72 Questions series on YouTube. As she covers the December issue of the mag, Nicki also did a sit-down interview where she opened up about some rather sensitive topics that she would not typically discuss.
Nicki revealed that she had suffered from substance abuse issues – particularly with a Percocet addiction. She explained that the medication was initially prescribed for menstrual pain, but she eventually resorted to self-medicating for other reasons. “No one told me that this was a narcotic and this was addictive,” Minaj said. “Luckily, I was able to ground myself. But — once an addict, always an addict.”
“I feel like if you’ve ever experienced addiction to anything, which I have, you always have to think twice and three times about the choices that you make.”
She continued: “Look at some of our biggest celebrities. They eventually either get laughed out of wanting to go outside anymore, like Michael Jackson, or criticized, like Whitney Houston, or they fight silent battles, like Prince.
“These are some of the greatest of all time. And one day they decided, ‘You know what? I’d rather self-medicate and be in my own world,'” she added.
Nicki Minaj went on to share her family history of substance abuse, citing her dad’s addiction to crack cocaine when she was a kid. Her own experience eventually enlightened her about that whole ordeal, causing her perspective to shift and her perception of her dad during that time to change as well.
“I think about watching my father go back and forth, and I just wish that at the time, I understood that he wasn’t doing it because he wanted to,” she explained. “I thought that he was making a conscious effort to be addicted to a drug that would have him steal his children’s video games and sell them for money.
“Think about that — who would make a conscious effort to do that? Now I realize, those people weren’t making those choices because they wanted to hurt their family. Addiction took over their bodies and their lives. They were victims too,” she concluded.
The Billboard-dominating rapper has always been transparent about her drug(s) of choice, as she once pointed out in an Instagram Live session. “I have never, ever in my life, with my hand to Jesus Christ…Never in my life, ever, not even once, sniffed coke — ever! That’s just never been my drug of choice,” Minaj said at the time. ”
You would know, if you’re a fan of mine, that all you gotta do if you wanna know my drug of choice or my drugs of choice, just listen to my music, chile, ’cause it’s all right there.” So basically, she’s always been more of a pills and potions girl, never powder. Nicki Minaj is now celebrating her sobriety as she left that life in the past.
Back in 2022, the rapper took to Twitter, a year and a half after giving birth to her son, to reflect on her past life where she was a marijuana user and even got arrested for possession and was ‘on the run’ when she thought she was gonna get deported. “I used to b happy when I was high,” Nicki wrote. “Now I’m happy when I’m sober. No judgment to anyone. Be gentle with yourself.”
Motherhood has seen Nicki Minaj do a complete purge of many old habits. The writer admitted to struggling with her songwriting while pregnant as well. During that time, Nicki said she could not bring herself to record sexually explicit songs and got turned off, which eventually led to her having writer’s block even after Papa Bear was born.
Fans are looking forward to hearing what “the balance” that the rapper alludes to sounds like now that she’s found her new sound. Though Minaj’s album does not come out until next month, there are lots of surprises still in store for November. Keep your eyes peeled.
