Lil Wayne played a huge part in Nicki Minaj tremendous success after giving the Trinidadian rapper her first major label record deal when he signed her to Young Money/Cash Money back in 2009.
Weezy discovered Minaj after watching her rap on a DVD. Since then she went on to become one of the biggest rappers on the planet with influences across other genres including pop music. So it was no surprise when Time magazine named her among the 100 most influential people in the world.
Nicki Minaj Address Critics of Her Meek Mill Relationship On Ellen
Lil Wayne also has a lot of praises for his protege when he penned a piece for Time mag.
“You know, in New York they used to have these street DVDs,” Lil Wayne wrote. “It just so happened that I appeared in one, and when I looked at the finished product, Nicki Minaj was on a part of the DVD. I was like, “Woooooow!” She was just being Nicki without the glitz and glamour. When I heard the first two and four bars, it wasn’t even about her rapping better than any female rapper. It was about, man, she’s rapping better than other rappers—period.”
“I always wanted more for my artists and saw Nicki’s potential from the first moment I laid eyes on her,” the New Orleans rapper added. “She’s reached far beyond everything I would have imagined. Man, she’s so influential and doing all the right things. She’s an icon, a boss and a role model to all these young girls out here on how to do it the right way. Her work ethic speaks volumes and has yielded these results. The scary thing is she’s still going. Ha! Nicki Minaj will go down as one of the best to do it in the history of music.”
She’s on Time magazine and couldn’t wear something more appropriate, really?