Nicki Minaj

Onika Tanya Maraj, known by her stage name Nicki Minaj, (pronounced /mɪˈnɑːʒ/; born December 8, 1982) is a Trinidadian-born American recording artist. She was born in Saint James, Trinidad and Tobago, and moved to the Queens borough of New York City when she was five years old. After releasing three mixtapes between 2007 and 2009 and being signed to Young Money Entertainment in August 2009, Minaj released her debut album, Pink Friday in November 2010. It quickly became a commercial success, peaking at number one on the U.S. Billboard 200 and being certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) a month after its release. She became the first artist to have seven singles on the Billboard Hot 100 at the same time. Her second single, "Your Love", reached #1 on the Billboard Hot Rap Songs chart, making Minaj the first female artist to top the chart unaccompanied since Missy Elliott accomplished it with Work It in 2002. She also became the first female artist to be included on MTV's Annual Hottest MC List. Minaj was named the 2011 Rising Star by Billboard. Maraj was born in 1982 in Saint James, (a suburb of Trinidad and Tobago's capital city Port of Spain).