Nick Minaj Stands Tall in Out Magazine

Nicki Minaj makes a reprisal in the new issue of Out. The rapper was featured in the October 2010 issue, just before her breakthrough 'Pink Friday' was released.

And now, with her album selling hand over fist, a summer tour with Britney Spears immediately following her spring trek with Lil Wayne, a 'Saturday Night Live' appearance under her hot pink belt and a war of words with Lil Kim dotting her landscape, it was certainly time for the mag to catch up with Minaj.

She spoke candidly about her role as an entertainer and her roots in hip-hop, her upcoming tour with the stronger-than-ever Spears and her  honest assessment of Eminem's usage of the word 'faggot' on their song 'Roman’s Revenge' from the colorful and gay-friendly singer's album. She even reveals how she sat down with her hair dresser to discuss the term. Minaj is nothing if not open and honest!

On being a rapper vs. pop star: "I'm an entertainer. I’m just an entertainer that is rooted in hip-hop. And of course I'm a rapper because when it comes to my skill, I don't think anyone can deny that. I don't think that you can deny that I’m sitting here writing my own lyrics and I've written my lyrics since the beginning of time, and I'm very proud of that. So, of course, I'm a rapper first and foremost, but I'm an entertainer. And I think that all of my favorite artists -- in my head -- they're entertainers."

On hitting the road with Brit Brit, whom she sees as a kindred spirit: "I feel like she has experienced life as an underdog, and I feel like my whole career I've been the underdog. I think that it just goes to show that when you are a strong woman, at the end of the day, it doesn't matter. You bounce back from whatever. And I think she's probably gone through 10 times whatever I've gone through. But the fact that she came back out with just so much fire inspires me, and it inspires young women and people all over the world. It just inspires you. A lot of my fans feel like they are the underdog and feel like they are the people who aren’t ever accepted for themselves, or who are laughed at or poked fun at forever. It just goes to show that once you keep at whatever it is you're doing, people may not like you, people may not love you, but they will have to respect you at the end of the day. And that respect is all that matters."

On Eminem's use of the word 'faggot' on their collaboration: "You know, if I'm being honest, I didn't like [him using it]. I spoke to everyone I knew about it. I spoke to my hairdresser, who's one of my closest friends. I sat him down and said, 'Terrence, what do you think about this? How does this make you feel?' And we had a long, long talk. And he said he didn't feel like Eminem was talking about a gay person. He felt like it was a word being used to describe a straight man, and he didn't take offense to it. It's Eminem -- I felt like we were creating a movie... 'Roman's Revenge' was more like a theatrical piece. I was a character and [Eminem] was a character. This was Slim Shady and Roman. Of course, when it comes to creativity, there's such a thin line between creativity and something being offensive. But one thing I knew for sure was that my gay fan base knows about how I feel about them, and I've embraced them from the beginning -- since my mix-tape days. [Reaching out to gay fans wasn't something I did] once I came into pop culture just to try and get some extra fans. So I felt like the positive would outweigh the negative, and we just kept moving with that."

Watch the Nicki Minaj 'Super Bass' Video