Nicki Minaj Matches Lauryn Hill’s Record On Billboard Charts

Nicki Minaj has a new top-charting hit in the US after releasing 121 singles in the previous 12 years.

Super Freaky Girl, the star’s most recent single, landed at number one on the Billboard Hot 100, making her the first solo female rapper to do so in 25 years.

The last time that happened was in 1998, when Doo Wop (That Thing), a song by Lauryn Hill, debuted at the top of the charts.

‘Super Freaky Girl’ was streamed 21 million times last week, according to Billboard.

With 89,000 downloads sold, it also had the best sales week of any song so far in 2022. It also led to the download list.

The singer tweeted, “You did it,” after the release of the charts, to her supporters.

The star’s third number one overall and first as an unaccompanied artist comes with Super Freaky Girl.

She previously achieved chart-topping success in 2020 with the singles Trollz, a joint effort with 6ix9ine, and Say So, a featured appearance on Doja Cat’s TiKTok smash.

Up until this point, Minaj’s 2014 single Anaconda, which peaked at number two, was her biggest solo hit.

Since 1998, Cardi B is the only other solo female rap artist to have reached the top of the singles chart. Up and Bodak Yellow, both of her top songs, began lower in the charts before moving up to the top spot.

In Super Weird Chick, which is based on Rick James’s funk anthem Super Freak, Minaj brags about her sexual skills in a manner reminiscent of the “extremely freaky girl” James described in his 1981 song.

Super Freak, a classic hip-hop track, has been sampled more than 30 times by musicians like MC Young, Gucci Mane, and Jay-Z.

But this is the first time it has topped the charts. The original peaked at number 16, but the instrumental-based MC Hammer song U Can’t Touch This peaked at number eight in 1990.

Dr Luke, the hitmaker who was accused of sexual assault and emotional abuse by his former protege Kesha in a publicly reported lawsuit, produced Minaj’s rendition.

The musician has vehemently refuted the allegations and filed a defamation lawsuit against Kesha, and his attorneys have prevailed in various rounds of the continuing legal struggle.

However, after the charges surfaced, several bands declined to collaborate with him.

Separately, Minaj will perform and co-host the MTV Awards this weekend where she will also receive the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award.

She had to postpone a London appearance earlier this year due to a fan swarm.