NICKI MINAJ By Alisa Fallon Family History Onika

NICKI MINAJ By: Alisa Fallon

Family History Onika Tanya Maraj was born on December 8, 1984 in Saint James, Trinidad. n She was born to Carol and Robert Maraj. n She has 2 siblings: Jelani (older brother), Machaiah (younger brother). n

Early Years Onika, her parents, her grandparents, and Jelani all lived in a 3 bedroom house until she was 3 years old. n When Onika turned 3, her parents moved to New York, to seek for better opportunity. n Nicki and Jelani stayed in Trinidad with their grandparents. n

n n n Home Away From Home When Onika was 4 years old, she had intense surgery for a hernia. This was an occasion where her mother came back to visit her. Onika thought her mother was taking her home. She didn’t and Onika was devastated. She was very saddened by the fact that her mom was

Being Reunited In the winter of 1989, Onika’s father came to Trinidad to bring his children to New York. n “It was very cold. Me and Jelani were amazed by the snow. We had never seen snow before. ” Nicki stated regarding getting off the plane. n The children were finally home. n

Queens, New York n n n In Queens, both of Nicki’s parents found jobs. Carol (mother) worked as a nurse’s aid. Robert (father) worked for American Express. Robert Maraj had ongoing drug and alcohol problems. So bad that one day, he tried to burn the house

P. S. 45 Elementary Nicki attended P. S. 45 Elementary School in Queens, New York. n It was Nicki’s 5 th grade teacher, Elizabeth Smith-Breslin who inspired her to be an entertainer. n Mrs. Breslin directed a 5 th grade play for Nicki’s class. n It was then, when Nicki found her love for n

n n n La. Guardia High School is a performing arts school. Nicki decided to audition for La. Guardia as a singer. She didn’t make the cut because she lost her voice the day of the audition. Her mother made her try out again, but this time for the drama department. She made the cut and was now a student at La. Guardia.

Pursuing a Future Nicki graduated from La. Guardia in 2001. n She had a very deep desire for becoming an actress. n After a long, unsuccessful pursuit of making it in the acting field, Nicki gave up on her acting dreams. n

Last Chance n n n Onika decided she wanted to be a rapper. She started writing songs and producing demos for multiple different record labels. But in the mean time, Nicki needed a job, so she started working at Red Lobster. After she got fired from Red Lobster, she knew that rapping was her last chance. This is when Onika took on the name “Nicki Minaj”.

Who is Nicki Minaj? Onika starting uploading her rap demos onto her My. Space account. n Her popularity quickly grew when she started performing at local clubs. n Word got around about the young FEMALE phenom. n

Nicki’s Moment n n n Now, Nicki Minaj had become a star on My. Space and in the rap community. Rapper “Fendi” asked her to be a feature on his DVD, ‘The Come Up”. This was when she caught the attention of international rapper, Lil’ Wayne. She signed with Young Money Records in 2009. The rest is history.

Behind the Rapper Even though she has become one of the best rappers in the game, Nicki doesn’t identify herself as a rapper. n She still embraces acting as one of her biggest passions. n She is staring in her first movie, “The Other Woman” this year. n Nicki once said, “I look at rap as an opportunity to act. My head is full of different characters—in each song n

The Future for Nicki Minaj Nicki has become and international superstar, with many accolades to prove it. n She has also established an impressive net worth of 45 million dollars. n Nicki said, “I know that no matter what, in the end it’s not gonna be about my talent, you know. It’s not gonna be about my connections. It’s not gonna be about my looks. It’s gonna be about who wants n

For more info on Nicki Minaj visit… Nicki's Website @

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