Nicki Minaj makes her highly anticipated return after the successful release of her last track, “Super Freaky Girl”. On March 3rd, she released the track “Red Ruby Da Sleeze”, showing off her impressive rap skills through the use of a creative sample.
SOUND
On this track, Nicki samples “Never Leave You (Uh Ooh, Uh Ooh)” by Lumidee, a popular song in the early 2000s. The sample is slowed and muffled, allowing listeners to pay close attention to the intensity of the beat. She alters the sample further for her chorus, putting a slightly different beat behind her singing while keeping Lumidee's vocals in the background. This new beat keeps the same clap percussion but includes a pulsating synth that travels from ear to ear. This allows for the authenticity of the sample to remain in this part of the song, as Lumidee’s vocals still add texture to the track. Nicki gets an 8/10 for her sound on the Intersect Rating Scale.
LYRICS
Nicki uses this track as an opportunity to show fans that she has not lost her spectacular rap abilities. She has unique bars with every line, mainly using the track to call out haters and remind fans of her spot as the queen of rap. She speaks to people stealing her style, saying, “Chinese on my sleeve, these wanna be Chun-Li’s”. Nicki has had many alter egos throughout her career, including “Roman” and the “Harajuku Barbie”. Chun-Li is another one of these alter egos, and through this line, she is insinuating that people are stealing this originality from her. She gets an 8/10 for her lyrics on the Intersect Rating Scale.
ART BEHIND THE TRACK
Nicki decided to tap further into her Chun-Li alter ego for the art of this project. She posted on Instagram revealing the release date of the track, wearing a beautiful Vintage Jean Paul Gaultier dress. In the photo, she is in the kitchen of the restaurant, “Passage to Asia”, and she additionally released an AI-animated lyric video that pays homage to her Trinidadian culture. For her artwork, Nicki Minaj gets a 6/10 on the Intersect Rating Scale.
Overall, Nicki Minaj gets a 7/10 on the Intersect Rating Scale.
Stream the track below.