Summarize this content to 2000 words in 6 paragraphs in Arabic Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.“Are you ready for the queen?” Nicki Minaj’s warm-up DJ cried at 9.04pm. A rousing cheer from 20,000 Barbz — that’s what her fans are called — answered in the affirmative. But was the queen of rap ready for London’s O2 Arena? Minaj hadn’t turned up for her first UK date at Manchester a few days previously after marijuana was allegedly found in her luggage at Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport. She was detained for over five hours by Dutch authorities and fined. The drama unfolded live on the rapper’s Instagram feed, filmed by herself. “I need a lawyer present,” she told the flatland feds in pure New York-ese as they ushered her to a police van. When she finally made it to the UK, Barbz gathered outside her hotel chanting: “Nicki’s free!” At the O2 Arena, there were 15 minutes of dead time after her DJ exited the stage. A mild hubbub filled the air while the Barbz swapped chit-chat as though at a giant cocktail party. Most wore pink, Nicki’s signature colour. Mainly female, with a constituency of gay men too, they made your correspondent feel like Methuselah. Many would have been small children when their heroine, 41, first made her chart breakthrough in 2010. In keeping with her hit “The Night Is Still Young”, Minaj has unlocked pop’s secret of eternal youth: regular infusions of teenage followers.At 9.20pm, the hubbub switched to screaming as the rapper finally made her entrance. She stood in the centre of an elaborate stage set with staircases leading to two platforms and a set of backing screens in the shape of skyscrapers. A synthesiser fanfare rang out as she performed “I’m the Best”, a calling-card from her 2010 debut album Pink Friday. “It’s just me in my prime,” she rapped amid sparkling lights and a firework-like fusillade of beats.First uttered 14 years ago, the boast still rings true. Minaj’s current tour is the highest-grossing ever by a female rapper, with a forecast take of over $100mn. Her latest album Pink Friday 2 is an interminable slog, but the Barbz have hugged it close to their pink hearts. It was filleted for its better tracks during an opening sequence of full-throttle rap numbers, which Minaj dispatched with brio. She wore a bodysuit, thigh-high boots, a lustrous wig and long fake nails. Her poses were a cartoon cabaret of femininity: hand on hip, wide-eyed looks, dainty footsteps. Her rap style was harder-edged, mixing no-nonsense Noo Yawk toughness with expressive shifts in pace and accent. Live music was provided by a drummer, keyboardist and backing singer, mixed with pre-recorded beats and vocals. Dancers in sci-fi outfits cavorted around the star.There was a futuristic theme, but it was as skimpy as Minaj’s various outfits; something to do with an AI-generated metropolis called Gag City. The energy level oscillated wildly. There were thumb-twiddling interludes while Minaj changed costume (including two new ones for London, a diaphanous black affair and a red bodysuit). Then she would reappear, sparking an electric atmosphere. Vulgar hits resembling comedy novelty songs — yes “Anaconda”, I’m looking at you — were greeted like standards from the Great American Songbook.The venue’s usual 11pm curfew was regally brushed aside as a series of guests made surprise appearances. London rapper Giggs did a solo rendition of his UK rap classic “Talkin’ da Hardest”. Jamaican-UK dancehall MC Stylo G duetted with Minaj, who was born in Trinidad and moved to New York aged five. Her Caribbean background was further highlighted by the arrival of her musical hero, veteran dancehall star Beenie Man, who performed a medley of songs while she danced and sang along.She ended at 11.36pm, long after the curfew (another potential fine incoming). The finale was the unstoppable EDM leviathan, “Starships”, which she recently claimed she was bored of and never wanted to play again. The Barbz reacted ecstatically. Missing in action in Manchester, the queen of rap pulled out the stops in London.★★★★☆nickiminajofficial.com
