Nicki Minaj Goes Back to Hip-Hop Roots at Wango Tango

Looking like the fiercest bride in all the land, Nicki Minaj took the Wango Tango stage and reinforced that despite her recent forays into pop, she still has a hip-hop heart.

Minaj opens with ‘Roman Holiday’ and ‘Did It on ‘Em,’ flanked by dancers who could pass for models and rocking the heck out of a long blonde wig. She looks a lot like an actual Barbie. She was probably particularly pleased by all of the pink lighting, as well. Soon, she launches into a medley, with bits from ‘Take Me to Your Leader’ before sailing into ‘Beez in the Trap.’ Unfortunately, 2 Chainz wasn’t around to join her, but she still held her own!

Clutching a pink bejeweled microphone, Minaj moves quite a bit along with her dancers, bringing attention to her backing track. She normally relies on backing tracks to supplement her vocals when she sings (like in ‘Starships’), since it’s harder to hold longer notes when you’re moving so much. Apparently it’s also a bit tough to spit rapid fire rhymes, but she keeps the volume much lower for this set than for many of her other recorded performances.

Minaj announced on Twitter that her full set would be online next week, but you can get a taste of her performance in the clip below.

Watch Nicki Minaj at Wango Tango 2012