Hating on what's popular is a staple among music fans and has been for time immemorial. Whether it be '30s swing fans hating the rise of be-bop or old-school metalheads ragging on modern metalcore, what is deemed popular at any given time is going to be polarizing and probably will be for as long as music continues to exist. And how can it not be? Anything that's subjective (like music) will produce lovers as well as haters because there is no one way to view the art, and that's just the way it is by default, so keep that in mind the next time you want to start a war with that one guy who doesn't love ICP as much as you do.
Nicki Minaj is one such polarizing figure with her outlandish look and pop-rap approach, as well as her close ties to the equally polarizing (and also terrible) rapper Lil' Wayne. One rapper (I don't remember who) once said something along the lines of "When hip-hop becomes pop music, you can't call it hip-hop anymore" and I'd have to agree with that statement 100%. Nicki Minaj may not be hip-hop in the truest sense, BUT, that doesn't make her a bad rapper whatsoever. Some people have given Minaj the title of "the female Lil' Wayne" which is a label I happen to disagree with. Minaj is an infinitely mare capable rapper that Weezy; her flow is tight and her speed is impressive and, unlike Lil' Wayne, she is much more adept at writing lyrics. Her verses feature some clever one-liners and show off some personality while Weezy specializes in delivering kindergarten grade punchlines that might even make one cringe ("pussy so wet/ Imma need goggles"). He sucks, And while Minaj's music isn't all that much better to be quite honest, I'll recognize that she is much better at what she does than Weezy.
Even if she wasn't that pretty or didn't have that big, round, gorgeous ass, I'd still have a little respect for what Nicki Minaj does. She's an above average rapper who has a unique personality and I can't find anything to hate about that, but still, people will hate because of her popularity, which is a dumb reason to hate an artist. Seriously, remove all the baggage an artist carries from your mind so you can listen to their music and have a natural reaction to it, THEN make your opinion. I still much prefer rappers like the Wu-Tang Clan and MF DOOM over Nicki's popularized version of hip-hop, but I always think twice before jumping on any hate bandwagon. As I've probably said here before: "Dismissing all that is popular is just as ignorant as being led by the nose by the mainstream."
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