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Nicki Minaj - The Pinkprint</div>

All Things Go: 4.25/5
-This track has many things going for it. Firstly, the soft, soothing beat is perfect for the subject matter. The emotion put into this song is also something I never really expect from Nicki and it is truly great to see her put so much raw emotion into her verses. The other major positive here would have to be the hook. I love it. It's the perfect the hook for this track with its gentle singing portion and then it speeds up just a touch and Nicki does a great job communicating the emotion she feels there and delivers the hook perfectly. As for the verses, they are lacking. There is a lot of depth here and I don't mind the lyrics, of course, but I am just not fucking with her flow and delivery on this track. However, I cannot hate on this one too much, because it is undoubtedly a beautiful and touching track that serves a good intro to this track as Nicki takes a page out of Drake's book and has one of the softer tracks as the intro. I see you, Nicki.

I Lied: 4.5/5
-Nicki flexing her singing game on this record to very good results. Honestly, I am not hating it. Strong vocals on her part and strong writing set to a solid production help to elevate this track into being another solid entry here. When she starts rapping and the beat picks up, it is impossible not to tap your feet along with it as the beat is entirely infectious and her flow over it is picture perfect. I also just realized this track was produced by Mike Will Made it. Woah. Never would have guessed. Another incredibly emotional track, I Lied is a beautiful track where Nicki continues on her emotional break upy song trip and to positive effects. Honestly, the improved rapping on this track moves it a bit above All Things Go for me.

The Crying Game: 4.5/5
-"Are you alone? Do you need someone? / Is it too late to talk? Did I wait too long? / Thousand words don't change a thing / Is it only three? Three words that you're missing?", Nicki sings this bridge perfectly and it truly breaks your heart hearing it. Her rapping on this track is also on point as her flow and delivery have just enough emotion and style to be effective. In addition, Jessie Ware murders her part her on the chorus and the pre-chorus. Man this album's beginning is rivaling Drake on Take Care, honestly. Taking another page out of Drake's playbook, I see you Nicki. As with the last two tracks, I am really loving the emotion put into this one, Nicki's signing is on point, and the production is very strong and complementary to Nicki and, on this one, to Jessie Ware. All in all, a very unexpectedly great start to Nicki's third album.

Get on Your Knees (ft. Ariana Grande): 3.75/5
-"Got a bow on my panties because my ass is a present". Oh dammit. I thought we were getting somewhere with this album. Let me focus on the positives here. Ariana Grande's voice is that of an angel and she could sing a phonebook and I'd love it. The production is also very good on this track, as are Nicki's flow and delivery. Overall, all of those elements are very much on point. I just am not really digging her lyrical content here. However, I can look past it because of the great Ariana stuff here, so thanks Nicki.

Feeling Myself (ft. Beyonce): 3.25/5
-Never been a huge fan of Beyonce (*hides*) and that continues here. Her parts are very short and unflattering to her vocals. While I may not love her, her vocal skills are undeniable and they're really caged here and not allowed to show, which is a bummer. In fact, they almost serve to interrupt the flow of the track. As for Nicki, she's got good flow and delivery on here on solid production, but I am not really digging the lyrics again. For example, "Feelin' myself, back off, cause I'm feelin' myself, jack off / He be thinking about me when he whacks off, whacks on? Wax off" and "He said 'Damn Nicki it's tight,' I say 'Yeah ***** you right' / He say 'Damn, bae, you so little, but you be really takin' that pipe'". Like, this is J. Cole level corn and cringe here, Nicki. Let's cut this shit out. However, I will recognize that I love the lines, "Trippin' on that work, trippin' off that purp / Flippin' up my skirt and I be whippin' all that work / Takin' trips with all them ki's, car keys got B's / Stingin' with the Queen Bey and we be whippin' all that D". Her flow/delivery on it is perfect and it really just drips with swagger. However, this one is just too disjointed and filled with poor lyrics to truly be successful, though it is not a complete failure to some positive elements.

Only (ft. Drake, Lil Wayne & Chris Brown): 2.75/5
-I can feel a guilty pleasure coming on. The moment this dropped, I knew it sucked, but I did continue to listen to it. Why? It's catchy as shit. For example, the line, "Had to show bitches where the top is, ring finger where the rock is" has been stuck in my head for a good month now. I'm just walking to class and it'll come up in my mind. Like, damn why did this shit have to happen. As for Drake, his verse sets men back at least three decades. Thanks Drake. His delivery of the line, "She was sitting down on that big butt / But I was still staring at the titties though" never fails to make me laugh, but damn is it cringe worthy. As are the following bars: "I never fucked Nicki, cause she got a man / But when that's over, then I'm first in line", "I mean, she say I’m obsessed with thick women and I agree / Yeah, that’s right, I like my girls BBW, yeah" and "And Nicki if you ever tryna fuck, just give me the heads-up / So I can plan for it". The male race may truly never recover from this one. As for Lil Wayne, he's on his old Lil Wayne terrible bar swag. Once he drops the lines, "I never fucked Nic and that's fucked up / If I did fuck, she'd be fucked up / Whoever is hittin' ain't hittin' it right / Cause she actin' like she need dick in her life", I knew we were in for some mediocre Wayne and I was certainly not wrong, though it is far better than Drake's, so I will give him that. The beat is pretty standard, but it certainly bumps. Chris Brown's hook is beyond stupid. I like his vocals, but all of the verses are chill and laid back and he just comes in yelling and fucking up the flow. Like, who told him to deliver the hook that way?

Want Some More: 3.5/5
-A victory lap of a track, Nicki thumps her chest in the direction of up and coming female rappers like Iggy Azalea. Maybe this is a good time for me to ask why all these female rappers have to be all catty to each other and constantly battle for the crown as the Queen of Rap. I get it that the guys do this too, but man, these women seem to want to try and be the only female rapper, which is odd to me. However, focusing on this track, I am not really fucking with the hook at all. Her verse really bumps though and I am fucking with her flow and delivery on what is a solid, worthwhile beat. No bars truly stand out to me, as it is all largely braggadocio, so you can pretty much imagine what the bars all really are on this one, but I'm not mad at this track. Not a great entry, but a step up.

Four Door Aventador: 3/5
-Not loving the beat here. It's a slowed down and sounds like it was pitched down (not really sure) and I'm not really digging the hook here either. All of it's too slowed down for me and just doesn't sound great. As for Nicki, he delivery is fine and her flow is good. Hell, her lyrics are not even bad on this one. In particular, I really dug the first lines from her on this one where she says, "Hit me on the celly, watching Belly / God's son, I can see they study Makaveli". However, nothing here really screams greatness and this one winds up being nothing but a track. Filler?

Favorite (ft. Jeremih): 3.25/5
-A song about Nicki trying to get this guy's heart and become, well, his main bitch. Her flow and delivery on here are solid and I really like her lyrics. None of them are amazing on their own, but in the context of the song, they all really work well and flow well together. The beat is pretty non-existent. It took me writing this to really think about the beat, which is never a positive for me. This one redefines background noise. Jeremih does well on the hook, but I just don't think it flows well with the verses and they don't really blend well together overall. Again, not a bad song, but not a particularly strong one either.

Buy a Heart (ft. Meek Mill): 4/5
-It's weird to think this was intended for Meek's album. Makes you wonder how that album will sound, since this doesn't really sound like Meek's type of shit and seems to be a better fit for a Nicki album, which it rightfully is on. Meek's flow and delivery is good on his verse, but he really does his best work here on the hook. With his voice altered for the hook, his rap singing of "anybody, anybody wanna buy a heart" is truly the lasting element of this track. Though, Nicki's verse is certainly not bad either. I really dug the singing on the portion of her verse where she says, "I could tell you was analyzing me, I could tell you was criticizing me / I could tell you was fantasizing that you would come slide in me and confide in me". Really, her verse was a series of seamless transitions between singing and rapping that really all flowed well. And in stark contrast to the last track, the hook really does blend well with the verses and serves a very good and beneficial purpose to this track. A return to the strong beginning.

Trini Dem Girls (ft. Lunchmoney Lewis): 2/5
-On every listen, this one one stood out to me for all of the wrong reasons. Very fast paced beat here that does suit Nicki well and she flows on it fine. In addition, her pre-hook is stellar and really makes me want to love this track. However, the hook is an abomination to music everywhere and should have been burned. How Lunchmoney Lewis can look himself in the mirror after dropping that hook is beyond me. Really, the only reason this one isn't a track I completely hate is because of the pre-hook that Nicki sings. However, it is sadly not all three minutes of this track, so because there is other extremely sub-par to horrible material here, I cannot like this track, which is a shame.

Anaconda: 1/5
-Probably the most attention grabbing track of the year, any straight male who listens to this track with just the audio and no video needs to reevaluate himself. This track is so unspeakably bad that the only redeeming quality is the ass in the video. Her flow and delivery are fine, but what the fuck. I guess she got her hit single here, but boy oh boy did she pimp herself out on this one.

The Night Is Still Young: 3.75/5
-This beat is undoubtedly infectious and this beat was built for the clubs. If this one does not blow up and become a white girl anthem, then I don't know music and I don't know white girls (I don't know women, but white girls are pretty easy to figure out). Her vocals on the hook are solid. In addition, her verses are surprisingly good. I like her flow and delivery on them and they really make for the perfect clubby/party track. In particular, I really dug the close to verse two with the lines, "So drop the pop and get low / Or we can drop the top and just cruise / We fresh to death, down to the shoes / My only motto in life is don't lose". Nothing ground breaking, but it simply just sounds good. As a whole, this track is far from amazing, but is catchy and entirely infectious, which should make it a good single (seriously Young Money, how was this not released as a single yet?) and makes it a solid entry on this album.

Pills n Potions: 4.5/5
-Ever since I first heard this track, I honestly loved it. Nicki's vocals are great on this track and the beat works perfectly for her. In addition, her rapping is on point. Good flow and delivery, as well as solid lyrics. In particular, I really dig the lines, "Niggas want respect, but niggas ain't earned that yet / Self-righteous and entitled but they swearin' on the Bible, that / They love you, when really they no different from all your rivals / But I still don’t wish death on ‘em, I just reflect on 'em". The writing on the pre-hook is also particularly strong, "Pills n' potions / We're overdosin' / I'm angry but I still love you / Pills n potions / We’re overdosin' / Can't stand it but I still love you". Another very emotional track, Nicki shows that she is truly at her best with tracks of this style. Tons of emotion, very ballady, solid production, and a nice blend of singing and rapping.

Bed of Lies (ft. Skylar Grey): 4.25/5
-I'm a big fan of Skylar Grey on hooks and this track is no exception. Her vocals are very strong and I love her voice on this production and with these lyrics. Overall, very complementary of her skills and she's really the perfect vocalist for this hook. The writing of the hook is also very good. Yet another personal track for Nicki, this one shows her rapping skills on these personal tracks to great effect. Solid flow and delivery that does not fuck with the mood set by the hook at all. Lines such as, "I was killin' it, now you got me poppin' pills in it", "Overdosin', no more coastin', no more toastin' over oceans", and "I just figured if you saw me, if you looked in my eyes / You'd remember our connection and be freed from the lies / I just figured I was something that you couldn't replace / But there was just a blank stare and I couldn't relate" are particularly effecting, though really the whole second verse really hits you and touches your heart. As a whole, this is yet another very strong track from Nicki on an album that surprisingly has some very good highs, such as this track.

Grand Piano: 5/5
-I am a sucker for good piano on a track and dayum is this piano good. Sets the mood perfectly for what may be one of the most emotional tracks on an album full of emotion. I was about to start quoting my favorite lines from this track, but then I realized I was about to quote everything, so I won't, but really, the writing here is great. Extremely heartfelt lyrics and extremely beautiful to listen to, especially with the piano (in addition to the violin) in the background. Never the track I would expect from Nicki and yet, here it is. A truly heartbreaking and moving track, it is impossible to not give this one a perfect rating. It may not be one of the years strongest tracks, but there is no way this one does not make a permanent home for itself in my Spotify play queue. Easily the best song I have ever heard from Nicki.

57.5/80 -> 3.59/5

Undoubtedly Nicki Minaj's best album to date, this album is a classic example of an album with highs and lows, as without horrible tracks like "Trini Dem Girls" and "Anaconda", as well as suspect tracks such as "Only" and "Four Door Aventador", this one could be truly something to behold, which was not at all what I expected. As her last album may have been one of my least favorite releases of 2012, I obviously had extremely low expectations for this one, but Nicki showed her skills her on many occasions, in large part thanks to her being willing to get emotional. Tracks such as "All Things Go", "I Lied", "The Crying Game", "Pills n Potions", and "Bed of Lies", are all very good songs that honestly helped to reshape my opinion of Nicki and elevated this album above her more stereotypical and sexed up tracks. In addition, the song "Grand Piano" just really, really touched my heart and is far and away the best track on this album and one that will be on replay for me for a while. Without some of the bottom feeding tracks aimed at the lowest common denominator, this album could have been something to truly behold, but sadly, it is not. I hope that for her next album, she sticks with the emotional side of things where she can truly flex her vocal skills, her rapping skills, and strike a chord rather than just try to sell her body to thirsty dudes.