Nicki Minaj – “Chun-Li” & “Barbie Tingz” Videos
A couple of weeks ago, Nicki Minaj came out with two new singles, “Chun-Li” and “Barbie Tingz.” Both songs found Nicki rapping harder and more forcefully than she’s done in recent years, and both seemed designed to further what may be an unspoken feud with Cardi B. Today, Nicki has come out with slick, big-budget videos for both songs, and both clips, like so many of the Nicki videos that came before, capitalize on Nicki’s drama-nerd tendencies and make for eye-popping visuals.
Steven Klein directed the “Chun-Li” video, which goes hard on imagery from ’70s kung-fu movies and ’90s video games. It’s got some kind of vague, hard-to-follow plotline about revenge, but the story takes a distant backseat to the visuals, which are busy and overwhelming. If you thought Nicki was getting a bit too comfortable with Asian-stereotype imagery in the song and its cover art, you will not like this video very much!
Meanwhile, Nicki herself co-directed the “Barbie Tingz” video with Giovanni Bianco, and it’s mostly Nicki and her dancers against a stark white background. In most circumstances, that’d make for a stripped-down rap video. But this one is heavy on absolutely insane outfits, including Marie Antoinette get-ups and what appears to be plastic dresses. There’s also an extended bit where Nicki pretends to be a marionette puppet. Watch both videos below.
“Chun-Li” and “Barbie Tingz” are both out now at iTunes.