Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded
| Nicki Minaj
Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded
Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded is the second studio album by Trinidadian-born American rapper Nicki Minaj. It was released on April 2, 2012, by Young Money, Cash Money and Universal Republic. Looking to transition from her debut studio album, Pink Friday (2010), Minaj wanted to make a follow-up record about "just having fun". Stylistically, the album is divided by a first half of hip hop tracks and a second half of dance-pop songs. As its executive producer, Minaj enlisted a variety of collaborators. Wikipedia
Critic Reviews
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Pitchfork
Much of Nicki Minaj's ambitious second LP sweats with a too-big-to-fail desperation.
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Rolling Stone
If you believe that art and commerce and provocation and fun – can all be one and the same, here’s a record for you.
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Consequence of Sound
Minaj enters the studio for round two, only to strip away all the wackiness and swag, leaving only the over-inflated diva.
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AV Club
With a little extra finesse and commitment, Roman Reloaded could be an ambitious, singular statement.
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Billboard
"Roman Reloaded" is the sound of Minaj doing a victory lap - already established enough in hip-hop to compete with her male counterparts.
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NME
The queen of the guest slot makes a royal mess of album two.
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Popcrush
Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded' will undoubtedly turn [Nicki Minaj] into a global pop artist if she's not already.
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Washington Post
Minaj’s second official disc and first since becoming a pop star, confronts her image problems head on: How to reconcile the fierce, foul-mouthed, probably sociopathic.
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The Guardian
Some want Nicki Minaj to play up her hardcore side; others love her as a pop star. Her solution? Give 'em a bit of both
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Spin
Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded, like a Whitman’s Sampler, has something chewy for everyone.
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Digital Spy
To call this a bit eccentric would be one hell of an understatement.
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Slant
you could call Roman Reloaded schizophrenic, the better word would be noncommittal.
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LA Times
It would be best if Minaj's "Roman Reloaded" fails as a commercial endeavor in the same way that its worst instincts fail artistically. -
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NZ Herald
Hip-hop pop seductress has talents, but not enough focus.
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popmatters
Roman Reloaded seems to be the result of no one being brave enough to tell Minaj enough is enough.
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Acclaim
Sorry Nicki, stick to the cameos.
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Independent
Pink Friday has been "mixed" – which is entirely appropriate, given that the album itself has an almost schizophrenic character.
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BBC
This second studio album cements Minaj’s reputation as a truly unique entity.
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Hip Hop DX
If you’re looking for good Hip Hop, look elsewhere because there’s very little of it here.
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Yuppee
Since the album was divided into two, the music seemed slightly scattered and unconnected.
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Pretty Much Amazing
her sophomore album is a victim of too many hands reaching into her honey hole.
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Soul in Stereo
Nicki is so busy trying to mimic others that she has NO identity, and her material has suffered.
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The Berklee Groove
Some gems like this one compare unfavorably to the viscous fluid at the bottom of a garbage bag.
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Drowned in Sound
Pink Friday: Roman’s Revenge isn’t bad because of Minaj’s cross-dressing it is bad because she often tries on some very banal, characterless outfits.
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Muumuse
It's all one big mess. But a mostly good kind, if you can believe it.
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Huffington Post
Minaj spent too much time on the album trying to sound like other artists instead of creating a definitive sound for herself.
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That Grape Juice
despite being the chaotic home of perhaps one too many tracks, the album is fun, sexy, smart and absolutely “out there”
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Popdust
Roman in spirit, less so in execution.
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Uproxx
The “Roman Reloaded” title flimsily attracts fans to its core conceit, the fleshing-out of Minaj's trash-talking alter-ego Roman.
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Sputnik Music
Nicki finally makes the album Pink Friday wanted to be.
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musicOHM
Pink Friday had everything to prove, whereas here, it’s as if Nicki’s preaching to the converted, and the album suffers from it.
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Entertainment Weekly
It may not be a definitive knockout punch, but she can keep her title.
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The Koalition
Instead of being a rapper who occasionally makes pop tunes, Nicki Minaj is now a pop artist who occasionally raps.
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The Quietus
Nicki Minaj's second album is pop postmodernity in an advanced state of hollow, banal meaningless, and the first causality is Minaj herself.
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Trini Trent
"We bind you Nicki from doing harm; harm against others and harm against yourself.” Repeat that spell 3 times and we just might save her career.
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Contact Music
A little more material on the cutting room floor probably would have given Roman Reloaded a stronger identity.
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The Observer
Roman Reloaded's triumphs all come early, on the album's hip-hop front end. In full flow, Minaj remains a delight.
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MSN Music
If you enjoy contemporary pop whose market-tested blare offends both rockist philistines and IDM aesthetes, her second album is a worthwhile investment.
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NOW Magazine
Unfortunately, her adventurous side is rarely heard in the more radio-friendly jams, which are heartfelt and catchy but less inspired.
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XXL
More than it's lack of rap, Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded suffers most from not fully being any one thing, as it's unable to balance multiple approaches into one package.
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Fact Magazine
It's not a classic album, but its contents implicitly argue that the concept of a "classic album" has become irrelevant in 2012 anyway.
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Rap Reviews
A missed opportunity to progress.
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Boston Globe
It lumps together all the rap tracks on the first half, and lets the pop fluff fill the rest.
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No Ripcord
A recipe for disaster which tries to please everybody and ends up being enjoyed by nobody.
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Real Style Network
Love her or hate her, Nicki Minaj has landed and if her skills keep up, she’ll be here for a while.
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The Young Folks
[Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded] failed to provide with some continuity within the songs.
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The Lantern
“Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded,” isn’t half bad. From that first listen on, however, it becomes almost fatal to the ear.
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NOW Toronto
Unfortunately, her adventurous side is rarely heard in the more radio-friendly jams, which are heartfelt and catchy but less inspired.
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We Got This Covered
Nicki Minaj is etching quite a name for herself in the history books and Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded reminds us why.
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Express
The second half is less inventive and too dependent on Gaga-esque Europop.
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Dead End Hip Hop
Nicki's multiple personalities can only land her so far in the rap game.
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Paste
Roman Reloaded may be scatterbrained and uneven, it nevertheless shows Minaj putting her money where her mouth is.
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Ranting About Music
Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded is both a thrilling and exhausting record, the only problem being that there’s almost zero overlay between the two.
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MTV
Nicki sticks to hard, confrontational rap songs.
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Respect
Overall, Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded is a decent album.
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Napster
For the moment, Roman Reloaded has our attention.
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St Luke's Sentinel
The whole thing comes off as sort of a big mess. There’s some good here, a lot of bad, and a lot of merely…weird.
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The Examiner
This is an enticing album that leaves you wondering what Minaj will come up with next.
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Pepperdine Graphic
ultimately, “Pink Friday … Roman Reloaded” suffers from the same problem as “Pink Friday.” These albums are not thematically cohesive.
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The Michigan Daily
all this being said, this album is one of the best albums that has been released this year, if not the past few years.
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Chicago Tribune
“Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded” lands closer to the center of the target than its predecessor, “Pink Friday.”
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Hollywood Reporter
Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded suffers most from not fully being any one thing, as it’s unable to balance multiple approaches into one package."
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MIMO
Roman Reloaded lets Minaj off of her leash long enough for her to offer a reminder of why she’s here in the first place.
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Autostraddle
I believe there’s something for everyone on an album spanning three genres.
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Spectrum Culture
Yes, she’s balancing being a mixtape monster and a pop princess, but she wouldn’t have it any other way.
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Vulture
Roman Reloaded plays more or less like two albums stitched together with a Drake-Nas double-feature
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Buzz
the album felt like it tried too hard to be radio appropriate.
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Album Confessions
Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded would have been great albums if the hip-hop and pop aspects were split in two, but as a whole the project lacks cohesiveness.
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Polari Magazine
Roman Reloaded feels like a breath of fresh air.
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So So Active
I was pleasantly surprised with the sound that Minaj presents in this 8-track EP, but it’s not long before this revamped sound quickly digresses back to the Nicki Minaj that I don’t particularly enjoy.
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The Review Corner
If you found her first album a breathe of fresh air and a brilliant rap album, you will be extremely disappointed with this album.
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