Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded is the second studio album by Trinidadian-born 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”.
It was a controversial album that garnered attention from haters while simultaneously making Minaj’s hardcore fanbase even more intense. Divisive in its diversity, the album cemented Nicki’s superstardom amid a rapidly changing hip-hop landscape.
Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded was also designed to discredit Nicki’s doubters by spotlighting the respect she’d generated from the greats. It sports features from Cam’Ron, Rick Ross, Young Jeezy, Nas and, of course, Lil Wayne. Even if the album’s impact was pop-inclined, Nicki’s prominence and importance in hip-hop were undeniable.
Upon its release, Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded received generally mixed reviews from music critics, who were ambivalent towards its production. It debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 selling 253,000 copies in its first week. In doing so, it became Minaj’s second number-one album in the country, and was additionally her first to debut in the peak position. The album was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for combined album sales, track sales, on-demand audio and video streams equivalent of two million album-sale units. Internationally, the album peaked at number one in Canada and the United Kingdom, and reached the top five in Australia, Ireland, and New Zealand.
The album was promoted with five singles. Its lead single “Starships” peaked at number five on the US Billboard Hot 100. Follow-up singles “Right by My Side” and “Beez in the Trap” experienced moderate success on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs component chart. “Pound the Alarm” and “Va Va Voom” peaked at numbers fifteen and twenty-two on the Billboard Hot 100, respectively. The album was additionally promoted through the Pink Friday Tour and the Pink Friday: Reloaded Tour, which visited North America, Asia, Europe, and Oceania throughout May and December 2012.
On November 19, 2012, Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded was reissued as an expanded version subtitled The Re-Up. It contained an additional disc with seven newly recorded tracks and an exclusive behind-the-scenes DVD to supplement the standard version of the original album. Its singles “The Boys”, “Freedom”, and “High School” experienced moderate success on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hip Songs component chart.
