Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded – The Re Up

Background

In April 2012, Minaj released her second studio album Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded. She recorded the album between 2011 and early 2012. For the album's production, Minaj worked with collaborators including Alex da Kid, David Guetta, Dr. Luke, Hit-Boy, and RedOne. Following its release, Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded became a commercial success. It peaked at number one on the UK Albums Chart. It also peaked at number one the US Billboard 200. It was met with a generally mixed response from music critics, receiving an average score of 60, based on 30 reviews on Metacritic, indicating "generally mixed or average reviews". The album's lead single "Starships" became Minaj's most successful and certified single to date, becoming one of the best-selling singles of all time and making US Billboard history after debuting in the top ten and then spending a total of 21 consecutive weeks in the top ten of the Hot 100.

At the 2012 MTV Video Music Awards, Minaj announced the reissue of Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded, subtitled The Re-Up, commenting "I'm putting lots of new songs on there and I'm actually going to drop my new single like next week. Barbz, you are gonna spaz. You are gonna love it. You are gonna go crazy!" Its artwork was released the following month, featuring an image of Minaj from the music video of her song "I Am Your Leader". In November, she added that the expanded album would contain an additional disc with seven newly recorded songs and an exclusive behind-the-scenes DVD to supplement the standard edition of the original album. The project served as the main focus of her three-part E! special Nicki Minaj: My Truth.

Composition

Minaj commented on On Air with Ryan Seacrest that "I feel like the music is such a better representation of me where I am now as an artist in my career. As long as people can hear the music, I'm good." Much of the new material incorporates hip hop and R&B styles previously seen in Minaj's earlier mixtapes. The opening track "Up in Flames" incorporates a "slow, heavy and melodramatic beat", where Minaj addresses her wealth and delivers negative remarks directed towards her adversaries. The second song "Freedom" was compared to material from her debut studio album Pink Friday (2010); it utilizes minimal production and reflects on Minaj's rise to prominence. The third song "Hell Yeah" features Parker and further criticizes Minaj's opponents. She references her much-publicized on-set tension with fellow American Idol judge Mariah Carey in the line "But I'm quick to check a bitch if she’s outta line" and references the series' personnel in the line "Shout out Mike Darnell and Nigel [Lythgoe] / Why these bums so mad that the queen on Idol".

The fourth track "High School" features Lil Wayne and discusses sexual desires with a man who had been in prison. The fifth song "I'm Legit" features Ciara and was characterized by having "snappy flows" and being "primed for the streets and clubs". The sixth track "I Endorse These Strippers" features Tyga and Brinx; its lyrics were described by Sal Cinquemani of Slant as "less clever than inexcusably archaic". The seventh song "The Boys" features American recording artist Cassie. It incorporates both hip hop and electropop influences, and has been described as a "girls' night anthem". The final track "Va Va Voom" was previously included on the original deluxe version of Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded, and also contains prominent electropop styles.

Singles

"The Boys", a collaboration with Cassie, was released as the lead single from The Re-Up on September 13, 2012. The song peaked at number 41 on the US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. Its music video premiered through Vevo on October 18, 2012.

"Freedom" was released as the second single digitally through iTunes on November 2, 2012. The song peaked at number 31 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. Its music video premiered on 106 and Park on November 19, 2012.

The third single "High School" features Lil Wayne and was released on April 16, 2013. The song peaked at number 64 on the Billboard Hot 100, and at number 20 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. Its music video was released by MTV on April 2, 2013.

Critical reception

Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded - The Re-Up received generally positive reviews from music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 72, based on eight reviews. David Jeffries of Allmusic opined that "the too-pop Roman Reloaded now feels more balanced once this eight-track EP worth of material tips the scales", adding that the additional tracks and DVD is "the better deal and bigger picture" than the original. Dan Weiss of the Boston Phoenix complimented Minaj's rapping, commenting that "the rapper who rhymes "fri-vo-lous" with "po-ly-ga-mist" is X-Acto sharp as ever". The Los Angeles Times' Gerrick D. Kennedy noted the variety of genres incorporated in the reissue, stating "Sure, she flirts with dance pop and R&B balladry, but you can forgive her for wanting to satisfy different tastes. Here, it actually works". Andy Gill of The Independent provided a mixed review, feeling that the material was generic and "does not add much to the Minaj experience". Slant Magazine's Sal Cinquemani criticized the lyrical content and featured guests, adding that "as long as [Minaj] keeps comparing herself to Jesus, we probably shouldn't hold our breath". Kyle Anderson of Entertainment Weekly placed the album at number two on his list of The Worst Albums Of The Year, writing that the album was "soul-less, lazy, and totally unnecessary."

Commercial performance

Charting together with the original Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded (according to the rules by Billboard), The Re-Up sold 36,000 copies in first-week sales and rose eighty spots on the US Billboard 200, from number 107 to number 27, with a 591% sales gain. An associate from Billboard commented on the commercial performance of The Re-Up stating that "expanded reissues aren't always guaranteed big sellers. It really depends on the extra content and timing of the release ... Nicki's reissue was seemingly timed to profit from holiday shopping", also adding that the sales of The Re-Up were actually better than similar reissues by Minaj's contemporaries. In New Zealand, the album charted within Roman Reloaded release and debuted at twenty-one.

Minaj commented that of the album's limited availability, "it's hard to get the album because the stores basically said that the last few re-releases [stores] had put out did not do well and they didn't want to take a chance. Target and Wal-Mart are not selling the album, and Target is actually my biggest retailer. Best Buy only took limited [stock] because they wanted to play it safe. It kinda sets you up to fail." Walmart responded that they do not issue albums with the Parental Advisory label, while Target sold the record on their website anyway.

Track listing

Personnel

Credits adapted from Allmusic.

Performance

Producers

Technical

Miscellaneous

Charts