Nicki Minaj is the First Solo Female Rapper to Debut at No. 1 Since Lauryn Hill

Nicki Minaj’s new single “Super Freaky Girl” is the first solo hip-hop song to debut atop the Billboard Hot 100 since 1998.

Nicki Minaj is following in the footsteps of her idol Lauryn Hill. Minaj’s new single “Super Freaky Girl” has become her third single to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 following her 2019 “Say So” remix with Doja Cat and 2020’s “Trollz” with 6ix9ine.

“Super Freaky Girl” also marks Minaj’s first solo single to top the Billboard Hot 100, the first chart-topping hip-hop song since Lauryn Hill’s “Doo Wop (That Thing)” in 1998. To reach the No. 1 feat, “Super Freaky Girl” was available for purchase through eight different options, per Billboard. Explicit and clean versions of the song’s standard mix were released on August 12; explicit and clean versions of the song’s “Roman Remix” released at midnight on August 18; and beforehand, explicit and clean a cappella versions of both its standard version and “Roman Remix” dropped at 10:30 PM ET earlier that evening. All eight versions of “Super Freaky Girl” were discounted to 69 cents on August 18.

In its first week, “Super Freaky Girl” garnered 89,000 downloads along with 21.1 million streams and 4.6 million in radio airplay audience impressions.

“Super Freaky Girl” is also No. 1 on a host of other charts, including Streaming Songs, Hip-Hop/R&B Songs, Digital Song Sales, R&B/Hip-Hop Streaming Songs, R&B/Hip-Hop Digital Songs Sales, and Rap Streaming Songs. The rapper has also teased an official music video for the single, which is currently unreleased.

To celebrate her Billboard accomplishment, ‘Nick James’ went to Instagram to thank the Barbz for running up “Super Freaky Girl” streams.

“You did it barbz. You did it. I love you so much. like so so SO much. Thank you,” she wrote.

On August 28, Nicki Minaj will be honored with the MTV VMA Video Vanguard Award during the 2022 MTV Video Music Awards. The “Super Freaky Girl” rapper will also perform live at the awards ceremony for the first time since 2018.

“Nicki has broken barriers for women in hip-hop with her versatility and creative artistry,” said Bruce Gillmer, chief content officer of music at Paramount+ and president of music, music talent, programming and events at Paramount. “She has shifted the music industry and cemented her status as a global superstar with her crossover appeal, genre-defying style and continuing to be unapologetically ‘Nicki’.”

The 2022 MTV Video Music Awards will air on Sunday, August 28, 2022 at 8 PM local time.