Honestly, looking back at 2015, it feels like a fever dream for the Barbz. That was the year Nicki Minaj hit the road for The Pinkprint Tour, her third big worldwide run. It wasn't just another concert series. It was a massive, messy, emotional, and high-stakes era that basically defined how we see Nicki today. She had just dropped The Pinkprint, which was way more vulnerable than anything she’d done before. No more candy-colored wigs every five minutes—this was about heartbreak, family, and proving she was the best rapper alive, period.
The tour grossed over $22 million from 38 shows. That’s a lot of money, obviously. But the numbers don’t even start to cover the actual drama that went down behind the curtain.
The Tragedy That Almost Ended The Pinkprint Tour
Most people don’t remember this, but the tour almost didn't happen. Like, at all.
Just a month before the first show in Stockholm, something awful happened in Philadelphia. Two of Nicki’s crew members, De’Von "Day Day" Pickett and Eric Parker, were involved in an altercation outside a bar. It ended in a stabbing. Pickett, who was the tour manager, didn't make it.
It was devastating. Nicki actually considered canceling the whole thing. She talked about how "heart-wrenching" it was to walk into rehearsals and see the look on everyone's faces. The band had been with Pickett for years. Ultimately, she decided that quitting would be the wrong move. She pushed forward to do the show in his memory. You can really feel that weight in the early European dates—there was this raw, almost somber energy that eventually shifted into the "imperious" Nicki we know.
A Setlist That Split the Fans
The vibe of the show was split into sections, which was kinda polarizing for critics. Some people loved the slow burn; others thought it dragged.
She usually opened with the heavy hitters from the new album: "All Things Go" and "I Lied." These are slow, reflective songs. If you were there for "Starships" energy right out of the gate, you were probably confused. But then, the switch would flip. Suddenly, she’s doing "Moment 4 Life," "Beez in the Trap," and "Anaconda."
The Deep Cuts
One of the coolest things she did was a "mixtape medley." She’d literally stop the music and test the audience. She wanted to see if they knew the lyrics to her old underground stuff from the Beam Me Up Scotty days. If a crowd could finish the lyrics to "Itty Bitty Piggy" or "Chi-Raq," she’d hype them up like crazy.
The standard setlist usually looked something like this:
- All Things Go / The Crying Game
- Only / Truffle Butter
- Moment 4 Life
- The "Crazy" Era: Did It On ‘Em / Beez In The Trap / Anaconda
- The Ballads: Pills N Potions / Grand Piano
- The Finale: Super Bass / Starships / The Night Is Still Young
The North American Leg and the Drake-Meek Beef
When the tour hit the US in July 2015, the energy shifted from "vulnerable artist" to "center of a rap war."
Nicki brought out Meek Mill (her boyfriend at the time), Rae Sremmurd, Tinashe, and Dej Loaf. It was a stacked lineup. But this was also the exact moment the Meek Mill vs. Drake beef exploded.
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Imagine being in the crowd in Toronto—Drake's hometown—while Nicki is performing "Only" and "Truffle Butter," both of which feature Drake. Meek Mill was literally on the tour. He performed in the middle of her set. The tension was thick enough to cut with a knife. Some people booed Meek; others cheered because of the "modern rap fairytale" vibe of them being together.
Nicki was basically the eye of the storm. She never mentioned Drake by name, but during "Make Me Proud," she’d roll her eyes or wave her hand dismissively at the "OVO" line. It was subtle, messy, and exactly why we love live music.
Wardrobe, Wigs, and "Gag City" Prototypes
The fashion for The Pinkprint Tour was a major departure from the neon-pink Roman Zolanski days. She worked with designers like The Blonds and Kanna Taniuchi.
The show usually had four main "acts" with distinct looks:
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- The Dark Start: She’d often start in black lingerie under a polka-dot mesh catsuit. It felt mature and serious.
- The Custom Pink: For the "Barbie" segments, she had a heavily beaded pink bra and shorts ensemble. One of these actual outfits was later auctioned off for thousands of dollars.
- The "Raw" Look: There was a segment where she’d wear a silk floor-length Tom Ford dress with metallic flowers. She’d perform with no shoes on. This was meant to be the "uncut" Nicki.
Critics like Emma Loffhagen from the Evening Standard noted that the eight costume changes sometimes killed the flow of the show. But let’s be real: if you're going to a Nicki Minaj show, you're there for the spectacle.
Why It Still Matters Today
The Pinkprint Tour was the first time a female rapper really proved they could command that level of global touring revenue in the modern era. It grossed $22 million, which was huge at the time. It paved the way for the Pink Friday 2 World Tour we saw recently, which shattered even more records.
It also showed the industry that Nicki wasn't just a "singles" artist. She could carry a two-hour show that moved from hardcore rap to emotional ballads without losing the crowd. Even with the "sags" in energy that some critics complained about, it was a masterclass in persona management.
What You Can Learn From This Era
If you’re a fan or even just a student of pop culture, here’s what you should take away from this tour:
- Context is everything: You can't separate the performance from the personal tragedy (Pickett's death) or the public drama (Meek vs. Drake).
- Evolution is necessary: Nicki’s move from "costume" to "couture" during this tour changed how female rappers were marketed.
- The "Barbz" are a metric: Her ability to test her fans on mixtape cuts showed she valued her "day ones" over just casual radio listeners.
If you're looking to dive deeper into this specific time, go find the Tidal documentary she released back then. It's about eight minutes of behind-the-scenes footage from Stockholm and Paris. It captures the "craziness" in a way words can't quite hit. Also, look up the fan-recorded footage of the Brooklyn show at Barclays Center—bringing out Lil Wayne was a "passing of the torch" moment that still gives people chills.
The best way to experience the "vibe" today is to put on The Pinkprint from start to finish. Skip the radio hits for a second and listen to "All Things Go." That’s the heart of what she was trying to show the world on those stages in 2015.
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To truly understand the impact of this tour, you should compare the setlist of the 2015 run with her 2024 performances. You'll see which songs stood the test of time and which ones were just products of the moment. Analyzing the revenue growth from $22 million to over $100 million in her latest tour also shows the incredible trajectory of her career.