Nicki Minaj apologized to a crowd of fans gathered outside her hotel in Manchester over the weekend – after being forced to postpone a show due to an arrest in Amsterdam.
“I love you and I’m sorry this happened tonight,” the rapper, chic in pink from head to toe, told a group of Barbz, as seen in a video posted online.
Minaj, 41, had been set to perform at Manchester’s Co-op Live Arena Saturday night as part of her “Pink Friday 2” tour. However, she was forced to postpone the concert after being arrested in Amsterdam on suspicion of alleged drug possession.
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The “Super Freaky Girl” rapper first apologized to fans in a series of tweets shared via X on Saturday.
“Thank you to everyone who prayed for me today. May God cover you & all that is connected to you. May you be blessed beyond your imagination,” Minaj explained in a lengthy statement about the arrest, noting that she has “sooooooooo much video evidence” as she filmed her experience in real time.
“I’ll have the lawyers & GOD take it from here tho. Please please please accept my deepest & most sincere apologies. They sure did know exactly how to hurt me today but this too, shall pass.”
At one point, she also shared the name of her Manchester hotel and invited fans to see her.
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“Barbz, I’m @ the stock exchange hotel in #Manchester I arrived a little over an hour ago.
After sitting in a jail cell for 5-6 hours, my plane still didn’t take off for another 20 mins once I boarded,” she shared.
“I’m going on the balcony so if you’re outside I’ll be able to see you & I may come downstairs. ’ll be out there for about an hour. [Really] wanted to at least get to see you.”
As previously reported, Minaj live-streamed herself being told by police in Amsterdam that she was under arrest for allegedly “carrying drugs” – just a few hours before her next show was set to kick off.
In footage shared via her various social media platforms, an officer can be heard telling Minaj that she needed to stop recording and enter a police vehicle. She continuously refused and asked to speak to her lawyer before eventually entering the car.
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In another video, an official told Minaj that all her luggage needed to be searched on the suspicion that she was carrying more drugs.
“Now they said they found weed & that another group of ppl have to come here to weigh the pre-rolls. Keep in mind they took my bags without consent,” she alleged via X Saturday morning. “My security has already advised them those pre-rolls belong to him. Oh yea & the pilot wants me to take my ig post down.”
At the time, Minaj noted the irony of allegedly carrying marijuana in a country where it’s legal, writing, “This is Amsterdam btw, where weed is legal.”
The “Queen of Rap” further suggested that her old management company may have been behind the arrest.
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“All b/c I fired mngmnt who I found out for years were adding on 30-50K on my jet & pocketing it,” she alleged. “I fired a tour mngr recently who was doing the same thing & mad he got the boot. Their goal is to make me late, & to pocket 40K.”
Authorities in Amsterdam confirmed via X Saturday afternoon that Minaj had been released after being booked “on suspicion of exporting soft drugs” and fined.
Following her own experience with authorities, Minaj also retweeted a few posts about singer Ari Lennox, who was arrested at the Amsterdam Airport in 2021. Authorities claimed she was “full of emotions” at the time and arrested for disturbing public order.
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“She was ‘full of emotions.’ She was arrested b/c she was full of emotions in AmsterDAM,” Minaj wrote. “Hmmmmm interesting. I didn’t know this was a ‘thing’ there.”
The “Barbie World” hitmaker then compared Lennox to Sandra Bland, a black woman who was found dead in a jail cell in Texas, three days after being arrested during a traffic stop. “Who spoke up for her?” she asked, implying that the situation “could’ve easily been” another Bland incident. “I’m so happy she made it out alive & well.”
Minaj is set to play in Manchester on Thursday, May 30.
