Nicki Minaj review: The rapper conquers the United Center in long-awaited return to Chicago

Queen Sleeze has been ruling Chicago this week. After bringing her family to hang with penguins at the Shedd Aquarium and waxing about Chicago pizza on socials, Nicki Minaj finally got down to business of music Wednesday night at the United Center, where the chart-topping rapper arrived with her Pink Friday 2 World Tour in tow. It offered a two-and-half-hour, 34-song super trip through the conceptual cyberspace village known as Gag City, that made you want to move there and claim residency.

The United Center spectacle — full of costume and wig changes, a backup dancer army, high-def video displays and fire towers — was the first of two very sold-out shows (in fact, her record-breaking 28^th and 29^th consecutive sell-outs). It was also the first time the Trinidadian-born rapper-singer has had a proper show in Chicago in about a decade (most recently bowing out of 103.5 KISS FM’s Jingle Ball last December).

The wait was worth it, as the long incubation period has served its purpose, allowing Minaj to morph into the dominating force she is today, a larger-than-life performer and savvy rhyme slinger who is considered the modern-era Queen of Hip-Hop with the most No. 1 hits on the Billboard 200 by any female rapper.

The latest, a remix of the “Pink Friday 2” track “FTCU” (featuring Travis Scott, Chris Brown and Sexxy Red), is only a week old but has been delivered like a veteran classic on tour. Its catchy backbeat — aided by a fantastic live duo on drums and synths — was a highlight of the night that stood up to time-tested power singles “Super Bass,” “Anaconda” and “Starships” that were delivered in rapid-fire succession at the end of the set.

Minaj had some good company for her United Center kickoff as well, bringing out two of Chicago’s own for special guest spots. Rapper G Herbo joined for a blitzkrieg version of “Chi-Raq,” while Jeremih tagged in for “Favorite” and “Want Some More,” with Minaj asserting it was the first time she had ever performed the songs live with the latter.

For someone who’s often swimming in headlines for her beefs with fellow rappers, Minaj has showcased her alliances on this tour, also getting Tyga, Big Sean and Sada Baby for previous dates. Monica has also been a special guest for multiple nights on the trek, though in a very ill-timed placement within the evening's lineup. The “Angel of Mine” singer appears some 30 songs into Minaj’s own set, abruptly delivering a five-song break that disrupted the flow of the Gag City escape and added unnecessarily to a very long night (Wednesday’s concert let out at midnight).

Regardless, Minaj posted on her social accounts that it was, “Perfect. Absolutely. Positively. Perfect. From start to finish. Complete perfection.” And there’s no doubt her Barbz (as her diehard cult of fans are known) would agree. The epitome of “we wear pink” on this Wednesday, they came dressed head to toe in a cotton candy explosion of fabrics, rhinestones and western wear, the perfect visual blend of Minaj’s “Barbie World”/”Barbie Dangerous” cartoonishness and her pre-“Cowboy Carter” curveball track “Cowgirl.”

Minaj showed her gratitude to the denizens, throwing out a few branded Pink Friday 2 T-shirts while offering “blessings” and thanking the fans for “f- - - - -g with me all these years,” adding, “you either love me or f- - - - -g hate me, right?” She then handed over her microphone to a few of them situated in the SRO pit area around the thrust stage, baiting them to do their best vocal take on “The Night Is Still Young,” though quickly, thankfully, cutting off the less-than-successful karaoke. Minaj’s excellent backup singer Keisha Renee then showed the crowd how it was done.

The life journey Minaj has been on since she started flipping mixtapes in 2007 has not been lost on her in her latest arena tour. The rapper pays homage to her origin story on the setlist opener, “I’m The Best,” and she also adds in a cover of Ye’s (formerly Kanye West) 2010 hit “Monster,” which was her gateway into the scene. (The latter connection happened after being discovered by Lil Wayne, whose Young Money imprint released her debut album “Pink Friday” that same year.)

No doubt the Barbz and everyone else are hoping it's not another 10 years before we see Minaj on a local stage again.

SET LIST

• I’m The Best
  
• Barbie Dangerous
  
• FTCU
  
• Beep Beep
  
• Hard White
  
• Press Play
  
• Win Again
  
• Chi-Raq (with G Herbo)
  
• Big Difference/Beez in the Trap
  
• Pink Birthday
  
• Feeling Myself
  

  Selena Fragassi/For the Sun-Times

• Favorite (with Jeremih)
  
• Want Some More (with Jeremih)
  
• Cowgirl
  
• RNB
  
• High School
  
• Needle
  
• Chun-Li
  
• Red Ruby Da Sleeze
  
• Barbie World (Aqua cover)
  
• Roman’s Revenge
  
• Monster (Ye cover)
  
• Fallin 4 U
  
• Right Through Me
  
• Save Me
  
• Here I Am
  
• Let Me Calm Down
  
• Super Freaky Girl
  
• Anaconda
  
• Super Bass
  
• The Night Is Still Young
  
• Moment 4 Life
  
• Starships
  
• Everybody