Nicki Minaj has responded to an assault lawsuit levelled against her by a former employee, claiming that the allegations are “false and frivolous”.
Last Friday (January 3) a 10-page complaint was filed in Los Angeles, with Minaj and her Pink Personality company being named as lead defendants in the suit. The accusations included assault, battery and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
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An ex-employee of Minaj claimed that the rapper hit him in the face at a concert in Detroit, Michigan last year.
Minaj’s lawyer, Judd Burstein, has now vehemently denied the accusations in a statement issued to Variety.
“At this time, no complaint has been served upon Mrs. Petty [Minaj’s married name], and therefore, we are unaware of the specific allegations,” Bernstein told the publication. He went on to denounce a report about the complaint published by TMZ.
“However, if the lawsuit is as reported by TMZ, it is completely false and frivolous. We are confident that the matter brought by this ex assistant will be resolved swiftly in Mrs. Petty’s favour,” Bernstein added.
According to Rolling Stone, plaintiff Brandon Jovan Garrett alleged that he was working for Minaj as a “day-to-day manager” when her head of security summoned him to a meeting at her dressing room in the Little Caesars Arena on April 21, 2024.
Nicki Minaj. CREDIT: Theo Wargo/GA/Getty
Garrett claimed that Minaj was upset at the time, and that her stress about the state of her staff turned into “rage” after one employee used picking up her prescriptions as an example of his good performance.
Per the suit, Minaj was frustrated that Garrett had assigned this task to the other employee. Garrett said he tried to reason with artist, and remind her that she wanted the prescription picked up “immediately”. He claimed that he had no choice but to delegate, as he was busy assisting Minaj with her quick-change room ahead of the show.
Minaj then allegedly screamed at Garrett: “Are you fucking crazy having him pick up my prescription? You have lost your fucking mind, and if my husband was here, he would knock out your fucking teeth. You’re a dead man walking. You just fucked up your whole life and you will never be anyone, I’ll make sure of it.”
Garrett went on to claim that Minaj “abruptly stood up, stomped her feet and walked aggressively” towards him while continuing to insult him. He further alleged that she then “open-handedly struck” him on the right side of his face.
This reportedly caused his head to “swing backwards and his hat to fly off of his head”, with a second alleged strike from Minaj on his wrist knocking documents out of his hand.
Minaj at Madison Square Garden on September 07, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for Live Nation)
Garrett claimed that after the alleged attack, he fled and locked himself in a bathroom until 4am – later reporting the incident to the police and flying back to his native Los Angeles.
Minaj was out on her ‘Pink Friday 2’ North American tour when the alleged incident occurred, in support of her fifth album of the same name.
READ MORE: Nicki Minaj – ‘Pink Friday 2’ review: blockbuster sequel lives up to the hype
Last month, she released a deluxe edition of ‘Pink Friday 2’ called ‘Pink Friday 2 – The Hiatus’. It followed on from a 10th anniversary edition of ‘The Pinkprint’ featuring previously unreleased songs.
Elsewhere, fans speculated over a potential upcoming collaboration with FKA Twigs after footage emerged of the pair together. Minaj denied any rumours suggesting she would be going on a hiatus soon in October, saying that she “ain’t going no-mthfkn’-where”.
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