Nicki Minaj: Pink Friday on a Wednesday

I don’t always listen to the radio these days. Too much painful pop music (or is it a sign of old age that I don’t enjoy what the young ‘uns are into?). However, I make exception for danceable tunes that make me want to shake my booty!

Well, guess whose booty graced Manila last week?

Pink Friday in Manila: Booty


Pink Friday with a Pink Booty

Thanks to Globe and BlackBerry, Nicki’s Pink Friday World Tour made a stop in Manila. Concert tickets were for free and exclusive to Globe subscribers who availed of the new BlackBerry Curve 9220 or 9320 smartphones under the Globe My Super Plans.

Pink Friday in Manila: Booty


Nicki Minaj

As a Globe Mobile Data Services Ambassador, I got floor tickets to see the concert. I was almost put off from going because of heavy traffic, but I’m glad I toughed it out and made it to SM Mall of Asia Arena just in time for the opening act, Q-York (Philippine All-Stars). Then there was another long break during which I got something to eat (traffic makes me hungry). Then the screams from inside the arena alerted me that Nicki was onstage!

Pink Friday in Manila: LED Screens


Nicki and her band of dancers

I enjoyed the visual spectacle, from Nicki’s bright ensembles, to her tour dancers, to the LED screens she used to transform the stage look. Her blistering fast raps were live and I could hear teen audience members rapping along behind me.

Pink Friday in Manila: Colorful Nicki


yet another costume change

She sang most of her vocals, but as what she often does on TV appearances, part of the vocals were on a backing track (especially the vocals with distortion — chipmunked, echoed and repeated). I don’t blame her for it, as she needed lots of physical energy to run all over the stage. Between costume changes, her DJ would play some of her songs that were collaborations with other artists, including my favorite “Fly” with Rihanna.

At one point during the concert, she asked some front-row fans, including one girl from Q-York, to come up on stage and dance with her.

Pink Friday in Manila: Cheese!


say cheese!

Despite the short length of the show (well, compared with the amount of time I spent in traffic getting to the venue), Nicki appeared touched by her Filipino fans’ response to her performance. She said, “I’ll never forget you. You’ll always be in my heart as the first time I’ve ever come here.”

Pink Friday in Manila:


<3

Nicki ended the concert with “Super Bass”, still her most identifiable song on these shores.

Pink Friday in Manila: Confetti


an explosion of confetti

But Filipinos weren’t done with her. We kept chanting, “We want more! We want more!” There wasn’t more though, but Nicki ran out onstage to wave at us again.

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That was so much fun! Thanks Globe and BlackBerry!