Nicki Minaj at TIDAL X: 1015. October 15, 2016.
Photo by Brad Barket/Getty Images for TIDAL
Nicki Minaj is the cover star of July's Elle Magazine. In her profile, the rapper discussed her ex-boyfriend Meek Mill's ongoing legal issues, including his accusation of inappropriate conduct by Judge Genece Brinkley, who oversees his case.
The interview was conducted after Judge Brinkley denied Meek's release on bail, roughly two weeks before his eventual release. After saying she "wouldn’t wish" Meek's bail denial on anyone, Minaj says “But I’m also not gonna bad-mouth a judge who…because anything I say stays on the record.”
The interviewer Devin Gordon writes that Minaj "seems to side with Brinkley" in what she says next:
“I know that when I went there pleading for his freedom, I know that she”—Judge Brinkley—“spoke to me and was very sweet and maternal, and we both cried in her chambers, and she gave him another chance,” Nicki says. “So I don’t know what’s going on.”
Meek Mill and his legal team have accused Judge Brinkley of asking him to record a cover of Boys II Men's "On Bended Knee." They allege she made the request privately in her quarters while Nicki MInaj was present. When asked about this by Elle, Minaj "says legal a few more times, then goes quiet without confirming Meek’s account," adding "She never asked me to sing.”
The Elle interview is the second time Minaj has appeared to publicly defend Judge Brinkley. In April, Minaj told Zane Lowe that Brinkley "did everything asked of her... so I can’t badmouth her because I met her personally."
Last week, Meek Mill's legal team petitioned the Pennsylvania State Supreme Court to remove Brinkley from his case. That filing was denied on Tuesday.
