Nicki Minaj feels "strong and powerful" as a single woman.
The 35-year-old rapper has claimed that since the age of 15, she has always been in a serious relationship, but since her split from Meek Mill late last year she has been embracing the single life for the first time in 20 years, and is loving how empowered she feels.
She said: "As soon as I realised that I could actually live and breathe, and eat and sleep, and walk and talk without having a boyfriend, something clicked in me. Becoming single was one of the things that made me feel strong and powerful. The fact that I am a young woman who doesn’t need a man for money. I don’t need a man for a job. I’ve never had to f**k for beats. I’ve never had to f**k for a record deal. I don’t have those pressures. I get up when I want, shop when I want."
And the ‘Chun-Li’ hitmaker insists that the last six months of being a single woman have allowed her to experience "more growth" than she has done in several years.
Speaking to ELLE magazine’s July issue, she added: "Spiritually, I’ve experienced more growth in the last six months of my life, of my career, than I have in the last eight years."
Despite praising the single life, Nicki was recently romantically linked to fellow rapper Eminem, and although he seemed to suggest the reports were false, he hinted that he wouldn’t mind striking up a romance with the ‘Anaconda’ musician.
Speaking on stage in Boston last month, the 45-year-old rapper said: "Yo Boston, how many people in here want me to date Nicki Minaj? So wait, one more time: Let me make sure so I can actually make this official. How many people want me to date Nicki Minaj?"
And when the crowd cheered, he said: "Well goddamnit, me too! We’ll figure this s**t out. How we’re gonna deal with this publicly?"