Rapper Nicki Minaj says her arrest in Amsterdam, which forced her to cancel a gig at the Co-op Live in Manchester on Saturday, made her feel incredibly “low”.
Nicki Minaj has spoken out following her arrest in the Netherlands, claiming she was treated differently because of her race.
The Anaconda rapper was speaking to fans on the livestream platform Stationhead and spoke about the incident, which forced her to cancel a gig in Manchester just hours before she was due to perform.
The 41-year-old Trinidad-𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐧 musician said: “Not being able to get to Manchester, I don’t know when was the last time I felt that low.
“Not only that but knowing that something is being done to you on purpose because you are a confident other race.”
She went on to say she felt some of those at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport “took joy” in the situation, before going on: “There was one lady there – all the rest were men – and I could tell she had a heart.
“The treatment was just disgusting, and I wouldn’t wish that on anyone. And yes, I’ve been to jail before. It has nothing to do with if you’ve been to jail before.”
Minaj live-streamed her arrest on social media and claimed drugs found in her luggage did not belong to her.
She went on to spend around six hours in custody on Saturday before being allowed to fly to the UK.
Dutch police said a woman aged 41 was arrested on Saturday after allegedly trying to take what it described as “soft drugs” from Schiphol Airport to another country.
A later update from the police said officers had released the “suspect and she can now move on” after paying a fine.
When asked if she felt the Dutch officials treated her like “a human” Minaj said: “No”.
She went on: “When they put out that press release that I was released, I was still in the building. They were doing maybe damage control, I don’t know.”
Minaj then said she didn’t want to discuss the incident any further as she was “in a good mood”, adding: “I’m on tour, and if I give energy to that, I can’t do what I have to do, that’s my job… My Barbz [the name for Minaj’s fans] come first.”
A spokesman for the Netherlands’ military police – who deal with all airport incidents – told Sky News Minaj’s arrest was “normal procedure when somebody is trying to pass border control with drugs in their luggage”.
The artist, who is currently travelling the world on her Pink Friday 2 Tour is due to play the newly opened Co-op Live in Manchester on Thursday evening, before returning to play Saturday’s re-scheduled gig on Monday.