Nicki Minaj’s new single “Anaconda” has sprung a leak. The Sir Mix-A-Lot sampling single, which you can check out here, had already been pushed back from its original July 28 due date.
Earlier this week Minaj had announced on Instagram that the release of her new single “Anaconda” was being postponed. The Young Money rapper wrote “My darlingz, I’ve pushed the release of Anaconda to next week, Monday 8/4. I promise you will understand why before the week is out. Loveeeeeeee uuuuuu.” Many began to speculate that the release of the single was being delayed because Nicki wanted Remy Ma to be featured on the track, but ironically Remy Ma’s release from prison was also delayed this week. There were also rumors that the track would feature Beyoncé but that is still unconfirmed.
Nicki has already received a lot of media attention and scrutiny recently due to the racy cover art for “Anaconda.” The artwork shows Minaj wearing a pink bra, thong and Jordans as she strikes a suggestive squatting pose. The cover art led to a plethora of Internet memes, which Nicki later reposted on Twitter and Instagram to make light of the controversy. Chuck Creekmur, the owner of Allhiphop.com, wrote an open letter to Nicki Minaj pressuring her to consider being more modest in respect of her younger fans. Now that we all know that Nicki Minaj sampled Sir Mix-A-Lot the reasons that Nicki chose that cover and title have become clearer.
The quality of the leaked version of “Anaconda” is not the greatest and that can either work in Minaj’s favor or against her. A high quality version might make it up to disappointed listeners. Or it might not have a strong impact since the leaked version has already left a weak impression. This dilemma is one of the reasons why a leaked single is one of an artist’s worst fears. Artists lose control over how their audience will receive their music once it has leaked. Either way all eyes are on Nicki so she might still have a fighting chance.
We’ll have to wait until next week to see if her official release of “Anaconda” garners as much attention as the artwork did. Until then you can listen to the leaked version here and share your thoughts with the Killer Crew.