Nicki Minaj‘s dad, Robert Maraj, would have celebrated his birthday on May 16, and the rapper posted a tribute in his honor on Instagram. Along with a photo of her late father, Nicki wrote, “Happy birthday Daddy. Miss u so much. So much. So so much. Rest in Peace. Oh my God.” Nicki has been grieving her father’s death privately since he was killed in a hit-and-run accident on Feb. 13, 2021.
Robert was 64 years old when he was struck and killed by a vehicle while crossing the street in Mineola, New York. He died one day after being taken to the hospital. A 70-year-old man named Charles Polevich was eventually arrested in connection to the case after being tracked down by police via security footage. He turned himself into officials, has been charged with two felonies and is currently awaiting sentencing.
Nicki did not publicly speak about her father’s passing until May 14, when she shared an update with fans on her website. “I can’t really bring myself to discuss the passing of my father as yet; I can say it has been the most devastating loss of my life,” she admitted. “I find myself wanting to call him all the time. More so now that he’s gone. Life is funny that way. May his soul rest in paradise. He was very loved and will be very missed.”
Amidst the heartache, though, Nicki has a lot of exciting things happening in her life. She gave birth to her first child, a baby boy, in Sept. 2020. After spending some time embracing her life as a new mom, she got back to work on new music, too. Nicki dropped her 2009 mixtape, Beam Me Up Scotty, on streaming services for the first time on May 14, and even included some new songs on the re-release. She’s also currently hard at work on a new album and a docu-series, which will be on HBO Max.
“I can’t wait to share these new vibez wit y’all,” she wrote on her website. “It’s so important to go back to basics for me. The world of smoke & mirrors can blind you. Be careful. Always important to step back and really observe.”