Nicki Minaj enlists Drake and Lil Wayne for re-release of Beam Me Up Scotty

In addition to three new songs, the mixtape is available on streaming services for the first time

Nicki Minaj has released a new song with Drake and Lil Wayne. AFP

Nicki Minaj has enlisted the help of some famous friends to launch a re-release of her Beam Me Up Scotty mixtape.

She has also made the collection of songs available on streaming services for the first time. "Because this is the 12 year anniversary of Beam Me Up Scotty, we thought we would do something special," Minaj said of the new release. "We are putting Beam Me Up Scotty for the first time on streaming services."

The new streaming version of the mixtape, originally released in 2009, includes 23 tracks, including fan-favourites Itty Bitty Piggy, Slumber Party, I Get Crazy and Kill Da DJ.

But the new release also includes three new tracks: Fractions, her first new solo offering since February 2020; a remix of Skillibeng's Crocodile Teeth; and Seeing Green, which features both Drake and Lil Wayne.

Shortly before the album was released, Minaj and Drake appeared on Instagram Live, where they were joined by 850,000 fans as they talked about their new track and Minaj’s return to music.

"I'm sure I speak for everyone when I say we really miss you," Drake said. "We miss the bars, we miss the excitement that you bring."

During the Instagram Live session, Minaj also revealed that a new album and an HBO Max docuseries were in the pipeline. She also maintained that her return to Beam Me Up Scotty more than a decade after its launch represented a desire to go back to basics. "This is just to get back to the basics a little bit, to the essence of why I started rapping."

In revisiting the album 12 years on, Minaj discovered some new favourites, she says, citing Envy, Best I Ever Had, Go Hard and Itty Bitty Piggy among them.