Nicki Minaj lets down her guard

Nicki Minaj thinks it's "definitely tougher to be vulnerable".

The Super Bass singer released her third album, The Pinkprint, in December. The record was her most personal piece of work yet, covering topics including a teenage abortion, breakups and her use of painkillers. The 32-year-old found it hard to show another side to her, but is glad she did because of how well it's been received.

"[It's] definitely tougher to be vulnerable. As a woman in the industry, you try so hard to remain strong and to not let your guard down. And once you let the walls down and let people see that you were a regular person who has feelings, sometimes people take advantage of that," she confessed to the American edition of Vogue. "I think that applies for everyone. It's always a little bit nerve-racking to just completely let your guard down because you just don't know if people are going to appreciate it. And then if they don't appreciate it, you can feel like you did it in vain."

Nicki initially became known as a cartoonish character in brightly coloured wigs and over the top make-up and outfits. But recently she has sported a more pared-down look to go with her more personal record. However, she finds it hard to keep everyone happy in the industry.

"It's frustrating—I won't lie about that. I do feel like, with me, everybody wants something different," she mused. "It's my fault for giving them a lot of different things to choose from so early in my career, but I always felt like a multifaceted human being, and I never wanted to stop on one thing."

Nicki admits she is a workaholic, but she is hoping that she will get some time to herself in the near future.

"I did get exhausted last year. I promised myself that when I put out Pinkprint, I would take some time to live my life and not care what other people said about me," she said. "This year, I decided that I'm going to live my life. Because I love making music but I need to live my life, and I need to realise that people are going to talk about me no matter what."