Nicki Minaj Wants Your VMA Votes!

The 2011 Video Music Awards are right around the corner (August 28, to be exact) and Nicki Minaj wants her Barbs and Kens to turn it out and make sure they're casting their votes for her.

Nicki is up for three prizes at the show, including Best Hip-Hop video and Best Female Video for her "Super Bass" clip, as well as Best Collaboration for her cinematic "Moment 4 Life" video, which features her pal, Drake.

"Barbs, vote for me," she said in an interview with MTV News. "Everybody else, please vote for me. Help me. Help me! I'm from Southside Jamaica, Queens, and I need your help. Vote."

The competition is stiff, with Minaj having to face off against some of her pals and peers. For Best Hip-Hop, "Super Bass" is up against Lil Wayne ("6'7"), Kanye West featuring Rihanna and Kid Cudi ("All of the Lights"), Chris Brown featuring Lil Wayne and Busta Rhymes ("Look at Me Now") and Lupe Fiasco ("The Show Goes On").

The competition is equally tight for Best Female Video: Adele ("Rolling in the Deep"), Katy Perry ("Firework"), Beyoncé ("Run the World (Girls)") and Lady Gaga ("Born This Way").

Her competition is also star-studded in the Best Collaboration category where she and Drake are up against Pitbull, featuring Ne-Yo, Nayer and Afrojack ("Give Me Everything"); Chris Brown, featuring Lil Wayne and Busta Rhymes ("Look At Me Now"); Kanye West, featuring Rihanna and Kid Cudi ("All of the Lights"); and Katy Perry, featuring Kanye West ("E.T.").

So, what makes her think fans will help her take home a Moonman or two at her second VMAs?

"Fans should vote for me and Drizzy because they love us and we love them," she reasoned. "And we are the hungry, struggling, up-and-coming newbies, and you've all been new at one point in your life, so show the kids some love. Go on! Vote!"

The 28th annual MTV Video Music Awards will air live on Sunday, August 28, from the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles at 9 p.m. ET/PT. See the list of nominees, revisit last year's highlights and vote for your favorites in the general categories by visiting VMA.MTV.com.