Trinidad-born US rapper Nicki Minaj has missed a concert in Manchester after being detained at Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam for possession of soft drugs. The Dutch military police, known as the Dutch Royal Marechaussée, confirmed to CNN that the 41-year-old singer, sometimes called the Queen of Rap, was arrested on Saturday, 25 May 2024.
Minaj had played in Amsterdam on Thursday night and was due to take a private flight from the Netherlands to the UK for the Saturday night gig. Instead, she posted live videos to her Instagram account showing her interacting with Dutch authorities, as she is told to get out of her vehicle and board a police van.
The Dutch Police have allegedly arrested Nicki Minaj.
— Mílagro (@MobzWorld) May 25, 2024
This was captured during an Instagram Live. pic.twitter.com/rxEUZ8CID7
The clip shows her asking why she is being detained and is informed she is under arrest “for carrying drugs”, which she refutes. In a running commentary on the events, the artist posted on social media platform X that the police had found “pre-rolls” which were being weighed. Dutch prosecutors later revealed she was carrying 30-100 grams of cannabis. Minaj claimed the joints belonged to a member of her security team.
— Nicki Minaj (@NICKIMINAJ) May 25, 2024
The singer’s posts inadvertently revealed that she had a mistaken understanding of drug law in The Netherlands, where it is technically illegal to produce, sell or possess drugs. “They took my luggage without my consent,” she wrote online. “This is Amsterdam btw where weed is legal.”
Meanwhile, in signs the incident was badly handled in the UK, fans in Manchester, some of whom had journeyed far and paid hundreds of pounds in travel, tickets and hotel costs to be at the gig, complained that the venue, Co-op Live, had lied to concertgoers. They told press the venue had informed them that Minaj was already in the building, when in fact she had spent around five hours in custody in the Netherlands.
Minaj was later allowed to go, the Royal Netherlands Marechaussee issuing a statement saying that the detainee held “on suspicion of exporting soft drugs has been released.” Minaj paid a penalty fee before continuing her itinerary, according to the press release, which said: “Following consultation with the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the suspect received a monetary fine and is now permitted to continue her journey.”
In an effort to appease fans, the nine-time American Music Award winner and businesswoman went on to make public the name of her Manchester hotel, where she invited them to come and see her make an appearance on the balcony and perhaps meet her downstairs.
After giving her “deepest and most sincere apologies” to fans, she also made a series of unusual posts that seemed to claim she is the victim of an ongoing attempt to silence her or sabotage her tour. “They sure did know how to hurt me today, but this too, shall pass,” she wrote. “They’ve been doing this over & over & over & over & over again & I’ve tried so hard to not discuss it b/c you guys deserve to just get the good stuff. I hate involving you in anything that isn’t for entertainment purposes only.”
