Nicki Minaj's fast-talking 2000s mixtapes were very much a product of her New York upbringing, stacking boastful rhymes that channeled the bravado of Missy Elliott, the pugnaciousness of Foxy Brown, and JAY Z's ever-expanding ambition. Minaj's evolution into a pop force through songs like 2010's sunshine-bright “Super Bass” followed the path of Lauryn Hill and Beyoncé, whose melding of towering hooks and hip-hop swagger turned them into world-conquering forces. Here we select the songs that shaped a modern-day icon.