"American Idol" Recap: Nicki Minaj's On-Set Meltdown During NC Auditions - East Idaho News
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“American Idol” Recap: Nicki Minaj’s On-Set Meltdown During NC Auditions

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091812 NickiMinajAIFox?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1359021390366Brad Barket/PictureGroup(CHARLOTTE, N.C.) — Nicki Minaj’s rant on the set of American Idol made headlines this past summer, and Wednesday night’s Idol broadcast from the Charlotte, N.C., auditions revealed what got Minaj so upset.

It all started as the judges were listening to Idol hopeful Summer Cunningham try out with Bill Withers’ “Lean On Me.”  The judges all liked the performance, and judge Randy Jackson told her she should sing country.

Cunningham told the judges she’d “tried the country thing” and was now trying to go more R&B.  Country star judge Keith Urban didn’t know what to make of her statement about trying out country, and fellow judge Mariah Carey thought Cunningham had a good country voice too.

Minaj clearly didn’t like all the debate about where Cunningham’s voice fell in the spectrum between R&B and country.  She accused Jackson and Carey of trying to put the singers in specific genres, and everyone in the panel started talking over each other, defending their positions.  Urban interrupted and confirmed that Cunningham was going to Hollywood, but the argument was far from over.

After Jackson brought up his 30 years experience in the music industry, Minaj took offense and said, “I’m sorry.  I can’t help her.  Let me get off the f***ing panel.”  She then walked off the set.

The specific footage shown on the leaked tape of Minaj’s full-on meltdown that set the Internet on fire this past summer was not shown on Wednesday night’s show though.  The rest of the auditions weren’t nearly as dramatic either.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

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