Nicki Minaj Just Took Glitter Lips to the Next Level in Her New “Chun-Li” Music Video
In Nicki Minaj’s just-released, Steven Klein–directed music video for “Chun-Li,” the rapper channels the eponymous female fighter character, who first appeared in 1991’s Street Fighter II: The World Warrior and has since been a trailblazing figure in the gaming community—much like Minaj has been in hip-hop.
Taking cosplay to the next level, the performer wears a dizzying array of futuristic Asian-inspired looks—think architectural double knots secured with embellished chopsticks; a LED-light-trimmed, kimono-esque bodysuit—in the video’s dreamy, Technicolor sequences. And amid all the delicious drama, Minaj’s makeup, namely her directional embellished lips, never take a back seat. Not with the legendary beauty mogul Pat McGrath at the creative helm.
In collaboration with Minaj’s makeup artist Sheika Daley, McGrath created a slew of light-catching pouts, two of which were reimagined from the most Instagram-ready runway of Paris Fashion Week. “I was really inspired by Chun-Li as a character,” explains McGrath, “and Margiela’s lip looks are always so sci-fi, it was perfect for Nicki and this video.”
First, McGrath riffed on the holographic pouts seen on the avant-garde fashion house’s runway this past season, kicking an ultraviolet matte shade up a notch with a veil of gems. “There were thousands of Swarvoski crystals [used],” says McGrath of the high-impact look, which Minaj wore with lightened, alien-esque brows, winged liner, and spidery fringe. Next up was another ode to Spring 2018, with McGrath’s MatteTrance Lipstick in blue-red Elson used to draw a flocked shape that formed two hearts on Minaj’s mouth. A subversive, yet romantic touch teamed with twin buns (a Chun-Li signature) and a mane of brushed-out, waist-length ringlets, the combination was equal parts feminine and powerful.
Minaj’s beauty message for “Chun Li”? From spring to summer, Instagram to the streets, let the lips have it, whether painted a shocking shade, cast in a geometric shape, or coated with glitter—and lots of it.
