“Are You Gone Already” is the opening track to Nicki Minaj’s 2023 album ‘Pink Friday 2.’ The song tackles some deep-rooted emotions of the singer from losing her father. The emotional lyrics are proof of how traumatic the passing of her father had been in Nicki’s life since.
Nicki Minaj released her highly-anticipated ‘Pink Friday 2’ album, the sequel to her infamous debut studio album ‘Pink Friday’ from 2010. Since announcing her retirement from hip-hop in 2019, and later revoking it, Nicki Minaj has been dropping crumbs about new music coming. She called ‘PF2’ a “fierce, fun, and unapologetic” album.
“Are You Gone Already” samples Billie Eilish’s 2019 track “when the party’s over.” The sample talks about losing someone who you held dear to you. Nicki Minaj’s father passed tragically in a hit-and-run in February 2021. The title of the song suggests that Nicki is still finding it hard to accept that her father is not with them anymore. Nicki Minaj also revealed in a Tweet that this song was the hardest song she worked on “The first song on my album took me months. Months. Closer to a year. I ran from it. Couldn’t stop crying.”
Listen to “Are You Gone Already” by Nicki Minaj
Nicki Minaj “Are You Gone Already” Lyrics Meaning and Song Review
In the first verse of the song, Nicki Minaj talks about the moments she passed after she received the news of her father’s accident. Her mind raced all over the place and she paced all over her home. She was praying, shaking, and angered at the events unfolding. Eventually, she received the phone call she never wanted to pick up. He was gone.
In the song, Nicki Minaj is seeking solace from her son, nicknamed ‘Papa Bear.’ She tells him that he will never get to meet his grandfather. Her baby could have benefited a lot from a relationship with his grandfather, but it was not meant to be. Papa Bear was the reason Nicki survived this tough time.
In the second verse of the song, Nicki Minaj also expresses some guilt she carries on with her surrounding this situation. It is unclear if Nicki Minaj and her father had a very close relationship. Something or the other has been weighing down on the rapper since the passing of her father. Maybe Papa Bear would have met his grandfather if their relationship was different.
Regardless of whatever issues they had, losing a parent is one of the hardest things a child has to go through. Nicki Minaj has not fully come to terms with this reality yet. The loss and the guilt are still haunting her.
Let us hear what you think about this song in the comments below. Read the complete lyrics to the song on Genius.