Nicki Minaj wanted to "kill" her father when she was growing up.
The 'Super Bass' rapper's dad Omar had problems with alcohol and drugs - once even burning their house down while Nicki was growing up in New York - which made her fear for her mother, Nina's, life.
She told TV show 'Nightline': "I wanted to kill him. I used to wish he was dead.
"We were afraid for my mother's life, because whenever he would have a real bad outburst he would threaten to kill her."
Nicki's mother and father - who moved the family, which also includes her brother Brandon and sister Maya, to New York from Trinidad when she was five - are still together, but his actions have had a lasting effect on his daughter's attitude to men.
She added: "You know, when you see your mother going through that you think, 'I'll never do that when I get older.' I always put my foot down with men. I let them know, 'I'm not going to submit to you.'"
Nicki is famed for wearing neon make-up,bright colours and daring costumes, and also talked on the show about how she wants her image to be about more than just being sexy.
The 29-year-old star - who has confessed to having an obsession with Barbie dolls - explained: "When I was growing up, all the female rappers spoke about sex a lot.
"I thought that to have the success they got, I would have to represent the same thing.
"I thought you had to look sexy - but it's boring.
"I made a conscious decision to try to tone down the sexiness. I want people, especially young girls, to know that in life, nothing is going to be based on sex appeal alone. You've got to have something else to go with that."
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