Nicki Minaj was scrubbed down for an ELLE magazine make-under, and she reported feeling a bit exposed as a result. Apparently those nipslips in the past were no match for a lack of wigs and dramatic face paint.

"I felt naked," Minaj said of her lack of "pink lipstick" and "big ol' crazy lashes" (quotes via E! Online). She added, "It was scary! So this photo shoot was a real accomplishment in my eyes."

Minaj recently ditched the stylists that initially made her look like a "Harajuku Barbie," and the starlet is cleaning up pretty beautifully.

Minaj not only stripped down her cosmetics, but also her tough-girl shell -- and it turns out, her once-wild fashion choices were a big part of that.

"I went through a lot of bullying early on," Minaj admitted. "Girls made my life a living hell."

"We had come to America from a different country," the 30-year-old Trinidad native said. "My brother and I had accents. It was very tough. So I've always put up this wall -- it was a self-defense mechanism growing up -- because I was almost expecting people to attack me. And I still have it. It's sad."

The good thing about that wall is it prepared Minaj for the male-dominated world of rap.

"My advice to women in general: Even if you're doing a nine-to-five job, treat yourself like a boss," she said. "Not arrogant, but be sure of what you want—and don't allow people to run anything for you without your knowledge."

"You want everyone to know, 'Okay, I can't play games with her,'" the 'Stupid Ho' rapper continued. "'I have to do right by this woman.' That's what it's all about."

Of course, it's also all about (Young) Money.

"My goal in the beginning was to buy my mother a house," Minaj explained of her financial and professional goals. "Now I realize, 'Okay, if I really focus and become a key player in business, then I can build an empire.' I'm thinking of a legacy that I can be proud of and wealth that my grandchildren can use to go to college."

"So world domination -- in terms of providing for my family -- is absolutely my goal."
 

Nicki Minaj ELLE
ELLE
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Nicki Minaj ELLE
ELLE
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Nicki Minaj ELLE
ELLE
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