Nicki Minaj made her returned to the spotlight last week after taking a months-long hiatus from the public. The Queens, New York representative repackaged her 2009 mixtape Beam Me Up Scotty and added the project to streaming services for the first time.
The 2021 version of Beam Me Up Scotty contained three new tracks – “Fractions,” “Crocodile Teeth” with Skillibeng, and “Seeing Green” with Drake and Lil Wayne. “Seeing Green” debuted at #17 on Spotify’s daily U.S. Top 200 chart with 1,404,657 streams, and it topped the iTunes all-genre chart.
A 32-year-old actor/musician is suggesting “Seeing Green” sounds very similar to a record he released back in 2010. Khleo Thomas took to Twitter to post a montage of his “In My Soul” music video alongside Minaj’s new collaboration with Drake and Lil Wayne.
“2010…seeing green….2021…..seeing green. I’m just happy new Nicki music is out!” tweeted Khleo Thomas on May 14 not long after Beam Me Up Scotty hit DSPs that morning.
“In My Soul” and “Seeing Green” sample Heather Headley’s “In My Mind” from 2005. Both records incorporate the idea of seeing “green” at some point, but most of the lyrics from all four artists (Thomas, Minaj, Wayne, and Drake) are completely different.
Thomas’s “In My Soul” was produced by June G. In contrast, Govi and Kid Masterpiece are credited as producers for Nicki Minaj’s “Seeing Green.” Lil Kim is also listed as a composer for Minaj’s track because Drake recycles a line from the Brooklynite’s “Queen B####” off the 1996 album Hard Core.
Beam Me Up Scotty is currently projected to move 65,000-75,000 units in its first official week of release on streaming platforms. J. Cole’s new studio LP, The Off-Season, is on pace to take the top spot on the next Billboard 200 chart with first-week sales ranging from 280,000-310,000 units.
Earlier this year, Nicki Minaj settled a copyright infringement lawsuit with singer-songwriter Tracy Chapman over Minaj sampling the 1988 song “Baby Can I Hold You” for the leaked track “Sorry.” The rapper agreed to pay $450,000 to Chapman.
There is no indication at the moment that Khleo Thomas is considering legal action against Nicki Minaj or anyone associated with “Seeing Green.” The Anchorage-born entertainer, who starred in films such as Holes and Roll Bounce, released numerous mixtapes and EPs between 2010 and 2015.