Nicki Minaj Sued for Allegedly Slapping Tour Manager

• Brandon Garrett alleges that Nicki Minaj physically assaulted him during a backstage confrontation in her dressing room.
• Nicki Minaj’s legal name is Onika Tanya Maraj-Petty and sometimes she is addressed with Maraj or Mrs. Petty.

Nicki Minaj has been hit with a lawsuit accusing her of physically assaulting a former tour manager, Brandon Garrett, following a concert in Detroit. The lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court on January 3, alleges that Brandon Garrett, who worked on Minaj’s Pink Friday 2 tour, was attacked backstage at Little Caesars Arena last April.

Garrett claims the confrontation began on April 21, when he was summoned to Minaj’s dressing room. There, the rapper, alongside her former manager Deb Antney, allegedly berated him for delegating a task. According to the lawsuit, Garrett had instructed another staff member, to retrieve a prescription for Minaj while Garrett attended to other duties during the show.

The situation reportedly escalated as Minaj became irate, shouting at Garrett and questioning his decision. She allegedly accused him of being reckless, stating, “You’re a dead man walking. You just f—ed up your whole life and you will never be anyone, I’ll make sure of it.” Minaj then directed her anger at that stuff member, demanding to know the specifics of the errand, but when neither Garrett nor that stuff member could provide the answers she wanted, her frustration turned physical.

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The lawsuit describes how Minaj slapped Garrett across the face, causing his hat to fall off, and later struck his wrist, knocking documents from his hand. Security personnel allegedly intervened at this point, but Garrett was ordered to leave the room. Fearing for his safety, he says he locked himself in a restroom for hours and called his fiancé to recount what had happened.

Garrett further claims that he was abandoned by the tour shortly afterward. A message from a colleague allegedly informed him that Antney had barred him from traveling with the team to Chicago, leaving him stranded in Detroit. Garrett returned to Chicago by plane and sought assistance from police to safely retrieve his belongings at the hotel. He filed police reports in both Chicago and Detroit, citing the incident as the cause of his distress.

In response to the lawsuit, Minaj’s attorney, Judd Burstein, issued a statement denying the allegations. “As of now, no formal complaint has been served to Mrs. Petty,” Burstein said. “At this time, no complaint has been served upon Mrs. Petty, and therefore, we are unaware of the specific allegations. However, if the lawsuit is as reported by TMZ, it is completely false and frivolous. We are confident that the matter brought by this ex assistant will be resolved swiftly in Mrs. Petty’s favor.”

Garrett is pursuing damages for emotional distress, assault, and battery, among other claims. Deb Antney has not commented on the allegations.