Former "American Idol" judge and rapper Nicki Minaj has been sued by her former hairstylist who claimed that she stole the wig designs she is now famous for, CNN said in a report. On Friday, Terrence Davidson filed a lawsuit against Minaj in a district court in Atlanta and said that the rapper, as a result of her alleged theft of his wig designs, robbed him of an opportunity to pursue a reality show as he was already discouraged then to continue.
Davidson, who had named Minaj in the lawsuit using her real name, Onika Maraj, said that the rapper hired her as her hairstylist in January 2010 for him to create some wigs that she would later chose some for her appearances. CNN noted that based on the timeframe of the claim, Minaj then was steadily making a name for herself thanks to a growing fan base and projects with other acts at her label Young Money Entertainment and on mix tapes. She was later known as the first lady of the label, whose signed artists include popular rappers Drake and Lil Wayne.
Minaj, aside from her rapping skills, has been largely identified with her hair, donning grandiose wigs in a multitude of colors. CNN said that for her her platinum-selling debut album "Pink Friday" which was released in November that year, Minaj donned a voluminous pink wig for her cover art.
According to the lawsuit, things became sour between the rapper and Davidson when discussions about a business venture based on the hairstylist's wigs quickly went south. "Minaj and her agents became mum about the business ventures and took active steps to isolate Mr. Davidson and preclude him from the notoriety he deserved for his wig designs."
MTV News seemed to have also validated this particular business venture when it interviewed Davidson prior to the 2012 release of Minaj's "Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded." He told the music news outlet, "It was like, 'Wow, finally, in my time someone wants to do this. Because I've been wanting to do this for years. It's just I hadn't met the right artist that wanted to sit down and make this work."
