Musicians and Their Alter Egos [Nicky Minaj, Beyonce, JayZ, Eminem etc]

Eminem has Slim Shady/Marshall Mathers. Nicki Minaj has Roman Zolanski, Harajuku Barbie and Nicki Teresa to name a few. Having an alter ego or alias is just another way that creative people express themselves.

Musicians in particular are known for having their unusual alter egos, it's a way for them to express another facet of their personality, or be a different person on stage and off. Musical alter egos also made listening to an artist that much more fun—you never know which side of Nicki you're gonna get and sometimes you get more than one at the same time. (Take Kanye West's "Monster" video for example.)

Take a look at some of the best alter egos in hip-pop on the next pages and try to pick your favorite.
Nicki Minaj is known for her multiple personalities. She has Roman and Martha Zolanski, Harajuku Barbie, Cookie and the new Nicki Teresa to name a few.

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Beyonce and Sasha Fierce: Beyonce unveiled her alter ego for her multiplatinum album, "I Am...Sasha Fierce." She described Sasha as being "too aggressive, too strong, too sassy, too sexy...I'm not like her in real life at all ... I'm not flirtatious and super-confident and fearless like her." Now Beyonce says she's killed Sasha because she doesn't need her anymore. She has since matured and found a way to meld the two together.




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Jay-Z/Jigga Man/Hov: Jay-Z's Jigga Man is the street version of the MC. A different side to the man we know as Shawn Carter, Jigga is the ladies man from the hood. Jigga hasn't made a recent appearance in a little while because Jay is too busy making movies and cavorting with Beyonce, but Hov will never really go away.

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Eminem/Slim Shady/Marshall Mathers: Em came out of the gate as Slim Shady and once told MTV, “Slim Shady is the guy who is saying the most ridiculous stuff you can think of, stuff you can’t even imagine somebody saying. Then there’s Eminem, who is conscious of the outcome and this is how he really feels.”

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Miley Cyrus/Hannah Montana: Miley first burst on the scene via the Disney show chronicling a fictional character named Miley Stewart who juggles a double life as herself and famous pop star Hannah Montana. Miley ended up with some huge hits on the charts and now she's our favorite salvia smoking, tattoo and pole dancing pop star.

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Plan B/Strickland Banks: Plan B is the newest rapper turned soul singer to go big in the UK. He created an entire concept album around Strickland Banks, a '60s loving soul singer who goes to jail for a crime he didn't commit. A GlobalGrind interview with Plan B is coming soon!

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Lil Wayne/Weezy/LilTunechi: "My nickname is Lil Tune — my grandmother named me that,” he explained to MTV News “She’s passed. My grandmother, her name was Mercedes Carter. She named me Lil Tune. We just threw the ‘Chi’ on there. Like Gucci, I say ‘Tunechi!’"

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Justin Bieber/Shawty Mane: Bieber is rapping now and he's created an MC name for himself. "Speaking in tongues freestyle ... who knew i could rap lol ... my alter ego rap name is Shawty Mane" Bieber tweeted.

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David Bowie/Ziggy Stardust. Great rock musician David Bowie was always experimental. In 1972 his concept album, "The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars" The album focused on the story of Ziggy Stardust, an alien sent to present hope to humankind.

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The Beatles/Sgt. Pepper Lonely Hearts Club Band: After George Harrison travelled to India, he exposed the rest of the band to Indian culture and music. Paul McCartney decided that he should create fictitious characters for each band member and record an album that would be a performance by that fictitious band. This "alter-ego group" gave The Beatles the freedom to experiment with songs.