Via Getty Images
<p>Just another milestone! Nicki Minaj stood before her fans to accept the 2022 Video Vanguard award on Sunday night, an honor that she&#8217;s dreamed of her whole life. And while Nicki was being recognized for her hard work, dedication and her craft, she was giving flowers to the people who lent her a helping hand over the course of her career.</p>
<p>After Nicki killed her performance of &#8216;Anaconda&#8217; and her new single &#8216;Super Freaky Girl,&#8217; Nicki sent her love and appreciation to a lengthy list of A-list celebs.</p>
<blockquote><p>I wanna take a second to say thank you to all of the key people that inspired me, and who I think inspired my flow: Lil Wayne, Foxxy Brown, Lauryn Hill, Jay-Z, Slick Rick, Doug-E Fresh. The people who gave me huge opportunities that I will never forget: Kanye West, Beyonce, Madonna, Mariah Carey, Eminem, Britney Spears, Rihanna, and all of my Caribbean people but Beanie Man thank you for everything.&#8221;</p></blockquote>
<blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/Ch0yREBudPo/?utm_source=ig_embed&#038;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14" style=" background:#FFF; max-width:658px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);"><div>
 <iframe class="custom-ig-embed" data-src="https://www.instagram.com/reel/Ch0yREBudPo/embed/captioned" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="true" frameborder="0" height="640px" scrolling="no" style="background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:540px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);"></iframe>
 </div></blockquote>
<p>While Nicki has not publicly spoken about any of her own mental health issues and traumas, she took a moment to acknowledge the greats who came before her, whose mental health may have led to their demise.</p>
<p>Minaj, <a href="https://dev.theshaderoom.com/the-man-responsible-for-killing-nicki-minajs-father-in-a-hit-and-run-is-sentenced-to-one-year-in-jail-update/">who lost her father due to a tragic hit-and-run accident</a>, shared a message about some of the superstars the world lost to tragedy.</p>
<blockquote><p>I wrote this down, I don&#8217;t know why y&#8217;all but this was in my spirit to say: &#8216;I wish that Whitney Houston and Michael Jackson were here. I wish that people understood what they meant and what they were going through. I wish people took mental health seriously, even for the people who you think have the perfect lives.&#8221;</p></blockquote>
<p><amp-twitter data-tweetid="1564058759856623620" layout="responsive" width="600" height="480"></amp-twitter></p>
<p>Soon after, Nicki popped out in a perfectly fitted pink gown to accept the award for &#8216;Best Hip-Hop Video Of The Year for her collaboration with Lil Baby on &#8216;Do We Have A Problem.</p>
 <div class="wpra-reactions-wrap wpra-plugin-container" style="justify-content: center;;"> <div class="wpra-reactions-container" data-ver="1.3.10" data-post_id="97194" data-show_count="true" data-enable_share="onclick" data-behavior="regular" data-animation="true" data-share_url="https://dev.theshaderoom.com/nicki-minaj-speaks-on-importance-of-mental-health-during-vmas-video-vanguard-acceptance-speech/" data-secure="680b1dd680"> <div class="wpra-call-to-action" style="color: #000000;font-size: 25px;font-weight: 600;">What Do You Think Roomies?</div> <div class="wpra-reactions wpra-static-emojis size-medium" style="border-color: #ffffff;border-width: 0px;border-radius: 50px;border-style: solid;background: #ffffff;">					<div class="emoji-8 wpra-reaction wpra-pad-fix" data-count="" data-emoji_id="8"> <div class="wpra-plus-one">+1</div>	 <div style="background-color: #ff0015" class="wpra-arrow-badge arrow-bottom-left hide-count"> <span style="border-top-color: #ff0015" class="tail"></span> <span style="color: #ffffff" class="count-num">0</span> </div>	</div><div class="emoji-10 wpra-reaction wpra-pad-fix" data-count="" data-emoji_id="10"> <div class="wpra-plus-one">+1</div>	 <div style="background-color: #ff0015" class="wpra-arrow-badge arrow-bottom-left hide-count"> <span style="border-top-color: #ff0015" class="tail"></span> <span style="color: #ffffff" class="count-num">0</span> </div>	</div><div class="emoji-4 wpra-reaction" data-count="" data-emoji_id="4"> <div class="wpra-plus-one">+1</div>	 <div style="background-color: #ff0015" class="wpra-arrow-badge arrow-bottom-left hide-count"> <span style="border-top-color: #ff0015" class="tail"></span> <span style="color: #ffffff" class="count-num">0</span> </div>	</div><div class="emoji-5 wpra-reaction" data-count="" data-emoji_id="5"> <div class="wpra-plus-one">+1</div>	 <div style="background-color: #ff0015" class="wpra-arrow-badge arrow-bottom-left hide-count"> <span style="border-top-color: #ff0015" class="tail"></span> <span style="color: #ffffff" class="count-num">0</span> </div>	</div><div class="emoji-2 wpra-reaction" data-count="" data-emoji_id="2"> <div class="wpra-plus-one">+1</div>	 <div style="background-color: #ff0015" class="wpra-arrow-badge arrow-bottom-left hide-count"> <span style="border-top-color: #ff0015" class="tail"></span> <span style="color: #ffffff" class="count-num">0</span> </div>	</div><div class="emoji-7 wpra-reaction" data-count="" data-emoji_id="7"> <div class="wpra-plus-one">+1</div>	 <div style="background-color: #ff0015" class="wpra-arrow-badge arrow-bottom-left hide-count"> <span style="border-top-color: #ff0015" class="tail"></span> <span style="color: #ffffff" class="count-num">0</span> </div>	</div><div class="emoji-12 wpra-reaction" data-count="" data-emoji_id="12"> <div class="wpra-plus-one">+1</div>	 <div style="background-color: #ff0015" class="wpra-arrow-badge arrow-bottom-left hide-count"> <span style="border-top-color: #ff0015" class="tail"></span> <span style="color: #ffffff" class="count-num">0</span> </div>	</div> </div> <div class="wpra-share-wrap wpra-share-buttons-bordered" style="">				 </div> <!-- end of share buttons -->			 </div> <!-- end of reactions container --> </div> <!-- end of reactions wrap -->		
