Nicki Minaj apologises after cancelling UK gig following arrest

American rapper Nicki Minaj has apologised to fans after cancelling a show in Manchester, having been held by police at Amsterdam Schiphol airport on allegations of possession of banned substances. Thousands of fans were already in the arena when the show was called off.

The rapper took to social media to apologise to her disappointed fans, many of who had spent money on travel and hotel bookings to attend the event.

Posting on social media platform X, after being detained for around five hours, she wrote "Please please please accept my deepest & most sincere apologies. They sure did know exactly how to hurt me today but this too, shall pass."

The venue in Manchester, the Co-op Live arena, had previously said in a post on X."Despite Nicki's best efforts to explore every possible avenue to make tonight's show happen, the events of today have made it impossible." 

Thank you to everyone who prayed for me today. May God cover you & all that is connected to you. May you be blessed beyond your imagination.

Barbz, I’m @ the stock exchange hotel in #Manchester I arrived a little over an hour ago.
After sitting in a jail cell for 5-6 hours, my…

— Nicki Minaj (@NICKIMINAJ) May 26, 2024

Videos on social media showed the moment the singer's show was cancelled, with thousands of fans having already taken their place in the arena.

Nicki Minaj at Co-op Live cancelled after seating the whole arena. Hey, at least the arena was ready! #cooplive #nickiminaj #pinkfriday2 pic.twitter.com/Dn1zZtbizh

— Aminoor (@Aminoor) May 25, 2024

Dutch military police confirmed a 41-year-old American woman had been held for possession of soft drugs, adding it was prohibited to take such substances out of the Netherlands.

Minaj also posted on social media that she would be holding an impromptu meet and greet with fans to make up for the late cancellation.