Nicki Minaj gets stylishly punk for Marie Claire's August 2013 issue. The Queen Barbz strikes a fabulous pose for the red-hot cover in her platinum blonde bob hairdo and tartan red dress.

Inside the magazine, Minaj gets more edgier with her fashion looks. In one image, the rap star looks fierce in a skin-tight black bodysuit and spiky black mohawk-style headdress. It's very punk-rockish for the Young Money starlet.

In her interview with Marie Claire, Minaj answers questions from her nearly 17 million followers on Twitter.

When asked what should women take away from her music, Minaj offers some good life advice.

"Don't lose the fun side of you, the part of you that fantasized and [has] a great imagination," she says. "But don't ever get complacent because there's always someone gunning to take your spot. You've got to work like it's your first day on the job every day. That's what I do: Work hard, laugh later. I just don't want people to think that you can get this any other way. You can't get it with a pretty little smile. You have to put the work in, and that goes for anything you want to do."

Minaj also spoke about her time on 'American Idol.' The 30-year-old rapper admitted that she toned down her persona so contestants can see the real person behind the wigs, makeup and outrageous outfits.

"The perception that people had of me completely changed because there are no cue cards, there's no script, it wasn't me performing a song," she explains. "It was, 'Let's see your real personality. My core is a genuine human being who roots for other people. I didn't want to blow smoke up their ass. I wanted every contestant to leave with something that they could remember."

In an accompanied video of her photo shoot, Minaj reveals a strange toothbrush obsession. When asked what she finds herself buying over and over again, she replied, "I buy a toothbrush every day. Is that the weirdest thing?"

Uh, we guess? But at least your teeth are always clean.

Check out the Marie Claire's August 2013 issue -- with Nicki Minaj on the cover -- on newsstands right now.

Nicki Minaj
Satoshi Saikusa, MarieClaire
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Watch Nicki Minaj's Marie Claire August 2013 Cover Shoot & Interview

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