Nicki Minaj Performance ("Bang Bang" with Jessie J and Ariana Grande). "The Pinkprint" was officially released on December 15, 2014, and debuted at number two on the US "Billboard" 200, with first week sales of 244,000 overall units (198,000 in pure album sales and 46,000 combined album-equivalent units and streams). Upon release, the album received generally positive reviews from critics. "Billboard" magazine's Niki McGloster called it "her best album to date". Sheldon Pearce of "The A.V. Club" thought that "The Pinkprint" is "the closest Nicki Minaj has ever gotten to balancing her tendencies". Randall Roberts from the "Los Angeles Times" wrote that
Bang Bang (Jessie J, Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj song) "soulful" song, that features a "clap-heavy" production, built over "big bouncy beats and horn blasts." It's in the key of C Dorian mode, with the vocals making use of the C blues scale. The tempo is 150 BPM (Allegro). The melody of the chorus has been compared to that of "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" by Wham!. Rob Sheffield of "Rolling Stone" called the song a "perfect Max Martin throwdown" that "fuses Nelly's 'Country Grammar' with Wham!'s 'Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go,' which is some truly twisted pop archaeology." Carolyn Menyes from "Music Times" called the song "[a]