Rap sensation Nicki Minaj is mourning the loss of her cousin, Nicholas, after he was murdered last night (July 4) in Brooklyn, New York. 

She wrote on her Twitter account yesterday:

"Lived in Brooklyn his whole life. My precious cousin. My baby. Killed last nite."

"*My cousin Nicholas. Also goes by Juse, or @brolicalcoholic* Murdered. Last nite. Near his home. Brooklyn, NY"

Watch Minaj perform with Britney Spears live at the Staples Center in Los Angeles here: