Meet Ariana Neal, the Young Nicki Minaj on ABC Family's 'Nicki'

FUSE TV - Meet Ariana Neal, the Young Nicki Minaj on ABC Family's 'Nicki'

Turns out Nicki Minaj didn't go with any of our suggestions to play her in her upcoming autobiographical ABC Family series, but that's alright, because the girl who got the gig seems absolutely awesome. 

Per today's casting announcement, the role of Nicki's Young Nicki has gone to Ariana Neal, who has appeared in Fruitvale Station, Get Hard, and, as the baby version of Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes, in VH1's CrazySexyCool: The TLC Story. The actress' chops are immediately evident from her résumé and a string of clips on both her website and YouTube account.

We'll dig in a little more in a moment, but first, watch above as Ariana Neal annihilates Sam Smith's "Lay Me Down" in a video posted in May 2015.

Nicki Minaj: My Turn

41m

Nicki Minaj: My Turn

Meet The Family

21m

Meet The Family

Meet The Jets

48m

Meet The Jets

Young M.A On The Struggle of Giving Up Meat

9m

Young M.A On The Struggle of Giving Up Meat

Success: Meet the Cast

2m

Success: Meet the Cast

Knuckles: Meet the Cast

2m

Knuckles: Meet the Cast

Suits: Meet the Cast

2m

Suits: Meet the Cast

Melissa: Meet the Cast

2m

Melissa: Meet the Cast

All in the Family

20m

All in the Family

Three Kings: Meet the Cast

2m

Three Kings: Meet the Cast

Johnny Thurzday: Meet the Cast

3m

Johnny Thurzday: Meet the Cast

G Fella: Meet the Cast

2m

G Fella: Meet the Cast

Ariana Grande: State of Mind

40m

Ariana Grande: State of Mind

Odalys Meets Drumma Boy: The 212

3m

Odalys Meets Drumma Boy: The 212

We All Have That One Family Member...

3m

We All Have That One Family Member...

One Big Happy Family: Season 2 Trailer

2m

One Big Happy Family: Season 2 Trailer

Young M.A

20m

Young M.A

Young R.E.A.D Feat.Young M.A

20m

Young R.E.A.D Feat.Young M.A

Meet Jesse

1m

Meet Jesse

Meet Tina

1m

Meet Tina

Meet Casey

1m

Meet Casey

Meet Ian

1m

Meet Ian

Meet Marissa

1m

Meet Marissa

Clandestine Meeting

21m

Clandestine Meeting

Adrian Younge's Vinyl Collection

12m

Adrian Younge's Vinyl Collection

Young Guru's Vinyl Collection

13m

Young Guru's Vinyl Collection

Family Studies

22m

Family Studies

Family Betrayals

44m

Family Betrayals

Family Ties

20m

Family Ties

Family Matters

22m

Family Matters

Family Feud

20m

Family Feud

Meet DeAnna

1m

Meet DeAnna

World Meets Bounce

21m

World Meets Bounce

'Hollywood Puppet Shitshow' First Date: Amanda Cerny Meets Herself on Strings

1m

'Hollywood Puppet Shitshow' First Date: Amanda Cerny Meets Herself on Strings

Young M.A Extended Scene 4

1m

Young M.A Extended Scene 4

T-Pain and Young M.A

20m

T-Pain and Young M.A

Fire On The Floor

22m

Fire On The Floor

Battle on the Catwalk

45m

Battle on the Catwalk

Eye On The Prize

44m

Eye On The Prize

Freaky On The Floor

22m

Freaky On The Floor

Eyes On The Prize

22m

Eyes On The Prize

All the Focus is on the Diamonds

21m

All the Focus is on the Diamonds

Young M.A Talks Whitney Houston & Barbershops

2m

Young M.A Talks Whitney Houston & Barbershops

Anthony Ramos On 'The Good & The Bad' (Extended Cut)

12m

Anthony Ramos On 'The Good & The Bad' (Extended Cut)

Trey Songz

20m

Trey Songz

Young M.A Plays 2 Truths and A Lie

1m

Young M.A Plays 2 Truths and A Lie

Young M.A. and Ayo and Teo - Long Cut

20m

Young M.A. and Ayo and Teo - Long Cut

Meet Officer Broderick Elton, SFPD's Transgender Liaison

1m

Meet Officer Broderick Elton, SFPD's Transgender Liaison

Cody Spells Out Love On The Field

1m

Cody Spells Out Love On The Field

Is Nya A Baller On The Low?

51s

Is Nya A Baller On The Low?

This Season On Clash of The Corps

1m

This Season On Clash of The Corps

Young M.A takes Shots with Kid Fury and Crissle

12m

Young M.A takes Shots with Kid Fury and Crissle

Young M.A Jumps Over Cars To Open For Beyoncé

2m

Young M.A Jumps Over Cars To Open For Beyoncé

Lil Jon Meets Smoothini at L.A. Winery

1m

Lil Jon Meets Smoothini at L.A. Winery

Smoothini Meets Waka Flocka Flame At His Home

1m

Smoothini Meets Waka Flocka Flame At His Home

The Transcendent Star On Donald Trump: Dear Bambiana

1m

The Transcendent Star On Donald Trump: Dear Bambiana

What To Expect On Clash of the Corps

1m

What To Expect On Clash of the Corps

On the Road With G-Thing: Deleted Scene

2m

On the Road With G-Thing: Deleted Scene

Mario Lopez: One On One

Mario Lopez: One On One

Meet LA Radio Host and EDM Master Jason Bentley

2m

Meet LA Radio Host and EDM Master Jason Bentley

On Set At The Transcendent Season 2 Promo Shoot

1m

On Set At The Transcendent Season 2 Promo Shoot

Nicole Scherzinger & Her Sister Cook Her Family's Favorite Meal

2m

Nicole Scherzinger & Her Sister Cook Her Family's Favorite Meal

Hollywood Puppet Shitshow First Date: Wilmer Valderrama Meets His Puppet

56s

Hollywood Puppet Shitshow First Date: Wilmer Valderrama Meets His Puppet

Hollywood Puppet Shitshow First Date: Terry Crews Meets His Puppet

1m

Hollywood Puppet Shitshow First Date: Terry Crews Meets His Puppet

Steve Aoki Meets His Puppet: Hollywood Puppet Shitshow First Date

1m

Steve Aoki Meets His Puppet: Hollywood Puppet Shitshow First Date

Big Freedia Meets Her Puppet: Hollywood Puppet Shitshow First Date

1m

Big Freedia Meets Her Puppet: Hollywood Puppet Shitshow First Date

Damon Wayans Jr. Winds Up In A Naked Family Feud

9m

Damon Wayans Jr. Winds Up In A Naked Family Feud

Hollywood Puppet Shitshow First Date: Damon Wayans Jr. Meets His Puppet

1m

Hollywood Puppet Shitshow First Date: Damon Wayans Jr. Meets His Puppet

Hollywood Puppet Sh!tshow First Date: Amber Rose Meets Her Puppet

1m

Hollywood Puppet Sh!tshow First Date: Amber Rose Meets Her Puppet

I Played One on TV

46m

I Played One on TV

Hollywood Puppet Sh!tshow First Date: Anjelah Johnson-Reyes Meets Her Puppet

1m

Hollywood Puppet Sh!tshow First Date: Anjelah Johnson-Reyes Meets Her Puppet

Free The Robots Reveals Where He Found One of His Rarest Records

1m

Free The Robots Reveals Where He Found One of His Rarest Records

Sake One

10m

Sake One

Game On!

20m

Game On!

Karruche Tran Meets A Mini Version of Herself: Hollywood Puppet Shitshow First Date

54s

Karruche Tran Meets A Mini Version of Herself: Hollywood Puppet Shitshow First Date

One Take Jake

20m

One Take Jake

On Call Miami

44m

On Call Miami

On Call LA

43m

On Call LA

Who's On Top?

1h 13m

Who's On Top?

One Busy Queen

21m

One Busy Queen

The Canvas LA: Spotlight Fern Shares How Starting On Tumblr Turned Into Inspiring People

9m

The Canvas LA: Spotlight Fern Shares How Starting On Tumblr Turned Into Inspiring People

Leaning On Lena

20m

Leaning On Lena

Chew On This

44m

Chew On This

On Call NYC

44m

On Call NYC

Rapper Rich Quick Performs "Nice Guy" On 'Dancin' On Air'

3m

Rapper Rich Quick Performs "Nice Guy" On 'Dancin' On Air'

The Beatles: In the Life

1h 2m

The Beatles: In the Life

The River and the Wall

1h 45m

The River and the Wall

Putting It On Wax

23m

Putting It On Wax

Clean Up Aisle One

46m

Clean Up Aisle One

Bougie On A Budget

2m

Bougie On A Budget

Is Everyone on Drugs?

20m

Is Everyone on Drugs?

Freedia's Twerk On Washington

21m

Freedia's Twerk On Washington

Gym Shorts on Runway

41m

Gym Shorts on Runway

T-Pain's School of Business: Artiphon- The All In One Musical Device | Season 1 Look Back |

1m

T-Pain's School of Business: Artiphon- The All In One Musical Device | Season 1 Look Back |

The Best of The Best Clash

2m

The Best of The Best Clash

The Blue Devils Bring The Parade

1m

The Blue Devils Bring The Parade

The 212

The 212

The Feels

1h 21m

The Feels

The Exchange

1h 27m

The Exchange

The FP

1h 20m

The FP