Ellen DeGeneres has entertained fans with her funny parodies and skits for years. But her parody of Nicki Minaj on The Ellen Show Monday was more concerning than entertaining.
Nicki Minaj announced two weeks ago that she was set to produce and star in ABC Family scripted series based on her life. The show would center on the 32-year-old rapper’s younger years, growing up in Queens, attending New York’s famed LaGuardia High School in the 1990s and showcasing her personal and professional evolution.
DeGeneres used the announcement and her good rapport with Minaj as an opportunity to poke fun at the upcoming show. However, what DeGeneres and her writers deemed funny came across misguided at best and a minstrel show at worst.
Watch the full clip below:
DeGeneres introduced the parody by telling her audience she had a “very exclusive sneak peek” of the upcoming sitcom. During the skit, a young girl with a large butt is introduced as Minaj. Her parents, also sporting large backsides, enter the clip, knocking over items with their butts and then having a difficult time sitting on their couch together. Their black dog, who joined the skit, even wore a fake butt.
Fans who watched the clip voiced their opinions on social media, calling DeGeneres out for the offensive parody and for perpetuating stereotypes about black women’s bodies.
#NickiMinaj @NickiMinaj That clip was NOT cool, at all….and the dog…#Ellen #Tasteless pic.twitter.com/l4wbNf9IIm
— IG: @DJCONARTIST75 (@djconartist75) October 12, 2015
https://twitter.com/evyeniaAggeliki/status/653962472047673344
https://twitter.com/chescaleigh/status/653726173097279488
https://twitter.com/jerepaolini/status/653730974228959232
Ellen DeGeneres disappointed me w/ that Nicki Minaj skit. It was lazy and tasteless at best. Racist & a modern day minstrel show at worst.
— Taryn Finley (@_TARYNitUP) October 13, 2015
that Nicki parody on Ellen wasn't funny. it was actually offensive; which, saddens me because I love Ellen. 😒
— cam. (@robitussinmami) October 13, 2015