Nicki Minaj put her support for President Donald Trump on full display on Wednesday, appearing at an official White House event promoting the administration’s newly launched “Trump Accounts” for U.S. children.
The New York rapper’s full-throated endorsement comes amid much public backlash she has received since openly praising Trump for his somewhat debunked claims that Christians are being persecuted in Nigeria. Those claims were followed by military airstrikes in the West African country.
“I am probably the president’s number one fan, and that’s not going to change, and the hate or what people have to say, it does not affect me at all. It actually motivates me to support him more. It’s going to motivate all of us to support him more,” Minaj, real name Onika Maraj-Petty, said during her very brief remarks at the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium in Washington, D.C.
“We’re not going to let them get away with bullying him. And you know, the smear campaigns, it’s not going to work…He has a lot of force behind him, and God is protecting him,” said Minaj.
Reecie Colbert, a political analyst and host of Sirius XM’s “The Reecie Colbert Show,” told theGrio of Minaj’s Wednesday apperance with Trump, “Nicki Minaj bragging about being the number one fan of a wannabe dictator who has given the green light for his white nationalist ICE militia to terrorize communities, particularly immigrants like herself, is not the flex she thinks it is.”
She added, “I would say she should be shamed, but it’s obvious that she has none.”
President Trump acknowledged the blowback against Minaj for supporting him, saying, “She took a little heat on occasion. Her community isn’t necessarily…,” before trailing off mid-sentence.
“I tell you, we did pretty damn well with it, with your community,” said Trump, likely referring to his modest increase in support among Black voters in the 2024 election. Black voters overwhelmingly backed Trump’s opponent, former Vice President Kamala Harris, 83% to 15%, according to Pew Research.
The president claimed that Minaj pledged “hundreds of thousands of dollars” to Trump Accounts, which are savings accounts for children in the U.S. between 2025 and 2028. Each Trump Account will launch with a one-time $1,000 government seed contribution. Families and others can contribute up to $5,000 annually. Eligible children must live in ZIP codes where the median family income is below $150,000.
Trump Accounts aside, Minaj’s resolute support for Trump amid his controversial anti-racial justice policies and immigration enforcement, culminating in the violent and deadly encounters with ICE agents in Minnesota, will likely overshadow the administration’s attempt to use the rapper’s star power to promote the new initiative.
“When Trump is dead and gone and Nicki Minaj crawls back for mercy, let there be no apology tours, Oprah interviews, or feigned ignorance,” said Keith Boykin, a political commentator and former Clinton White House aide. “She knew the consequences and chose the wrong side of history.”
