Rapper and singer-songwriter Nicki Minaj on Wednesday praised US President Donald Trump, saying she was “probably his number one fan” and the hate against the president “motivates” her to support him more.
“I will say that I am probably the president’s number one fan. And that’s not going to change, “ Minaj said after Trump asked her to come up and say a few words at an event in Washington DC. “And the the hate or what people have to say, it does not affect me at all. It actually motivates me to support him more. And it’s going to motivate all of us to support him more.”
Addressing the public and celebrity campaigns against Trump and governmental policies instated by him, Minaj stated, “We’re not going to let them get away with bullying him. And, you know, the smear campaigns, it’s not going to work, okay? He has a lot of force behind him and God is protecting him. Amen.”
Minaj was attending the Treasury Department’s Trump Accounts Summit. Trump said Minaj was contributing to Trump Accounts, which is a type of individual retirement account. He said all children born between 2025 and 2028 can qualify for an initial $1,000 from the Treasury when parents open an account.
Minaj chose to show allegiance with Trump at a time when several celebrities have taken it upon themselves to speak against the injustices taking place in Trump’s America, in light of recent events, such as the murders of bystanders by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Last week, singer Billie Eilish, while accepting the MLK Jr. Beloved Community Award for Environmental Justice in Atlanta used her speech to denounce ICE and the wider political climate in the US.
“We’re seeing our neighbours being kidnapped, peaceful protesters being assaulted and murdered, our civil rights being stripped,” she said, adding that people’s access to food and healthcare is increasingly becoming “a privilege for the wealthy instead of a basic human right”.
Many actors — including Natalie Portman, Olivia Rodrigo and Ariana Grande — followed suit on social media after the second murder committed by ICE.
Last week, Mark Ruffalo and singer Brian Eno also signed an open letter titled “Time to Win”, addressed to world leaders attending the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, calling on governments worldwide to impose higher taxes on millionaires and billionaires, aiming to curb their influence on politics and statecraft.
It lamented that “a handful of global oligarchs with extreme wealth have bought up our democracies, taken over our governments, gagged the freedom of our media, placed a stranglehold on technology and innovation, deepened poverty and social exclusion and accelerated the breakdown of our planet”.
Minaj’s comments come at a time when public political alignments by celebrities remain sharply divided. While some have used their platforms to criticise US government policies and law enforcement practices, Minaj has chosen to express support for the administration, highlighting the increasingly visible split in the way influential figures are engaging with American politics today.
