Nicki Minaj claimed that her support for the right-wing and MAGA politics stemmed from frustrations with former president Barack Obama and his friendship with rapper Jay Z.
Minaj previously called herself Donald Trump’s “number one fan.” Now, the 43-year-old has shared how her viewpoints came to be.
Nicki Minaj reveals why she became Donald Trump supporter
In a new interview with Time, Nicki Minaj, whose controversial actions and overt support for MAGA politics have drawn eyeballs in the past months, shared the root of her political conversion. She blamed the Obama administration for changing her views.
In the discussion, Minaj explained that during Obama’s tenure as the President, there seemed to be an unspoken expectation that black artists would automatically support the Democratic Party. Minaj also disapproved of Obama’s friendship with rapper Jay Z, with whom Minaj has a long-standing beef. Minaj alleged that Jay Z tried to sabotage her career through his entertainment company Roc Nation.
“Jay-Z ended up costing Obama a lot, whether he knows it or not,” Minaj said, “Lots of rappers don’t like Jay-Z and were afraid to say it.”
Minaj also singled out a 2024 speech by Obama while he was campaigning for Kamal Harris. Obama suggested in the speech that some black men were uncomfortable with the idea of putting a woman in power. The rapper said about this, “I just saw so many videos of Black men saying that they didn’t like the way they felt about that speech that Obama gave. They felt like they weren’t being listened to.”
Later in the interview, Minaj shared that she had felt pro-Trump for a while. However, she “didn’t dare act like that publicly.” She added, “It’s been ingrained in everyone’s brain in the music business that we are supposed to be a Democratic family. I just knew they would not like me supporting Trump.”
But since Minaj came out as a Trump supporter, she feels better than before. “I’ve never felt better,” the rapper added, “When you can be yourself, you’re happier.”
Meanwhile, Donald Trump remains one of the most controversial figures in world politics, with intense scrutiny surrounding his second term.
