Nicki Minaj’s Trump Endorsement Stuns Fans — Especially in the LGBTQ+ Community

When Nicki Minaj stepped on stage Sunday night at AmericaFest in Phoenix, Arizona — an annual rally organized by the ultraconservative youth group Turning Point USA — the audience got an unexpected headliner. The self-proclaimed “Queen of Rap,” long known for her flamboyant style and queerness-friendly fanbase, appeared as a surprise guest at one of the movement’s marquee right-wing gatherings.

“I have the utmost respect and admiration for our president,” Minaj declared in an interview on stage with Erika Kirk, widow of conservative influencer Charlie Kirk, who founded Turning Point USA before his assassination earlier this year. Dressed in an unusually sober outfit and stripped of her signature theatrical makeup, the Trinidadian-born rapper added that Trump was “seductive and irresistible,” drawing cheers from the crowd.

A surreal conversation and online backlash

In a bizarre exchange, Minaj even referred to Vice President JD Vance as an “assassin,” calling him a “role model.” Kirk, whose husband was murdered in September, defused the awkward comment with an uneasy laugh. Vance later praised Minaj on X (formerly Twitter) for what he described as “deep comments” about race relations in America.

The performance — which took place less than two years after Minaj’s appearance as a guest judge on RuPaul’s Drag Race, where she had proudly proclaimed her “allegiance to the drag cause” — shocked many LGBTQ+ fans online.

On Reddit, one user on a Drag Race discussion thread lamented, “We knew Nicki Minaj was slipping, but this is rock bottom.” Others accused her of betraying her queer fanbase for publicity or political favor.

From liberal darling to MAGA muse

Minaj’s embrace of Donald Trump et le MAGA movement marks a major shift for the artist, who once voiced empathy for immigrants and refugees. In 2018, she publicly condemned the Trump administration’s family separation policies, writing on Instagram, “I came to this country as an illegal immigrant at five years old — please stop this!”

Her relationship with politics turned turbulent again during the COVID-19 pandemic, when she questioned the safety of vaccines, a stance that resonated in conservative circles.

Her full pivot came in November 2025, after several pro-Trump statements. She appeared at the United Nations to assert that “Christians are being targeted” in Nigeria — a claim widely dismissed by international observers — echoing Trump’s talking points. Days later, Minaj promoted a White House TikTok that used her song “Va Va Voom” to tout the administration’s record, even as fellow artists like SZA et Sabrina Carpenter publicly objected to the use of their own music for political content.

A new political alignment in the rap world

Nicki Minaj is not entirely alone in her Trump endorsement. Rapper Lil Wayne famously posed with the former president in 2020 and was later pardoned in his final days in office. But Minaj’s case feels symbolic: a global superstar with a queer-inclusive fanbase, now lending her influence to a movement that has actively sought to restrict drag performances and transgender rights.

For many in the LGBTQ+ community, the disappointment runs deeper than political disagreement — it’s a sense of abandonment by an artist once seen as a champion of self-expression and resistance.

“It’s painful to watch someone who’s been embraced by queer people, drag performers, and gender-nonconforming fans for years now platform those who seek to erase us,” one fan wrote on X. “Nicki meant freedom to so many of us.”

Whether Minaj’s comments reflect genuine conviction or calculated rebranding, her alignment with Trump’s camp raises questions about the future of pop’s relationship with politics — and about how much her most loyal fans are willing to forgive.

Eva Rinaldi Photography Flickrwww.flickr.com/evarinaldiphotography