Rap queen Nicki Minaj embraces polarising political stance

Carsen Holaday, The IndependentNicki Minaj's spectacular rise and surprising fall from public favor has been undeniably bizarre to watch. Once known as the "Queen of Rap" who trailblazed a path for female rappers with hits like "Anaconda" and "Super Bass," the star has found herself exiled from the genre in recent years amid feuds with other celebrities and criticism over her marriage to a convicted sex offender. But as Minaj faced rejection from her peers and the industry that once celebrated her, she grew more popular among conservatives for her outspoken support of Donald Trump. The rapper's ascent to the summit of MAGA land came to a head Tuesday at a US Treasury event, where Minaj — wearing a white fur coat and her signature long acrylic nails — stood on stage with Trump, squeezed his hand and declared: "I am probably the president's number one fan, and that's not going to change."The public proclamation marked the end of any speculation by Barbz (the name of Minaj's ruthlessly devoted fans) over her political stance. Some had previously refused to believe that Minaj, an undocumented immigrant who spent years cultivating a progressive fanbase for people of color, would rally behind a president who has threatened declared a war on immigrants. So how did we get here?Nicki Minaj's rap takeoverMinaj's domination of the hip-hop world happened quickly. After years of murmurings about the Trinidad-born rapper's freestyles in the underground mixtape game, she was launched into global superstardom with her 2010 debut album Pink Friday. The record, which topped the Billboard 200, featured superstars like Eminem, Rihanna and Kanye West, and went on to be certified triple-platinum. Her singles "Moment 4 Life," "Your Love," "Fly," "Check It Out" and "Super Bass" all became hits that entered the Top 40 songs in the Billboard Hot 100 at the time.The rapper solidified her status as a pop culture icon by showing off her outrageous fashion style and sense of humour at public events. She sang at the 2011 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show and performed with Prince at the 2011 Versace collection launch for H&M. Minaj also opened for Britney Spears's tour that year, and appeared as the musical guest on Saturday Night Live. She took the stage with Madonna at the Super Bowl XLVI halftime show in 2012 and became the first female rapper to perform at the Grammy Awards that year.She then released Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded in April 2012, which featured pop hits "Starships" and "Beez in the Trap," and embarked on her first headlining world tour. Her third album, The Pinkprint, dropped in 2014, spawning hit singles "Anaconda" and "Only," which featured Drake, Lil Wayne and Chris Brown.By 2015, Minaj's music was a permanent fixture on most popular radio stations. In a genre that was previously dominated by men, she broke through the landscape with witty wordplay and by taking on different personas in her songs. Time named Minaj one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2016.However, Minaj's momentum began to slow as her once standalone takeover ushered in a new age of female rap — stars like Cardi B, Doja Cat, Megan Thee Stallion, and Ice Spice.The 12-time-Grammy-nominated artist still had her wins, but they became more sparse. Minaj achieved her first Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles with Doja Cat's "Say So" and 6ix9ine's "Trollz" in 2020. She scored her first solo U.S. number-one single with "Super Freaky Girl," from her most recent album, Pink Friday 2 (2023). The album cemented her as the female rapper with the most number-one albums in history and propelled her on the highest-grossing concert tour ever by a woman in hip-hop.Despite its success, the Pink Friday 2 world tour unfolded alongside a looming issue: Minaj's ongoing feud with Megan Thee Stallion. Nicki Minaj vs. Megan Thee Stallion Minaj's career has been marked by multiple feuds with other celebrities. Miley Cyrus, Cardi B and Kanye West are just a few of the stars she has publicly fought with, but none have been as vicious as her rivalry with fellow rhymer Megan Thee Stallion.Nicki Minaj's rise to MAGA darlingDuring Trump's first presidential term, Minaj had spoken out against his mass deportation efforts of immigrants as a Trinidad-born woman who moved to New York City with her family when she was five years old. She wrote on Facebook in 2018: "I came to this country as an illegal immigrant @ 5 years old. I can't imagine the horror of being in a strange place & having my parents stripped away from me at the age of 5. This is so scary to me. Please stop this. Can you try to imagine the terror & panic these kids feel right now?"By the fall of 2025, Minaj had begun to use her social media platforms to praise Trump, which some Barbz initially took as her trolling. The rapper is known for her outspoken opinions, but had never publicly endorsed a political candidate (if you don't count her rap lyric on "Mercy" that jokingly referenced her voting for Mitt Romney).Many of Minaj's fans shared their devastated responses on social media to her support of the Trump administration. Some wondered if the move was a cash grab as others called for boycotts of the rapper's music and shared pictures of their merchandise in the trash.