Singer Nicki Minaj said she became more publicly involved in conservative politics after watching what she described as unfair treatment of President Donald Trump, rather than because of his policy positions.
The comments appear in preview clips from a podcast interview with Katie Miller that Minaj shared on X on Monday.
"Religious freedom is something that's very important to me, but if I'm being honest, President Trump … when I saw how he was being treated, over and over and over, I just couldn't handle it," Minaj said.
She compared Trump's experience to her own history of public backlash, saying she recognized familiar patterns.
"I felt that a lot of that bullying and the smear campaigns and all of the lying, I felt that that had been done to me for so many years," she said. "And I was watching it in real time happen to someone else, and I didn't think he deserved it."
In a separate clip from the same interview, Minaj discussed when she began paying closer attention to Trump's political career. She said the previous presidential campaign marked a turning point, though she declined to provide details.
"During the last [presidential] campaign … I saw something, and I texted someone I knew right away, and I said, 'This is a mistake.' And I also said, 'All of this is making me want to get into politics,'" Minaj said.
"And then there was something that happened a few months ago that, if I wasn't going to do it before," she said, before stopping short of specifics and adding, "I don't want to talk about it."
Reflecting more broadly on the shift, Minaj framed the decision as the result of prolonged pressure.
"I will say, sometimes people can push you so much, that they push you all the way into your next calling," she said. "That's what happened with me."
The interview followed Minaj's recent public appearances with Trump, including a joint appearance at a Trump Accounts Summit during which she embraced Trump behind the podium and said, "I am probably the president's No. 1 fan," according to Billboard.
Shortly after the summit, Minaj revealed on X that Trump had granted her a Trump Gold Card, which offers applicants residency and a path to U.S. citizenship.
In a follow-up post, Minaj, who was born in Trinidad, wrote: "Finalizing that citizenship paperwork as we speak as per MY wonderful, gracious, charming President."
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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