NEED TO KNOW
Nicki Minaj has gone off the grid.
Days after Minaj made an appearance at Turning Point USA’s AmericaFest on Dec. 21 in Phoenix, the rapper has deactivated her Instagram account.
The “Super Bass” rapper, 43, walked out hand-in-hand with Erika Kirk — who attended the political gathering for the first time since her husband Charlie Kirk’s death — and joined her for a conversation to close out the annual event.
Erika, who was elected CEO of the organization after Charlie’s death, asked Minaj what she has learned from President Donald Trump’s administration.
“I have the utmost respect and admiration for our president. I don’t know if he even knows this, but he’s given so many people hope,” the rapper replied.
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When asked about her decision to support Trump, Minaj said she “got tired of being pushed around.”
“I have something inside of me that’s stronger than what’s out there. So when you’ve had enough, you realize, ‘Wait a minute, why do I even care about these people and what they think? Who are they?’ They don’t even know who they are. So I’m not going to back down anymore. I’m not going to back down ever again,” she explained.
Elsewhere in the conversation, Minaj took aim at California Gov. Gavin Newsom — after they were previously involved in a feud on X tied to comments about transgender youth — and then name-checked “handsome” and “dashing” Trump as a good “role model,” as well as Vice President JD Vance.
At another point in the conversation, Minaj had an unfortunate slip while sharing her praise for Trump and his administration. “Dear young men, you have amazing role models, like our handsome, dashing president. And you have amazing role models like the assassin, JD Vance, our vice president,” she told the crowd.
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After making the statement, the “Your Love” rapper stumbled, seemingly realizing what she said in front of the widow of Charlie, who was assassinated in September. She went silent for a long beat, covering her mouth with her hand in shock.
Erika, 37, was gracious in the wake of the slip, telling Minaj, “Trust me, there’s nothing new under the sun that I have not heard.”
Though Minaj’s Instagram account is deactivated, her X account remains intact. The day of the convention, she reposted a video where Erika asked her about the “backlash” she’s received from her “own industry” in response to her political views.
In the video, she simply responded that she “didn’t notice.” In the caption section of her post on X, she wrote, “Didn’t have a clue. Carry on.”
In the days that followed, she’s continued to post photos from the event.
