Trinidad and Tobago-born rapper Nicki Minaj declared herself to be Donald Trump’s “number one fan” on Wednesday, while also showing off her Trump “gold card” visa, which offers applicants residency and a path to US citizenship.
The US President called the star up on stage in Washington DC after she announced her support for the so-called “Trump Accounts”, which provide trust funds for children.
Previously a critic of Trump’s hardline immigation policies, Minaj, who came to the US with her parents as a child, has praised his leadership in recent years.
It comes at a time of protests after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents were involved in the fatal shootings of US citizens.
“I will say that I am probably the president’s number one fan, and that’s not going to change,” said Minaj, who was seen holding hands with Trump on the podium.
“And the hate or what people have to say, it does not affect me at all. It actually motivates me to support him more.”
She also displayed her new card, emblazoned with Trump’s face, in a thread on X with the caption: “Welp.”
“Finalising that citizenship paperwork as we speak as per my wonderful, gracious, charming president”, she later added, noting that the card had come “free of charge”.
Trump’s gold card was launched in December, as a fast-track for wealthy immigrants like Minaj to get US citizenship.
They pay $1 million (£723,650) and a $15,000 (£10,854) processing fee in return for US residency.
The scheme has received criticism for arriving at a time when the president is clamping down on illegal immigrants.
Super Bass star, Minaj, who has welcomed the move, reportedly explained how she “came to this country as an illegal immigrant at five years old” in a 2018 Facebook post, while criticising the government’s family-separation policies.
“I can’t imagine the horror of being in a strange place and having my parents stripped away from me at the age of five,” the post said.
“This is so scary to me. Please stop this. Can you try to imagine the terror and panic these kids feel right now? Not knowing if their parents are dead or alive, if they’ll ever see them again.”
In 2024, during a TikTok streaming session, she added: “I’m not a citizen of America. Isn’t that crazy?
“I was born on a beautiful island called Trinidad and Tobago. But I’ve been in the States for many years. You would think that with the millions of dollars that I’ve paid in taxes to this country that I would have been given an honorary citizenship many, many, many thousands of years ago.”
Minaj’s gold card gives her unlimited right of residence in the US, but she is still not a US citizen under the agreement.
In the US capital on Wednesday, Trump joked that he would grow out his nails to emulate the rapper, then held her hand while another speaker took the podium.
She said she would not let the billionaire president’s opponents “get away with bullying him”.
She added: “He has a lot of force behind him, and God is protecting him. Amen.” (BBC)
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