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”.
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.”
