Rapper Nicki Minaj found herself in a deeply awkward situation during a surprise appearance at a conservative political conference in the United States. The incident occurred on Sunday, December 21, 2025, at Turning Point USA's AmericaFest in Arizona.
An Unfortunate Slip of the Tongue
Minaj was participating in a Q&A session alongside Erika Kirk, the chairwoman and CEO of Turning Point USA. The organization's leadership transitioned to Kirk following the assassination of her husband, conservative activist Charlie Kirk, in September 2025.
The moment unfolded after Kirk asked Minaj, who has shown increasing online support for the Trump administration, to share a message with young men in the audience. In her response, Minaj praised figures like President Donald Trump and referred to Vice President JD Vance as an "amazing role model like the assassin JD Vance."
She quickly realized her major faux pas in using the word "assassin" in front of Kirk. Visibly processing the gaffe, Minaj paused, tilted her head down, and covered her mouth with her hand as some audience members laughed.
Graceful Handling and Political Commentary
Erika Kirk, however, appeared to take the comment in stride. Smiling, she assured Minaj, "Trust me, there is nothing new under the sun that I have not heard. So you're fine." She further consoled the rapper, telling her "I love you" and advising the crowd to laugh about such moments.
"If the internet wants to clip [this moment], who cares. I love this woman," Kirk added. "She's an amazing woman … words are words, but I know her heart. It doesn't even matter."
Elsewhere in the interview, Minaj continued her criticism of California Governor Gavin Newsom, using President Trump's derogatory nickname "Newscum." She read pointed tweets targeting the governor's stance on trans kids and issued a direct warning from the stage: "Dear Newscum, we don't have a problem cleaning up the scum if we have to. Please tread lightly."
Deepening Political Alliances
The event highlighted Minaj's growing alignment with the Trump administration. She expressed her "utmost respect and admiration for our president," crediting him with giving people hope to "beat the bad guys" with integrity.
This appearance follows other political actions by the 12-time Grammy nominee. In November 2025, she called for an end to the persecution of Christians in Nigeria at a United Nations event, a cause Trump had highlighted in a Truth Social post on October 31.
Furthermore, Vice President JD Vance has seemingly entered the world of rap beefs, siding with Minaj over Cardi B in a December 10 post on X, simply writing "Nicki > Cardi." Minaj appeared to reciprocate with a now-deleted post that, according to social media screenshots, stated "Vance > Rants."
Representatives for Nicki Minaj did not immediately respond to a request for comment from HuffPost following the AmericaFest incident.
