American rapper Nicki Minaj has revealed that her Nigerian pastor influenced her decision to speak out about the alleged persecution of Christians in Nigeria.
Minaj made the disclosure during an X Takeover event at Tesla’s Giga Texas facility in Austin, Texas, on Saturday, where she discussed her personal ties to Nigeria and urged more celebrities and social media influencers to raise awareness about violence targeting Christians in the country.
The rapper said reports of attacks on Christians, particularly in Nigeria, had deeply concerned her, questioning why the issue was not attracting greater public attention.
“For Nigeria personally, my pastor is from Nigeria, so I have a link to Nigeria because of him. And of course, I have a lot of Nigerian barbs, but what I started seeing was the brutality with which Christians are being treated there just for being Christian,” she said.
Minaj, whose fans are known as Barbz, argued that influential public figures could use their platforms to draw attention to the situation.
“And I thought, why isn’t anyone making a big deal out of this, you know? And sometimes when things aren’t cool to talk about, people don’t talk about it,” she added.
The rapper expressed hope that more entertainers and online influencers would join efforts to speak about the alleged persecution of Christians in Nigeria.
“So right now, actually, I’m hoping that more celebrities or people, influencers, I’m hoping that they come aboard the train to start speaking out about what’s happening to Christians in Nigeria. And I look forward to doing more to help in that way, in that cause,” she said.