The Collapse of the Barbz

To top off what can only be described as increasingly questionable and mind-boggling behaviour on social media, Nicki Minaj has now gone the distance in cementing her stance as a pro-Trump supporter. Her tweets and videos over the last two or three years got so bad that they raised speculation about everything from possible drug use to wild theories about the selling of her soul.

After steadily losing fans at a rapid pace over the last few years given her disturbing affiliation with convicted predators and controversial views on everything from vaccines to the LGBTQ+ community, this latest decision begs the question of whether this would be the thing to finally get whatever is left of her loyal fans, known as the Barbz, to finally relinquish their undying loyalty. And though there are certainly some loud voices protesting on her behalf, the silence is uncharacteristic of the group of stans that were long considered the ones to fear.

Yesterday, Nicki appeared on stage with Trump in Washington at a U.S. Treasury event meant to mark the launch of “Trump Accounts”. It’s a form of investment intended for U.S. citizens under the age of 18 that earn tax-free interest, similar to retirement accounts, that can be accessed and withdrawn upon the account holder reaching adulthood. But as anyone could have predicted, there’s been much less coverage of these new accounts and how they function – and way more spotlight on Nicki, who is officially one of Trump’s newest crusaders.

It was during yesterday’s event that the pair were photographed holding hands and exchanging niceties with each other, with him dubbing her the ‘number one rapper’ and her declaring she was his ‘number one fan’, compliments they both love to receive. She also told the audience that he was ‘protected by God’ and lauded his polarizing nature. 

But according to the Barbz, with her latest move resulting in her snagging a “Gold Card” from the U.S. president himself, they’re intellectualizing it and arguing that there was a method to the madness all along, suggesting it was all part of her ‘strategy’. At least that’s what they’re telling themselves, and anyone who will listen.

Anyone who finds her latest political moves odd or uncharacteristic must have missed the very obvious telltale signs of an impending fall from grace. And though it was a spectacle so many of us wish we didn’t bear witness to, with the outlandish tweets, fights with other celebrities and politicians and rage bait like we’ve never seen, it was hard to miss. And more importantly, hard to rationalize.

It’s impossible to pin down the exact moment Nicki’s descent started. And at this point, it’s also hard to determine how much of it is real and how much of it is part of a larger play to earn favours that might benefit herself, her husband and brother, the latter of whom are both embroiled in legal issues due to past convictions. Really heinous ones, at that.

Depending on who you ask, her downfall started even before she reconnected with Kenneth Petty in 2018, whom she married in 2019 and had a son with a year later. The pair met as teenagers and lost touch but hit it off when they reconnected later on in life. But when it was brought to light that he previously served four years in prison as a Level 2 sex offender after being found guilty of sexually assaulting a 16-year-old girl at knifepoint in 1994, fans were not quiet about it. Celebrities weren’t, either. It didn’t help that her brother, Jelani Maraj, was also convicted of sexual assault in 2017 and in 2020, was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison. 

Following her brother’s sentencing, Nicki started expressing controversial narratives about vaccines – famously revealing that her cousin’s friend had become impotent after being vaccinated. She went on to say that she wanted to ‘wait’ until they had done more research, even if it meant missing the Met Gala, as per their vaccine status mandate.

But as was expected, her fans still stood by her, buying up tickets to her Pink Friday tour, which led to sold out arenas, proving the level of unwavering loyalty from the Barbz. And despite the allegiance of her fans hardly ever wavering, things got very shaky when she began making anti-LGBTQ+ remarks, which was a far cry from the support she’s shown this community. With so many of her fans identifying as LGBTQ+, plus having an alter ego, Roman Zolanski, who is a gay man, fans were not understanding the change in views in their idol.

Around this time in 2024, she famously stayed up all night muttering nonsense in a video slamming Megan Thee Stallion after the lyrics of her song “Hiss” were dissected to reveal jabs thrown at Nicki, her husband and his criminal past. Nicki went on to release a retaliatory track called “Big Foot”, but most were in agreement that it fell flat. People spent days trying to decipher what she was saying in that video on social media - and more importantly, where the Nicki they had known (parasocially, anyway) and loved went. But by all measures, she was long gone.

But when she aligned herself with the likes of Donald Trump and JD Vance after all of that, it started becoming clearer and clearer that she was quickly losing a great deal of respect among even some of her most die-hard fans. And that’s saying a lot. Because when it comes to stan culture, this was the group you didn’t want to mess with.

Yesterday’s instance was especially notable because of the timing of all the political peacocking. Making this kind of statement just days after a tragic weekend in Minneapolis, where a second person lost their life during anti-ICE protests and just a few weeks after a Black man was shot in Los Angeles on New Year’s Eve by an ICE agent, it’s becoming personal for people, Nicki's fans included.

But it’s also why Nicki leaving Washington with a “Gold Card” is very telling. Those cards require a $1-million contribution to the U.S. Treasury and a $15,000 non-refundable processing fee. And perhaps most interestingly, upon receipt of one of these cards, the holder “receives lawful permanent resident status as an EB-1 or EB-2 visa holder,” a U.S. government website states.

The reason that last part is so fascinating is because though she is a permanent U.S. resident, Nicki has spoken out in the past about not being a U.S. citizen, despite paying millions in taxes. Her appearance with Trump, then, seems like greasing the wheels for her citizenship application–using a method most people don't have in their literal bank account. And as Trump revealed in their…whatever that was yesterday…she’s investing hundreds of thousands of dollars into the “Trump Accounts” program.

It’s for all of these reasons that Nicki’s behaviour is not just confusing, but contradictory and offensive to the very people that helped her reach the career heights she was able to, many of whom are immigrants or members of the queer population that she has directly spoken out against. It's a true gut punch for people who remained allegiant to her over the years, even amid what most would argue is one of the biggest falls from grace from a celebrity we’ve seen in recent times. And we’ve seen a lot. This was a woman who made history. Broke through the proverbial glass ceiling. Helped pave the way for female rappers in a male-dominated space.

But her beef with unproblematic artists like SZA and Megan Thee Stallion, and her incessant beef with Cardi B, whom she likely could have made some amazing music with had she not been so threatened by having to share the spotlight, continues to have adverse affects on her.

I’d be remiss to not mention the irony of it all. A woman who came to the U.S. illegally essentially doing a deal with the president to get status, all while agents of that same administration parade around the country detaining immigrants who, in many cases, have proven that they are, in fact, U.S. citizens. While this whole time, Nicki herself was not.

I once heard that the greatest sign of intellect is the willingness to change one’s mind at the introduction of new information. That’s why the question of whether this will be the thing to change people’s minds about the person they’ve idolized all these years is so timely. It’s moments like this that we get to evaluate the communal intellect of a particular group – in this case, the Barbz. It’s hard to witness what we have in the last several years and not be changed by it. But if there’s one thing we’re seeing play out in real time and clear as day, it’s that not all change is good.