My pastor is from Nigeria — Nicki Minaj

Rapper Nicki Minaj has said her Nigerian pastor influenced her decision to speak out about the alleged persecution of Christians in Nigeria.

Minaj, who is one of the vocal foreign figures on Christian persecution in Nigeria, made the remarks during an X Takeover event at Tesla’s Giga Texas facility in Austin, Texas on Saturday, where she discussed her personal connection to Nigeria and called on more celebrities and influencers to speak about violence against Christians in the country.

The rapper said reports of attacks on Christians, particularly in Nigeria, had deeply troubled her and questioned why the issue was not receiving 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, who refers to her fans as Barbz, said she believed more public figures should use their platforms to raise awareness about the situation.

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“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.

She expressed hope that more celebrities and social media influencers would join the effort to speak out about the treatment 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.

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