The most unfortunately memorable moment came when the superstar rapper praised “the assassin JD Vance,” leading to some awkward silence, with Kirk’s husband Charlie having been cut down by a sniper three and a half months ago. Erika Kirk came around to acknowledging there had been a faux pas on Minaj’s part, but added that it was OK because “we know what’s in your heart..”

Minaj further expressed her complete “respect and admiration” for “the handsome, dashing” President Trump; elaborated on her recent anti-trans statements; dug deeper into her antipathy for trans-supportive California governor Gavin Newsom; and suggested that white women have been the victims of reverse discrimination, as the beauty of Black women has been elevated.

The “assassin” slip-up came when Kirk asked what advice the performer would have for young men.

“Don’t be Newscum,” she began, repeating her epithet for Newsom. “Young men, you have amazing role models like our handsome, dashing president, and you have amazing role models like the assassin JD Vance, our vice president. And when I say that…” She then fell into silence, perhaps realizing that trying to reel that back could make it worse.

Picking up the ball amid the confusion about the remark, Kirk said, “Trust me, there’s nothing new under the sun that I have not heard. So you’re fine. … You have to laugh about it, truly. I have been called every single thing, and you know what? God is so good. You let it roll right off your back and this is what’s so beautiful about this moment, because if the internet wants to clip it, who cares? I love Nicki. She’s an amazing woman. She has a soul and a heart for the Lord. And words are words, but I know her heart and it doesn’t even matter. And you say what you want to say, because I know your heart and I will not judge that, sister.”

Asked by Minaj about backlash she has faced for her now-right-leaning views, Minaj — who has devoted her recent social media to being combative on these issues — drew cheers as she claimed: “I didn’t notice.”

Minaj made it clear that there has been a total turnaround in her political thinking from the days when she could be counted on to knock Trump along with her hip-hop peers. Asked by Kirk if there is “something that you want to leave as a legacy in this world for your family, for your baby, for just everything,” Minaj responded: “That it’s okay to change your mind.”

There’s sometimes there’s a lot of things projected onto you when you change your own mind. You know, they project fear, shame, onto people who don’t think and do as they think and do. But I’ve performed for huge crowds all around the world, and no matter how many songs I do on that stage, it didn’t mean as much as this. Because this is a direct link for younger people. This is a direct link between young people and God, and there’s been a lack of that in our media, in our everyday conversations.”

The rapper called for keeping politicians without what she sees as respect for faith out of office. “I truly feel that there are people out there who felt good about chastising Christians right here in our country. And it’s kind of really, really sick,” she said. “We can’t let people like that be in power, you guys. That’s the truth. I can sugarcoat it and laugh and tee-hee, but the truth is, I am here today to tell you guys that we absolutely cannot let people who have a problem with us worshipping God… we cannot have them in power.”

On the subject of girls and young women, Minaj said, “Recently in the media, it is almost been like a push to not just making young Black children feel proud of themselves, but it’s almost like doing that and at the same time telling other children not to be proud of themselves. And I don’t want any child feeling that way. If weif as black wome, felt that we were not being represented and not being admired for our beauty… why would we want to do that to other women? Why would we now need to make other people downplay their beauty so that we can feel… no, that’s not how it works. I don’t need someone with blonde hair and blue eyes to downplay their beauty, because I know my beauty.”

She elaborated: “I don’t want what was done to little Black girls done to little white girls. I don’t want it done to any girls. I want all the little girls in the world to know that you are unique, you are beautiful, you are you, and you can compliment another girl. You can compliment another woman and still know that you are epic and amazing. So that’s what I would say about for the girls. … I know my adults understand clearly where I’m going with that.”

She continued. “I don’t like people making other people feel badly about themselves in any way. We need to nurture young girls whether they are Black, white, Asian, Hispanic, they still need to be nurtured. They cannot continue to pay for other people’s sins. They haven’t done anything wrong.”

Although Minaj did not invoke DEI directly, Vance, in following her appearance with his own speech, made it clear that that’s what he believed Minaj was talking about. Vance spoke of consigning diversity and inclusiveness initiatives to “the dustbin of history,” adding that “in the United States of America, you don’t have to apologize for being white anymore… Ee base people on who they are, not on ethnicity and things they can’t control.”

Minaj finished on a note of somberly warning that it not just Nigeria, which she first raised as a cause, that is rampant with anti-Christian discrimination — it is America, too, in her view. And she invoked the Biden administration as having fostered this alleged bias against Christians.

“Look at what is being done to Christians all around the world. And ask yourself why people in this country that were in positions of power felt so comfortable to try to take our voices from us. They were that afraid. They are that intimidated. They are that insecure. They are that small inside that hearing us and seeing us worship God irritated them. Our spirit irritates them because when we speak, they get shown up. When the truth walks in the room, the lies hide. They don’t come out willingly. You gotta pry it out of them. They hide because they don’t want you or anyone to know who they really are behind closed doors, because even they know how evil it is to try to deprive people of worshiping God.”

“We love you, Nicki Minaj,” said Kirk.