Nicki Minaj Joins Trump on Stage at Michigan Midterm Rally

Rapper Nicki Minaj appeared alongside President Donald Trump at a rally in Michigan on Sunday, telling the crowd he has "changed the energy of the country" as he campaigned for Republican candidates before the midterm elections.

Trump invited Minaj to speak after praising her figure from the stage. "He's given us a future to look forward to," she said. Minaj has described herself as Trump's "number one fan", though she criticised some of his policies during his first term.

Speaking in Port Huron in a gold-coloured Gucci-branded suit, Minaj led the audience in chanting Trump's name as well as the names of Republican candidates in the state. "We really need all these great people to be elected, because this is a major turning point for our country," she said.

As she left the stage, Trump said: "She never looked more beautiful." He added: "She gets it. She's smart." Earlier in his speech, he had praised the rear end of a male Republican candidate before turning to Minaj, saying: "By the way, I looked at a beautiful ass before. Nicki Minaj. That's hard to miss." He asked her to stand as the crowd cheered, and said he hoped she was not "insulted" by the remark.

The singer, known for the song Super Bass, travelled to Michigan with Trump aboard Air Force One. She filmed a video with an aide on the plane, posted to X, in which she pretended to interview for the role of White House press secretary. That post is currently vacant after Katie Zacharia left five days after a shaky public debut.

Michigan has one of the tighter Senate contests this cycle. Democratic candidate Abdul El-Sayed faces Republican Mike Rogers with just over a week to go. Former President Barack Obama held a rally with El-Sayed on Saturday, one of the first of his campaign appearances this cycle.

Democrats are also campaigning aggressively as close races on 3 November will decide which party controls Congress for the rest of Trump's presidency.

In his remarks on Sunday, Trump focused on El-Sayed's Muslim faith and background, alleging that he would "invite jihadists" into America if he won. El-Sayed has criticised similar comments from Trump as Islamophobic. In an ad last week, he said the president "thinks he can use my name and my faith to distract us from the suffering his policies are inflicting on us at the pump, at the grocery store, and at the doctor's office".

Minaj, who was born in Trinidad and Tobago, has lent her star power to Trump on several earlier occasions. These include his allegations that Christians face persecution in Nigeria and his "gold card" visa, which offers applicants residency and a path to US citizenship.