D.L. Hughley Says Nicki Minaj Is ‘Everything Charlie Kirk Was Against’

After Nicki Minaj’s surprise AmericaFest appearance, the comedian calls the alliance “transactional” — and says it contradicts everything the movement once claimed to stand for.

D.L. Hughley doesn’t need a punchline when real-life irony does the work for him.

The comedian and actor weighed in this week after Nicki Minaj made a surprise appearance at Turning Point USA’s AmericaFest, where she appeared alongside Erika Kirk, the widow of the organization’s late founder Charlie Kirk. In clips that quickly circulated online, Minaj praised the current president and offered advice on children, including remarks that echoed her recent critiques of trans-inclusive policies.

Hughley’s response was swift and pointed.

“Nicki Minaj is virtually everything that the man who started that movement was against,” Hughley said in a video reaction that spread across social media. He underscored the contradiction by replaying older clips of Kirk criticizing Minaj as a role model for young Black girls and outlining hardline immigration views– remarks that stand in sharp contrast to Minaj’s own background as a child immigrant from Trinidad and Tobago.

For Hughley, the issue wasn’t just hypocrisy. It was convenient.

“I find it ironic that the members of MAGA would turn their back on their principles so swiftly for convenience sake,” he said, calling the alliance “transactional” and echoing similar sentiments recently voiced by Lizzo. Hughley went further, accusing the movement of selective outrage and misplaced priorities.

“It astounds me that transgender people draw their ire more than pedophiles,” he added, before referencing Minaj’s family history, which is public record. Minaj’s husband, Kenneth “Zoo” Petty, is a registered sex offender following a 1995 rape conviction in New York, for which he served four years in prison. Her brother, Jelani Maraj, was sentenced in 2020 to 25 years in prison for child rape.

Dl Hughley has reentered the chat and is keeping his foot on Nicki’s neck 👀 https://t.co/sl4huhqWw3 pic.twitter.com/ZNrNjC7RBH— CARDIA 🐦‍⬛ (@CCardib2) December 24, 2025

This isn’t the first time Hughley has publicly clashed with Minaj. Earlier this month, he responded to her social media attacks on California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has repeatedly defended his record supporting trans youth. After Newsom told The Times that he has signed more pro-trans legislation than any other governor, Minaj mocked the statement online, reframing it as inappropriate concern for children rather than advocacy for their safety and well-being.

Hughley fired back bluntly, arguing that Minaj’s family circumstances undercut her credibility when speaking on issues involving kids.

At AmericaFest, Minaj doubled down, advising girls to be “proud of how they look” and invoking the phrase “boys will be boys” while responding to a question about struggling children that further fueled backlash and debate.

In Hughley’s telling, the controversy isn’t really about Nicki Minaj at all. It’s about what happens when ideology bends just enough to make room for celebrity, and how quickly principles disappear when influence is on the table.

If politics is theater, Hughley seems to be saying, then this was a casting choice that revealed more about the production than the star.