Did Rapper Nicki Minaj Back Romney? Obama Not Sure
President Barack Obama says he isn't sure what to make of rapper Nicki Minaj's apparent endorsement of Mitt Romney, or whether to believe she was being serious.
"I'm not sure that's actually what happened," Obama told an Orlando hip-hop station this morning.
In a radio interview, the hosts of Power 95.3's "Obie and Lil'Shawn" show asked the president what he thought of a recently debuted Minaj song, which contains the lyrics "I'm a Republican voting for Mitt Romney/You lazy b*****s is f*****g up the economy." Minaj was featured as a guest artist on a Lil' Wayne album released last week.
"I think she had a song on there - a little rap that said that," Obama said. "But she likes to play different characters, so I don't know what's going on there."
The president was referencing the fact that Minaj is known for adopting off-beat alter-egos as part of her act. One show host offered his own explanation:
"That was probably Roman who did it," he said jokingly, a reference to Minaj's alter-ego "Roman Zolanski." It's one of her more popular personas portrayed to be evil. He makes "appearances" across multiple albums.
Minaj has not addressed the issue on Twitter, and her publicists have not returned ABC News' requests for comment. The president, though, said he tends to pay less attention to any ribbing he receives from celebrities.
"The truth is when it comes to music and movies, etc. Michelle and I just focus on who's good," Obama concluded. "Look, I love Clint Eastwood movies, man."
