There’s nothing quite as incendiary as when our own do us in and recently, Black Americans have been making a list and checking it twice as some of the biggest stars of the past generation have betrayed what was once their core audiences. Black Americans have watched in quick succession as Black entertainers who built their fame, credibility, and cultural capital on the backs of Black audiences — only to turn around and throw those same communities under the bus for white money, access, and approval.
Recent moments involving Snoop Dogg, Nelly, and Nicki Minaj have landed less like political disagreements and more like outright betrayals. Whether it’s performing at Trump-adjacent events, publicly praising MAGA figures like EriKKKa Kirk, or parroting right-wing talking points, the message has been received loud and clear: the check matters more than the people.
#Canceled!
Hip-hop, Black music, and Black celebrity were never just about entertainment. That wasn’t an option considering the circumstances. They were born out of resistance, truth-telling, and survival. So when artists who made their millions off Black struggle and Black cool suddenly cozy up to a political movement openly hostile to Black life, voting rights, education, bodily autonomy, and basic civil dignity — it reads as selling out.
Let’s be honest about the pattern. These alignments almost always come wrapped in the same tired defenses: “It’s not political”, “I respect the office”, or “I’m thinking for myself.” But MAGA has never been neutral terrain. It is a movement built on grievance, exclusion, and nostalgia for a time when Black people knew their “place”. Choosing to participate in that ecosystem—especially for money—is a choice. Full stop.
What makes this sting is that Black Americans are not confused about power. We understand capitalism. We understand survival and we have survived worse. What we are rejecting is the audacity of entertainers who benefit from Black loyalty, then weaponize their platforms against the very people who put them there. You don’t get to cash in on Black culture and then pretend you’re above Black consequences. To be clear, many Black Americans have not forgiven hip-hop for glorifying the n-word for mass consumption. It has done us no favors.
The backlash these artists face isn’t cancel culture. It’s accountability. It’s a community saying: We see you. We see the pivot. We see the rebrand. We see the way MAGA money and proximity to whiteness suddenly make some people forget where they came from — and who made them rich. Snoop Dogg has made just about as much money as he can from Black audiences. Now, he is looking to surround himself with those that know little to nothing about Black American culture – white Americans and foreigners.
If they want to align with MAGA, they should do it with their full chest. But don’t expect applause from a community you’ve chosen to abandon. Black Americans are done subsidizing their own erasure, especially when the price tag comes with a red hat and a wire transfer.
At the end of the day, fame fades. Money gets spent. But legacy? That sticks. And more and more, these choices are defining one loud, uncomfortable truth: some people will say and do anything — for a check. Snoop, Nicki, Nelly and others should know well by now how Black people specialize in keeping receipts and clocking those that attempt to thwart us.
The charge of selling out for MAGA money stems from a clear pattern: each artist has a history that positioned them, to varying degrees, as cultural figures within the Black community, yet their recent actions are perceived as aligning with a political movement that a majority of Black voters consistently oppose.
Snoop the Sell-Out
What the former pimp said to the current clown
In early 2025, Snoop Dogg performed at a Crypto Ball tied to Donald Trump’s inauguration celebrations — an event many viewed as part of Trump’s re-emergence on the political stage. His appearance drew heavy backlash from fans and Black cultural commentators, who accused him of endorsing a figure whose policies have repeatedly been framed as harmful to Black communities. Snoop Dogg put the final stake in his own coffin when he appeared during the NFL Christmas Day halftime show alongside Lainey Wilson, Andrea Botticelli, and others, including the doyenne of domesticity, Martha Stewart. And for those that actually saw the entire show, only a clip was necessary to see who inspired this halftime show – none other than Beyoncé herself, who did nearly the same damn show only a year prior. If Blackness is so inferior, then why are these MAGAts always copying it almost as soon as it’s released into the universe? The entire spectacle was whitewashed sonic mediocrity with a splash of negroid tokenism for ‘flavor’. With Snoop as the headliner, it could have been retitled ‘Coon & The Gang’. It seems Snoop is quite content to play the minstrel as long as the checks clear.
Just like so many before him that ends up licking Trump’s pumpkin taint, Snoop too was openly critical of Trump. But after Trump pardoned a former Death Row Records associate, Snoop later said that Trump “did great things for me”, a reversal that many fans saw as opportunistic and inconsistent. Many argued this shift was about money and access, not principles, accusing him of abandoning past critiques and embracing a crowd with very different values from the culture that built his career. Who ever would have predicted a day when Black people trust Martha Stewart more than Snoop Dogg? But yet, here we are!
Nelly to the N-O!
Nelly seems to be trapped in the red state sunken place.
Nelly drew major criticism after he performed at a Donald Trump inaugural event in January 2025. Whether it was a play to be relevant again is another story, but the hip-hop star immediately embarrassed at least half of St. Louis once he went all-in on MAGA-land. Even though he claimed it wasn’t political and was merely “respect for the office”, many in the Black community saw it as tacit support for a figure whose administration historically enacted policies viewed as harmful to Black Americans.
When criticized, Nelly doubled down on his decision, attacking figures like Kamala Harris and implying he was “more pro-Black” than her because of personal choices — rhetoric that many saw as divisive and aligned with right-wing talking points. People online labeled his performance and defenses as a betrayal — especially because Trump’s political rhetoric and policies on issues like criminal justice and civil rights have been widely criticized by Black advocacy groups. Many felt Nelly’s participation was clearly about money or influence rather than community values. Someone should snatch Ashanti from the clutches before it’s too late!
Onika and EriKKKa, Sitting in a Tree
Even in a 22-inch bussdown, Nicki is serving dumb as a box of hair.
And most recently, Nicki Minaj appeared at Turning Point USA’s AmericaFest event in Arizona alongside Erika Kirk, the wife of slain internet personality, Charlie Kirk. After ranting through her social media days before, she publicly expressed supportive remarks about Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance, calling them “role models” — aligning herself with conservative political figures despite her massive Black and global fanbase. Nicki also used a United Nations platform to echo talking points that aligned with Trump’s framing of international issues, which conservative media and political figures quickly seized on as an endorsement of MAGA-aligned policies. Her comments sparked huge backlash from fans — including losing millions of followers — with many accusing her of selling out and cozying up to MAGA politics for influence, attention, or financial gain. Is it a coincidence that her last name is now Petty? Onika isn’t even American, so who cares what the hell she says? Her receipts run a mile a minute anyway. Computer says NO!
The Conundrum and the Context
Billie would have never done Black people dirty like this!
Remember when A&R departments were a thing in the music industry? When artists were trained how to deal with the media? Remember not that long ago when Black celebrities understood the assignment? Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Miles Davis, et cetera. None of them would have ever done anything even remotely close to this. And even more telling is that their primary audience wouldn’t have stood for it! This was an era when Black entertainers knew that when a white audience was placed in front of them, it was their duty to shed a light on the atrocities of being Black in America. My, how times have changed!
Hip-hop and Black cultural leadership has historically been skeptical of Republicans in any form, be they Reagan Republicans, Bush Republicans, or the latest iteration of more openly racist MAGAts, given documented policy impacts on Black communities.
Shame on these artists for chasing money, publicity, or relevance by performing for or aligning with figures associated with MAGA, rather than reflecting the values of the communities that supported them from the start. This calculated move to tap into the conservative media and entertainment ecosystem represents a lucrative new revenue stream that doesn’t rely on traditional entertainment industry approval.
Of Tariffs & Tokenism
Is hip-hop at a crossroads?
These artists are being used as tokens — high-profile Black individuals whose endorsement is wielded to shield the movement from charges of racism and to appeal to a small subset of voters. In return, the artists gain access, praise, financial opportunities, or even pardons from this powerful new audience.
The severe backlash from their core fanbases demonstrates that this perceived betrayal carries a high cultural cost. It often permanently damages the artist’s legacy and relationship with the community that originally supported them. While the artists frame their support as independent thinking, the writing is on the wall. It is a clear abandonment of collective struggle for individual gain. It highlights a deepening divide within Black America about strategy, representation, and the very meaning of allegiance in the modern political and cultural landscape.
The Final Plate: An Unforgivable RSVP
Chrisette Michele learned her lesson the hard way.
In today’s unforgiving digital landscape, where every action is archived and every betrayal amplified, Black artists who choose to cross over into MAGA territory are making a final, calculated choice. They are trading the soulful, complex, and collective nourishment of the cookout — the shared history, the unspoken understanding, the seasoned truth — for the performative, transactional approval of a new audience. This is not a simple disagreement; it is a fundamental renunciation of the community that provided their rhythm, their stories, and their stage. The consequence is permanent. The invitation is rescinded. Let them stay with their unmelanated minions, feasting on a lifetime of unseasoned madness. The cookout, and the culture it protects, will continue without them.
GoodBYE!
