FILE – Trevor Noah appears at the 63rd annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles on March 14, 2021. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File) (Image: Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)
Grammy Awards host Trevor Noah has targeted Donald Trump and Nicki Minaj during his address at the glamorous awards ceremony.
Following Bruno Mars and Rose’s opening performance of their hit APT, Noah remarked that Minaj, who recently visited the White House and voiced her backing for US President Mr Trump, was “not here”, Daily Star reports.
He declared: “Nicki Minaj is not here, she is not here, she is still at the White House with Donald Trump discussing very important issues, actually.
Mimicking the president, he quipped: “‘Nicki, I have the biggest a**, I have it, everybody’s saying it Nicki, I know they say to you, but it’s me, wop, wop, wop, look at it, look at it, baby’.
Noah also alluded to the publication of the Epstein documents.
He stated: “The one and only Ms Lauryn Hill will be performing on that stage tonight, which is insane when you think about it, because the last time Lauryn Hill performed at the Grammys was in 1999, you understand how long ago that was?
“Back in 1999, the president had had a sex scandal, people thought computers were about to destroy the world, and (P) Diddy was arrested.
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President Donald Trump greets Nicki Minaj during the launch of a program known as Trump Accounts at the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium, Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana) (Image: AP)
“Boy, how times have changed.”
Discussing the celebrity-packed audience, which featured Kendrick Lamar, Tyler The Creator, Billie Eilish, Justin Bieber and Lady Gaga, Noah commented he felt as though he was attending Amazon chief Jeff Bezos’s wedding “but with way more black people”.
This follows protests by performers against US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) personnel deployed across American cities on the red carpet.
Musicians Joni Mitchell and Kehlani, alongside Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon, were amongst the stars sporting “Ice out” and “Be Good” badges at the ceremony.
Kehlani, 30, condemned Ice during her acceptance speech after claiming her first Grammy for best R&B performance with Folded.She declared: “I hope everybody’s inspired to join together as a community of artists and speak out against what’s going on. F*** Ice.”
WASHINGTON, DC – JANUARY 29: Nicki Minaj attends the world premiere of Amazon MGM’s “Melania” at The Trump-Kennedy Center on January 29, 2026 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Taylor Hill/WireImage) (Image: WireImage)
Vernon, 44, whose band Bon Iver received a nomination for best alternative music album, explained he wore a whistle to honour legal observers documenting federal agents’ activities on the streets.
“I think there’s a reason that music exists and it’s to heal and to bring people together,” he told The Associated Press. “But the real work are those observers on the on the ground in Minneapolis. We just want to shout them out.”
US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) personnel have been stationed in American cities as part of Mr Trump’s mass deportation programme, particularly in Minnesota and Minneapolis, where approximately 2,000 have been positioned.
The officers have faced fierce condemnation over their heavy-handed tactics, with Ice agents recently shooting dead two individuals on Minneapolis streets: Renee Good on January 7 and Alex Pretti on January 24.
