Nicki Minaj is not holding back her feelings regarding Gavin Newsom after a recent video of him speaking in Georgia went viral.
During a panel discussion in front of a primarily Black crowd, the Governor attempted to establish common ground by discussing his own academic shortcomings and test scores.
“I’m not, you know, I’m not trying to impress you. I’m just trying to impress upon you. I’m like you. I’m no better than you. You know, I’m a 960 SAT guy. And you know, and I’m not trying to offend anyone, you know, trying to act all that if you got 940. But literally a 960 SAT guy. I cannot—you’ve never seen me read a speech because I cannot read a speech. This may be the wrong business to be in,” Newsom stated.
The footage immediately caught the attention of Nicki, who interpreted the Governor’s self-deprecation as a subtle insult to the intelligence of the room. Taking to Twitter, she argued that his approach to building rapport was deeply flawed.
“His way of bonding with black ppl is to tell them how stupid he is & that he can’t read,” she wrote. For Nicki, the admission about his SAT scores and reading ability only confirmed her previous criticisms of his political rise. “This means my first read on him was correct. He’s been handed so many things & put in high positions he never earned or deserved,” she added.
His way of bonding with black ppl is to tell them how stupid he is & that he can’t read.
This means my first read on him was correct. He’s been handed so many things & put in high positions he never earned or deserved.
Do you wanna know the craziest part of this footage that… https://t.co/llo1k7F7wB
— Nicki Minaj (@NICKIMINAJ) February 23, 2026
The rapper’s critique focused heavily on the physical delivery of Newsom’s remarks, accusing him of altering his natural speaking voice for the audience.
“Do you wanna know the craziest part of this footage that will haunt him forever? He’s literally slowing his speech down & talking in a sporadic cadence,” Nicki observed. She argued that this change in rhythm was a sign of underlying bias. “He’s not just TELLING them that they’re all probably stupid & probably can’t read, he’s LITERALLY SLOW-ING-DOWN-HIS-SPEECH to make them understand the words that are coming out of his mouth!!!! As if they’re children!!!!” she continued.
Nicki doubled down on her assessment, claiming that the Governor’s behavior reflected a genuine, albeit offensive, belief about the community he was addressing. “That means he REALLY BELIEVES they’re slow. He’s not just saying it—he didn’t misspeak!!!! He BELIEVES it!!!!” she claimed. She ended her series of posts by directly challenging her followers to look closer at the interaction. “Do ya love it?!?!! Do ya just love it, black ppl?!????” she asked.
This latest public call-out adds to the list of times the hip-hop icon has used her platform to scrutinize the California politician’s public engagements.
