According to Nelly, when he accepted the invitation to perform during President Trump’s Inaugural events in January, he was not endorsing Trump or his administration.
During an appearance this week on Hot 97’s “Ebro in the Morning” podcast with his wife Ashanti to promote their brand new reality TV series on Peacock, “Nelly & Ashanti: We Belong Together,” the 50-year-old rapper addressed the controversy surrounding his Inaugural Liberty Ball performance.
When co-host Ebro Darden asked if Nelly was still on his “pro-Donald Trump stance, the “Little Bit” performer was quick to correct him.
“See, this is what I’m saying. Where did you get pro-Donald?” he said. “What you had was ‘respect for office.’”
He added, “And it’s great how people spin narratives to things that I think best fit whatever they’re against. You know what I’m saying? Instead of giving a brother the exact fundamental of what he did, what he said. Nobody’s doing that anymore.”
Nelly made headlines in January when it was announced that he would perform at President Donald Trump’s Liberty Ball. The St. Louis rapper responded to the backlash partly by saying he was doing so because he had “respect” for the office.
“I’m not doing this for money, I’m doing this because it’s an honor. I respect the office. It doesn’t matter who is in office,” he said then. “The same way that our men and women, our brothers and sisters who protect this country, have to go to war and have to put their life on the line for whoever in office. So if they can put their life on the line for whoever in office, I can damn sure perform.”
While on “Ebro in the Morning,” he echoed those same sentiments and further defended the move by noting that he hasn’t endorsed a president ever. He pointed out that the year before, he performed at an event with Kamala Harris and noticed that it didn’t raise any eyebrows.
“At that time, nobody ever brought it up,” he said.
When another host noted that it wouldn’t have been clickbait, Nelly agreed and pointed out that Darden’s way of asking him the question was even clickbait-y.
“It’s like ‘yo Nelly, your political stance’ … I don’t think I said that. I think I said I have respect for the office and whoever is in office,” he recalled.
“It was truly an honor, because ain’t nan other president ever asked me to do anything,” he continued. “It doesn’t mean you agree with how that president… I never endorsed any president. I’ve never done that a day in my life. What I did say is that I’m a military brat. I love our men and women that service this country. I’ve done things all around this country. I’ve entertained the troops. Nobody brings that up. I’ve stayed man, you know, a commitment in my community, and I have a beautiful black family.”
