Nelly, the “Hot in Herre” rapper, has joined other popular hip-hop and R&B acts performing for President-elect Trump’s inauguration, and the internet is not pleased about it. The inauguration is just hours away, and Nelly joins the likes of Snoop Dogg, Soulja Boy and more who have are set to perform for the President-Elect’s various inaugural balls and ceremonies.
As CBS News confirmed, the “Country Grammar” rapper will indeed take to the stage on Monday, disappointing a large portion of his fanbase and leading to some intense chatter online. The backlash came so swiftly, in fact, that the rapper found himself defending the decision to perform while on YouTube Live, saying comments that seemed to alienate a portion of his fanbase somehow even more.
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In the video, Nelly ranted on about why he is performing, saying, “This isn’t a campaign, this isn’t the RNC,” insisting that because President-Elect Trump won the election, this is an “honor.”
“I’m not doing this for money, I’m doing this because it’s an honor,” he explained. “I respect the office. It don’t matter who is in office. The same way our brothers and sisters go to war to put their life on the line for whoever is in office. So, if they can put their life on the line for whoever is in office, I can damn sure perform for whoever is in office.”
He also said that he is “clueless on a lot of things when it gets down to it.” Naturally, this attempt at a defense did not sit well with folks online, only adding even more fuel to the backlash the rapper was already facing.
“Nelly did it for the money,” one user wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. “There is no amount of money I’d accept to perform for a convicted felon, racist and rapist.”
Another user shared similar sentiments, writing, “Not Nelly comparing serving in the military to performing at the inauguration. This clown twisting himself into a pretzel with this explanation. You sold out for a check just admit it!! WTF.”
The news of Nelly’s performance came on the heels of both Snoop Dogg and Rick Ross being announced as entertainers for the first-ever “Crypto Ball” that was held on Friday night, which as we reported last week, also sent the internet into a frenzy.
For some fans, they almost “expected” the performances from Rick Ross and Soulja Boy, but Snoop and Nelly were surprises. “Saying f-ck you to the black community by publicly supporting a man that makes it clear he don’t like us nor care about us is insane,” one user wrote.
As one user on X, formerly known as Twitter, wrote, “Soooo Snoop and Nelly said anything for a dolla huh?”
Soulja Boy also defended his performance, taking to Instagram Live with a considerably more intense reaction to the backlash than Nelly. Saying that they “paid him a bag,” he said. “Obama ain’t never put no money in my f**king pockets, n***a. Kamala ain’t never put no money in my f**king pockets, n***a. Trump put money in my pockets, n***a.”
Clearly, as we enter a new era with a second Trump administration, seeing how various right-leaning acts in the entertainment industry respond will be very telling. Just how much the support of the President-elect will affect these artists’ careers, both financially and in terms of their legacies, remains unseen.
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