Nicki Minaj Narrowly Missed White House Correspondents’ Dinner Shooting
The controversial rap superstar and Trump supporter was invited to attend the event before chaos unfolded.
Nicki Minaj (L) joins U.S. President Donald Trump on stage as he delivers remarks during the Treasury Department's Trump Accounts Summit at Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium on January 28, 2026 in Washington, DC.
Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images.
Nicki Minaj indicated that she narrowly missed the White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting. On social media, Minaj appeared to react to the April 25 shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, which The Washington Times previously reported that Minaj was expected to attend. The dinner, at the Washington Hilton in Washington, D.C., was thrown into chaos after a gunman charged through a security checkpoint and opened fire outside the ballroom where the event was held.
According to CNN, the shooting at the security barricades happened minutes after the event got underway. The Secret Service and other authorities swarmed the room as guests ducked under tables and journalists immediately got on phones to call in information. Secret Service agents rushed President Trump and his cabinet off the stage and the suspect was later taken into custody. This was the first time Trump attended the Correspondents’ Dinner as president.
Hollywood Unlocked reports that Minaj shared a video on her TikTok page of her face in a car moments after news of the shooting broke. She captioned the post with a U.S. flag emoji and a prayer hands emoji.
The accused shooter, California teacher and engineer Cole Tomas Allen, 31, is expected to be charged in federal court on Monday, April 27. NBC reports that Allen’s brother notified police in Connecticut after Allen sent family members his writings. A senior administration official characterized the writing as displaying anti-Trump sentiment and described his targets as administration officials, not guests or hotel employees. In his writing, Allen apologized to family and friends and says he does not expect forgiveness.
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