Nicki Minaj is putting some of her star power to good use, shining a light on the HIV/AIDS crisis as a spokesperson for a new campaign.
Minaj has partnered with M.A.C Cosmetics to give voice to the M.A.C AIDS Fund VIVA GLAM campaign, which aims to raise awareness of the disease among young people.
Yesterday the "Superbass" singer appeared on Good Morning America with her campaign partner Ricky Martin. Minaj said the issue was personal to her, particularly given her family's heritage.
"I had an uncle that passed away from AIDS," she revealed. "He actually was living in Trinidad. It's dually important because it's my family [and] it's my country. And so when M.A.C. reached out, we spoke a lot about going to the Caribbean islands, raising awareness there, and, of course, we want to do everything everywhere we can."
Nicki stressed that AIDS doesn't discriminate based on nationality or sexual orientation.
"It's important for people from the islands to understand: it's not something that should only be discussed in America," she said.
"This is something that's killing a lot of people, especially Black women.... I don't want people to think that this is a gay disease...or an 'in the '80s' disease," she added. "This is something that's killing everyone, no matter your preference, your religion, your race."
Minaj, who currently appears on the covers of both New York and Vibe magazines, released a new single, "Spaceships," on Tuesday.

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