Black celebrities endorsing Donald Trump

Former President Donald Trump is attracting growing support as he vies for another term in the White House—and an increasing number in that group includes Black celebrities.

Data from the polling company Civiqs showed on Monday that 41 percent of registered American voters had a favorable view of the former president and 2024 presumptive GOP White House contender, against 55 percent who had an unfavorable view, giving a net favorability of -14. This is his best performance since December 29, 2021 and a substantial improvement on his net rating of -22 in October 2023.

Trump is currently polling an average of 1.8 percentage points ahead of incumbent President Joe Biden according to an analysis of eight recent polls by election forecasters 270 to Win, which put him on 45.8 percent of the vote versus 44 percent for Biden. This is all despite his high-profile criminal trial.

The former president is currently awaiting a verdict following a New York trial over claims he falsified business records to conceal the payment of hush money to former adult film actor Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 presidential election.

Trump has denied all accusations of wrongdoing, describing the trial as a political witch hunt aimed at derailing his bid for another term in the White House.

Polling numbers show that Trump is continuing to garner support, with a number of Black celebrities stepping forward to announce their intentions to vote for him. Newsweek has compiled a list of the Black celebrities supporting him.

Newsweek has contacted a representative of Trump via email for comment.

Antonio Brown

Former NFL star Antonio Brown revealed in a recently published interview with OutKick that he is backing Trump at the polls.

“I’ve never met him. I’ve got admiration for his business moves and I study his dad Fred Trump,” Brown said. “But, I think Donald Trump is a good businessman and come[s] from a good family and has been a good president.”

Further delving into his reasons for endorsing the former star of The Apprentice, the retired athlete noted the pardons and commutations that Trump had granted in the final days of his term in the Oval Office.

“I think he does some great things for my brothers in the music industry in regards to Lil Wayne, Kodak [Black],” Brown explained, before pleading for further help.

“Trump… if you’re watching this you need to free Young Thug if you could help out,” Brown said, in reference to the hip-hop star, whose legal name is Jeffery Williams.

Currently on trial, Young Thug is one of 28 defendants in a Georgia RICO case. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis announced the sweeping indictment in May 2022, accusing the musician of being the kingpin of Young Slime Life, an Atlanta-based street gang affiliated with the Bloods.

Kodak Black

Such is rapper Kodak Black’s support for Trump that he took to social media to share photographs of himself decked out in the Republican‘s “Make America Great Again” (MAGA) merchandise.

Kodak Black, whose real name is Bill Kahan Kapri, decked himself out in the apparel, which appeared to be signed personally by Trump, to mark the former president’s 75th birthday back in June 2021.

Lil Wayne

In late October 2020, days before Trump’s ultimate election defeat, rapper Lil Wayne wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that he approved of the White House’s Platinum Plan for Black Americans after a meeting with the then president.

“Just had a great meeting with @realdonaldtrump @potus besides what he’s done so far with criminal reform, the platinum plan is going to give the community real ownership,” Lil Wayne’s post read. “He listened to what we had to say today and assured he will and can get it done.”

Just had a great meeting with @realdonaldtrump @potus besides what he’s done so far with criminal reform, the platinum plan is going to give the community real ownership. He listened to what we had to say today and assured he will and can get it done. 🤙🏾 pic.twitter.com/Q9c5k1yMWf

— Lil Wayne WEEZY F (@LilTunechi) October 29, 2020

The Platinum Plan promised to create 3 million new jobs for Black Americans and 500,000 new Black-owned businesses. Part of the plan included declaring Juneteenth a national holiday and labeling lynching a national hate crime.

Lil Wayne, whose real name is Dwayne Michael Carter Jr., was charged with felony gun possession just weeks after his meeting with Trump. While the musician—who faced up to a decade behind bars—entered a guilty plea, he was never sentenced, as his name was among the dozens of pardons and commutations issued by Trump on his final day in office back in January 2021.

Snoop Dogg

Back in January, hip-hop veteran Snoop Dogg said in an interview that he had “nothing but love and respect for Donald Trump.”

The rapper previously directed far less glowing words at the former president. In March 2017, he released a music video showing a mock assassination of a Trump-inspired clown called Ronald Klump.

Condemning the video at the time, Trump wrote on X: “Can you imagine what the outcry would be if @SnoopDogg, failing career and all, had aimed and fired the gun at President [Barack] Obama? Jail time!”

In an interview with The Sunday Times published earlier this year, the rapper showed an about turn as he said that Trump “ain’t done nothing wrong to me. He has done only great things for me. He pardoned Michael Harris. So I have nothing but love and respect for Donald Trump.”

Harris, who co-founded the Death Row record label to which Snoop Dogg was first signed, had been imprisoned on drug offenses.

During the interview, the star was asked if he would share his thoughts on the upcoming election, much like he did when he gave reasons to vote for then President Obama over Republican challenger Mitt Romney in 2012.

“I may have to,” he responded. “Because there are mixed views on that, so I want to see what the people say…”

Sexxy Red

Rapper Sexyy Red counts herself among those who have publicly pledged their allegiance to Trump.

Appearing on comedian Theo Von’s This Past Weekend podcast in October 2023, the musician said that she wants to see him back in office.

“I like Trump…they support him in the ‘hood,” the “Pound Town” hitmaker, whose real name is Janae Nierah Wherry, said.

“At first, I don’t think people was f****** with him like they thought he was racist, saying little s***, and you know, against women. But once he started getting Black people out of jail and giving people their free money, oh baby we love Trump, we need him back in office.”

Don King

Veteran boxing promoter Don King told U.K. newspaper The Daily Telegraph in an interview published earlier in May that he’s very much in Trump’s corner.

King, who has been personally invited by Trump to visit his Mar-a-Lago property in Florida on a number of occasions over the years, said that he most admired the onetime real estate mogul’s ability to bounce back amid financial straits.

“I like Trump,” King told the publication. “He revolutionized bankruptcy[…]Remarkable man. Other people shoot themselves and jump off the bridge. Not Trump.

“He has resilience and tenacity and a never-say-die attitude. He never surrenders. I love the man and hope he wins. The press kick him in the a**, but he’s exposing the corrupt and rigged system.”

King also came out in support of former President George W. Bush during his time in the White House.

Mike Tyson

Tyson has yet to publicly declare who he is endorsing for this election cycle, but has been vocal in his support for Trump in the past.

On Wednesday, Trump took to his Truth Social platform to share a photo of what appeared to be boxing legend Mike Tyson wearing a T-shirt that said: “IF YOU DON’T LIKE TRUMP THEN YOU PROBABLY WON’T LIKE ME… AND I’M OK WITH THAT.”

Captioning the image, Trump wrote: “Thank you Mike!”

While a fact check by Newsweek ruled the image was not real, Trump and Tyson have a history together, with the former president reportedly acting as an adviser to the pugilist during the early stages of his career.

In 2016, the former heavyweight champion expressed his support for Trump’s presidential candidacy, telling the New York Post that it was an “awesome thing that he’s doing so well” in his campaign. Tyson was said to have visited Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence during his White House term.

Azealia Banks

In November 2023, rapper Azealia Banks declared her intention of voting for Trump in the current election cycle.

“He’s just f****** funny,” she told U.K. newspaper The Standard. “He’s been through how many bankruptcies? How many wives? How many television shows? Seriously, nothing can take him down.”

When asked if she had any issues about Trump having access to “the nuclear button” again, Banks responded: “Well, he didn’t press it the first time… You never know, Biden might hit the wrong s*** on the antennae and blow the whole thing up.”

Waka Flocka Flame

In October 2023, hip-hop star Waka Flocka Flame divided fans when he publicly revealed his support for Trump.

The rapper, whose given name is Juaquin James Malphurs, sparked debate, when he took to X to express his support for Trump’s bid for a second term in the White House.

“TRUMP2024,” the “No Hands” hitmaker wrote in a post that garnered millions of views in a matter of hours.

While the post won the support of a number of conservatives, including Republican congressional candidate for Florida’s 24th district Lavern Spicer and political activist Ryan Fournier, it also drew criticism from many detractors.

Seemingly undeterred by the naysayers, the musician reiterated his support for the one-term president when he switched out his profile picture on the social media platform to one that showed him smiling and posing alongside Trump.

After his pro-Trump posts sparked continued discussion, the star returned to the platform at the time to share a statement regarding politics.

“I’m an not a politician and I don’t wanna talk politics,” he wrote. “I only answer to the people that made me and that’s my FANS aka THE PEOPLE… I love y’all with every bone in my body man.”

The rapper’s stance marks something of a turnaround, years before he was publicly critical of Trump.

YG

Also showing a turnaround is rapper YG, who previously recorded the anti-Trump anthem “F*** Donald Trump.”

YG, whose given name is Keenon Dequan Ray Jackson, has since dramatically softened his stance on the New York native, citing the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) as a reason “Black people forgave him” after a period of skepticism.

“I’m speaking about these m*********** in the hood. I am speaking on their behalf. This is what they say. ‘S***, Biden ain’t did nothing for us, that n**** Trump is passing out money,'” he said on Von’s This Past Weekend podcast in August 2023.

Kanye West

Rapper and fashion designer Kanye “Ye” West gets an honorable mention because of his vocal support for Trump during his presidency.

West, who has legally changed his name to Ye, made headlines back in 2018 when he made an appearance on Saturday Night Live sporting one of Trump’s distinctive red MAGA hats.

The star expressed continued support for Trump, even while he embarked on his own disastrous 2020 presidential campaign.

However, West, who had announced plans to run for the White House again this year, has not publicly shared his endorsement for the upcoming election, likely due in large part to his retreat from the spotlight following his 2022 scandal over a series of antisemitic remarks he made on social media and in interviews.