Nicki Minaj’s Social Media Is Supported By Thousands of Bots, New Research Finds

Nicki Minaj’s social media is a near-unavoidable part of her public presence. The rapper promotes her music, feuds with other artists, and frequently engages with her fans. According to a new study, though, some of the accounts with whom she engages are not run by real people. Research shows that tens of thousands of accounts supporting Minaj’s posts are run by bots.  

A new study found Nicki Minaj has thousands of fake followers on social media

Minaj has over 26 million followers on X (formerly Twitter). Her posts on the app often rack up thousands of likes. A recent report by disinformation detection company Cyabra found that over 18,000 bot accounts drove engagement with Minaj’s posts. The report, shared with Politico, found that accounts that repeatedly praised Minaj’s posts used “highly similar language.”

“Supportive comments generated by fake profiles were predominantly brief, repetitive, and low in semantic complexity, consisting largely of praising keywords and positive hashtags rather than original or substantive engagement,” the report said.

They also found longer posts that were designed to look “organic.” The report noted that the bot accounts were likely part of an effort to boost credibility and amplify her content. 

While sources close to Minaj deny that any of her supporters are bots, Cyabra said they are confident in their findings.

“We always have to make sure that we play at a confidence level that’s strong enough for people to rely on it, and doesn’t really change the narrative,” CEO and founder Dan Brahmy said.