Nicki Minaj Thanks Trump in U.N. Speech But Stresses She's Not Taking Sides

Nicki Minaj became the first female rapper to address the United Nations on Tuesday and gave credit where it was due ... to President Donald Trump for setting the stage!!!

The occasion was a bipartisan one ... however, the 'Pinkprint' megastar took on the U.N. invite to confront the situation in Nigeria, where Trump has claimed Christians are being murdered simply for their faith.

Nicki admitted she was nervous at the start of her speech and spoke in a soft, gentle tone throughout her entire speech, but firmly demanded urgent action for the killings.

Nicki was invited to speak by U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz after she cosigned Trump's social media statement about Nigeria earlier this month.

It's unclear what prompted Trump to call out Nigeria ... BBC News quotes Nigerian President Bola Tinubu pointing out people "across faiths and regions" have faced violence in the country, which is about evenly divided between Christians and Muslims. CNN reports on victims of both faiths enduring brutal attacks across the country this year.

Regardless, we caught Nicki heading into the building Tuesday and she appeared to be gathering her thoughts ... but she got into the groove, as a proud New Yorker, hoping that African regions have the same religious freedom as those in the U.S.!!!

Later in the speech, she thanked her adoring Barbz fanbase for being her pillar, rock and everything in between, but also reiterated she's not taking sides, at least not politically.