Nicki Minaj took to Instagram this week with a post that teases a 2022 FIFA World Cup anthem. The post featured an image with 3 sets of soccer cleats, each one featuring the name of one of the song’s three performers: Minaj, Columbian singer Maluma and Lebanese singer Myriam Fares. The three numbers that appear – 11, 18 and 22 – are the release date for the song, named “Tukoh Taka”.
The internet was quick to respond, pointing out that Minaj has a large queer fanbase that can’t safely travel to Qatar to watch the World Cup. One fan tweeted, “Nicki Minaj doing a song for the Qatar cup when that country is violently homophobic and against the rights of LGBTQ+ is something, especially considering majority of her fanbase are a part of that community.” Pop Star Dua Lipa was rumored to be part of the opening ceremony at the event, but cleared up the speculation while calling out the issues in Qatar writing, “There is currently a lot of speculation that I will be performing at the opening ceremony of the world cup in Qatar. I will not be performing and nor have I ever been involved in any negotiation to perform.
