Nicki Minaj backs AIDS campaign after family tragedy

Nicki Minaj is throwing her support behind an AIDS-awareness campaign after her uncle died from the disease when she was a teenager.

The Super Bass hitmaker has taken over from Lady Gaga as the public face of Viva Glam, the fundraising offshoot of cosmetics giant MAC which raises cash for HIV testing programmes and anti-AIDS groups.

And the cause is one close to the hip-hop star's heart - she was left devastated at the age of 13 when a beloved uncle perished from an AIDS-related illness.

Minaj tells Stella magazine, "He was a police officer. He didn't fit the stereotype and that was very eye-opening for me."