Nicki Minaj Praises Dad's Reaction to Viral Scholarship Prank: 'He's Incredible'

Musician Nicki Minaj has praised the response of a visibly stunned dad who fell victim to a viral prank perpetrated by his daughter.

Practical jokes are nothing new in the world of TikTok, but one stunt currently doing the rounds on social media may cut a little closer to the bone than most if you happen to be a parent.

With the costs attached to higher education edging up with each passing year, the notion that your child could someone circumvent such expenses by landing a prestigious scholarship is almost too good to be true.

Well, almost.

For some unfortunate parents, that dream has ended up being something of a nightmare thanks to a controversial new "scholarship prank" that's being played on countless unsuspecting adults.

The prank sees TikTokers dupe their parents or grandparents into believing they are filming a video to apply for a scholarship.

Once sat down in front of the camera, they begin by introducing the aforementioned relative and explaining how big an inspiration they have been.

At that point the prankster must begin reeling off a series of increasingly elaborate lies designed to unsettle their parent or grandparent.

The fun comes from watching their reaction in the resulting video.

Videos posted alongside the hashtag #scholarshipprank have already racked up more than 36 million views on TikTok.

Minaj is among those to have tuned into the resulting hilarity, with the rapper taking to the comments section of one particular clip to praise the father who features for his sweet reaction.

First posted by U.K.-based TikTok star Shami Takeste the video has already been viewed 1.9 million times and sees the youngster explaining why her dad is her "biggest inspiration." The video can be viewed here.

Shami pulls no punches with her effort, which sees her getting creative from the start— much to the surprise of her dad.

"From the age of two years old, just after my dad escaped from prison for robbery and theft, my dad took me under his wing; he actually adopted me from another family and I feel like despite the fact that I am adopted, me and my father have always had a very close relationship," she said.

Despite appearing visibly stunned throughout, Shami's dad remained stoically quiet even as she continued on, explaining he had been in and out of rehab and had been to prison for robbery before subsequently breaking out.

Eager to push things further, Shami even claimed her dad encouraged her to "always steal... from other children" and that he used to shoplift at the supermarket by hiding food in her pram or school bag.

At one point he nearly gives the game away, slowly shaking his head as Shami explains that he has to wear an ankle bracelet.

The clip concludes with her explaining that some of the scholarship money would be used to help her father "better his life."

By the end of the video, her dad appears just about ready to burst.

Yet rather than rage at her deception, he quietly tells her he would rather take out a bank loan for the £50,000 scholarship than have her tell such bare-faced lies.

"You don't have to lie," he says. "I will take the loan."

While the prank itself left many amused, the reaction of Shami's dad appeared to be the main talking point in the comments section accompanying the video.

That was where Minaj appeared, out of nowhere, to praise him, writing: "A father's love. He's incredible. God bless him."

Responding to the comment, Shami said: "Thank you."

Shami is a regular poster on TikTok and YouTube, with much of her content focused around her relationship with her dad. Newsweek has reached out to her for comment.

She tends to have the upper hand in much of their recorded interactions but that's not always the case for other social media pranksters.

One dad, for example, got the better of his son after he sneaked out of the house late at night with some friends. The resulting prank went viral.