Nicki Minaj Donates $25K To Job-Shamed Actor Geoffrey Owens

Rapper Nicki Minaj is donating $25,000 to actor Geoffrey Owens after he was allegedly "job-shamed" online for working at a North Jersey Trader Joe's.

Minaj announced the donation on her Beats 1 "Queen" radio show Thursday.

Minaj, who, like Owens, is an actor, spoke highly of him working to support his family. Owens worked at the Clifton Trader Joe's for 15 months. Fox News garnered criticism on Twitter for allegedly job-shaming Owens.

Minaj said Owens was "not out there doing drugs and doing dumb things on the Internet and trying to get attention. He is working in between jobs. I'm an actress first and foremost before everything. I took that to heart and y'all don't know how difficult it is to keep getting jobs."

Karma Lawrence, the woman who took the photo of Owens, told NJ.com she meant no ill will toward Owens and regrets her decision to post the photo on Twitter.

"I don't know why I snuck a picture," said Lawrence, 50. "I figured everybody does it. I don't know what possessed me. I just did it. I didn't even think about it. I just kind of did it on impulse and it was a bad impulse."

Owens said on "Good Morning America" Tuesday he took the Trader Joe's job because he wanted something where he could have some flexibility and try and stay in acting. (See related: Alleged Job-Shamed Actor From NJ Trader Joe's Speaks Out)

Owens appeared in 44 episodes of "The Cosby Show" as Elvin Tibideaux, the boyfriend and later husband of Sondra Huxtable.

Owens has been steadily working on screen since "The Cosby Show," appearing in a variety of television shows, including "The Blacklist," "Greenport," and "Elementary," according to the Internet Movie Database.

"I've had a great life, I've had a great career," Owens said on GMA. "I've had a career that most actors would die for. No one has to feel sorry for me. I'm doing fine. There is no job that is better than another job. Every job is worth wile and valuable."

Watch the entire "Good Morning America" interview here:

Email: daniel.hubbard@patch.com

Photo: "Cosby Show" actor Geoffrey Owens (By Michael Loccisano/Getty Images)