Black MAGA influencer who went viral for rebuking Obama as a kid, is now working to convert Black voters to Trump

CJ Pearson went viral in 2015 when he posted a YouTube video rebuking then-President Barack Obama for his White House invitation to a Muslim student falsely arrested and accused of bringing a bomb to school.

Pearson took issue with Obama inviting 14-year-old Ahmed Mohamed to the White House after the false arrest over a clock he assembled as a science project.

“Mr. President…what are your priorities, because in all honesty, I think you’re being ignorant. I think you’re incompetent, and I think you don’t understand reality,” said a 13-year-old Pearson, who slammed Obama for not contacting or inviting the family of Kate Steinle, a white woman killed by an undocumented Mexican national.

A decade later, Pearson is now an influential online MAGA figure who boasts more than a million followers collectively on TikTok, Instagram and X. On his “Family Matters” podcast, the young influencer embraces the confrontational and arguably controversial style of Charlie Kirk in political debates.

In one episode called “Woke In The Streets, White in The Sheets,” Pearson argues that many Black liberals are in romantic relationships or marriages with white people.

“Have y’all ever noticed that Black people on the left love to hate white people in the streets, but love them in the sheets?” he queried.

In a profile in USA Today, Pearson is described as the “face of the Black conservative movement’s next generation.”

“Right now, my priority is simply doing all I can to win young people over to our side and help us win the culture war because politics is downstream from culture,” he told USA Today.

Since Trump’s inauguration for a second term in January, USA Today reports that Pearson has seen a rise in name recognition and revenue. He also signed a deal with the Hollywood talent agency UTA and was named one of the top creators on the Time 100 list.

Despite his personal rise in influence, Black MAGA has not seen much success at the ballot box more broadly. The campaigns of Black MAGA candidates, such as former NFL player Herschel Walker‘s run for U.S. Senate in Georgia, and Mark Robinson’s bid for North Carolina governor, were mired in controversy and defeat.

Most recently, Winsome Earle-Sears, who notably did not receive an endorsement from President Trump, lost her race for Virginia governor earlier this month. Earle-Sears embarrassingly lost by more than 15 percentage points.

Pearson acknowledged, “Being a Black Republican is not enough to win an election, so you’ve got to actually have a few other things going for you as well.” He added that strong fundraising and messaging were key to winning over voters.

However, it could be an uphill battle converting Black voters to the MAGA side. Despite Trump performing better with Black voters in the 2024 election than he did in previous election cycles, an overwhelming majority of Black voters still voted for Kamala Harris at 83%.

What’s more, the 2025 general election saw the Republican Party’s gains with Black voters revert from a year ago, suggesting Trump’s anti-DEI policies and handling of the economy (including a rising Black unemployment rate) aren’t winning MAGA any favors with Black voters.

Nonetheless, Pearson hopes to continue using his platform to attract more young voters and Black voters to the political right — and may even run for office.

“This is a country that has always given so much to me,” he told USA Today. “I want to give back to it one day as well. What that looks like, whether it’s elected office or something else, I don’t know.”