Kanye West has sparked more controversy by donning a black KKK mask at the listening event for his joint album with Ty Dolla $ign.
The Chicago rap icon and California crooner debuted their collaborative project Vultures at an outdoor “rave” at Miami’s Wynwood Marketplace in the early hours of Tuesday morning (December 12), which was also livestreamed online.
Towards the end of the performance, Ye appeared on stage wearing a black version of the hood famously worn by members of the white supremacist group, the Ku Klux Klan.
The pointy black mask previously appeared in his animated “Black Skinhead” music video from 2013’s Yeezus.
It serves as Kanye West’s latest racially provocative stunt following the White Lives Matter shirt he wore in 2022 and his string of antisemitic and pro-Adolf Hitler comments.
Even his recent single “Vultures” has been condemned by Jewish groups for its allegedly antisemitic lyrics, notably the line: “How I’m antisemitic? I just fucked a Jewish bitch.”
Kanye and Ty Dolla $ign were joined on stage in Miami by Offset, Lil Durk, Chris Brown, Kodak Black, Freddie Gibbs and West’s daughter, North. Playboi Carti was also supposed to attend but was running late, according to Kanye.
The pair premiered a number of songs from Vultures, including collaborations with Nicki Minaj (“New Body”), Lil Baby and Charlie Wilson (“Everybody,” which samples the Backstreet Boys), Young Thug (“River”), Freddie Gibbs (“Back to Me”), and Kodak Black and Bad Bunny.
Kanye even unveiled his first-ever musical collaboration with his 10-year-old daughter North, with the song also featuring vocals from James Blake (who he’s reportedly making a separate album with).
“I love it here, we gonna take over the year for another year/ It’s your bestie, Miss Miss Westie/ Don’t try to test me, it’s gonna get messy/ It’s gonna get messy, just-just bless me,” she raps.
The livestream started later than expected and was plagued by connection and sound issues, with Kanye West seen playing the album off an aux cord connected to his phone.
Following the event, a countdown appeared on Kanye’s Yeezy website, possibly hinting at the album’s arrival. The timer is scheduled to end at 7 p.m. EST/4 p.m. PST on Tuesday (December 12).
The Wynwood Marketplace “rave” followed an impromptu listening party inside a Jamaican restaurant in Miami over the weekend.
There, Kanye played more unreleased material from Vultures, including a song featuring Future and one containing a shoutout to the currently incarcerated Young Thug and his YSL collective.
Ty Dolla $ign recently shared a handwritten tracklist for the 18-song album, while its cover art surfaced online earlier this week.
An official release date has yet to be announced.
Another day in the life of Weirdo. Lol.
This f cking nutjob is past Brittany Spears level crazy at this point.
Mentally ill. Plan & simple.
You mean to tell me that no one in his camp had the guts to say that this isn’t a good look. Carry On!!!
Do you really think he has any actual friends? He’s a megalomaniac. That type of person is accustom to keeping ‘yes men’ around and cutting off or trashing people who give them any sort of criticism.
Break his jaw again.
Black KKK? Isn’t he just dressed as a medieval times beheader/executioner?
And there are folks who actually believe that this dude is some kind of genius?! Bahahaha
Ok look long before they was the kkk the black boule wore the same exact custom just in black so does the black hire christians in certain countries so he’s not reping the KKK and for y’all lack of knowing of our history is evident with y’all saying that he is sad
If I did this with my daughter present the government would have put her in a childrens home.
This man is clearly a genius and I support everything he does! If you don’t like it you’re just too woke! And I love the taste of his boots!
You don’t say?
If he markets this, he’ll have the idiots in the hood who buy his ugly shoes also wearing this as an accessory. Kanye fans allow him to piss in their drinks and call it lemonade.
Am I reading he wore the same mask in 2013? I don’t remember the commotion from that back in 2013.
Mental illness