Kanye West's 10 Most Controversial Moments This Year (So Far)
CAN YOU BELIEVE WHAT KANYE WEST IS DOING RIGHT NOW?! He's selling T-shirts with the Confederate flag—yes, THE CONFEDERATE FLAG!—on his Yeezus tour stops. Isn't that outrageous? Isn't that insane? Isn't that, er, wait a second…Isn't that exactly what you would expect Kanye West to do?
Yes, it is. Kanye has built a career off doing and saying controversial things. And that's been extra evident this year, as he's seemingly saved his most controversial moments for 2013. Don't just take our word for it, though. Instead, take a look at our list of the 10 things Kanye West has done this year to create controversy. When it comes to causing a stir, Kanye West is king.
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What Kanye West Did: Beefed with Jimmy Kimmel on Twitter
When He Did It: October 2013
Why It Was So Controversial: After Kimmel authorized a skit that ran on his late-night talk show that featured two kids playing the roles of Kanye and BBC Radio 1 host Zane Lowe, Kanye let off a bunch of shots in Kimmel's direction. Kimmel took those shots and ran with them by airing them on his show. Eventually, he spoke with Kanye about them, patched things up, and even had him make an appearance on his show. But that didn't make this short feud any less controversial. Clearly, Kanye will go at anyone who does him wrong.
Photo Credit: The Wrap
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What Kanye West Did: Brought a guy dressed as Jesus out on stage to help him kick off the Yeezus tour
When He Did It: October 2013
Why It Was So Controversial: Putting Confederate flags on T-shirts was the second most controversial thing Kanye did at the beginning of his Yeezus tour. The first took place when he brought Jesus—or rather, a guy who looked like Jesus—up on stage. If that doesn't prove that Kanye is the king of controversy, we don't know what does.
Photo Credit: New York Daily News
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What Kanye West Did: Took shots at the Grammy Awards organizers
When He Did It: December 2012
Why It Was So Controversial: Technically, Kanye did this just before the start of 2013. But we're including it here because it carried well into 2013. And it was controversial because Kanye repeatedly took shots at the Grammy Awards organizers for not nominating him in their big categories every year. Kanye has never been one to shy away from calling people out for not recognizing his musical greatness. But he took things to a whole new level by calling out the Grammy organizers.
Photo Credit: The Sun
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What Kanye West Did: Went on a rant about MTV's Hottest MCs list on DJ Enuff's Hot 97 radio show
When He Did It: March 2013
Why It Was So Controversial: He went on a rant, called out MTV's Sway, and then hung up the phone when he was done without answering any questions. We respected Kanye's passion and enthusiasm for the MTV list and understood him wanting to be ranked higher on the list. But he probably could have gone about this in a much more productive way.
Photo Credit: Nah Right
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What Kanye West Did: Teamed up with APC to release a $120 "Hip-Hop T-Shirt"
When He Did It: July 2013
Why It Was So Controversial: A $120 white T-shirt, Ye? C'mon, man. All he proved by doing this was that people will pay ANYTHING if the right celebrity tells them to do it.
Photo Credit: Sound Is Style
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What Kanye West Did: Wrestled a paparazzo outside of Los Angeles International Airport
When He Did It: July 2013
Why It Was So Controversial: After fielding hundreds, maybe even thousands, of silly questions from paparazzi, Kanye finally decided that he had had enough and attacked one of them after he asked Ye a question. He later admitted that he had just found out that his grandfather was dying, which made this incident a little bit more understandable. But it was still pretty shocking when it first took place.
Photo Credit: Stereogum
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What Kanye West Did: Put on a private concert for the President of Kazakhstan's grandson
When He Did It: August 2013
Why It Was So Controversial: Kanye isn't the first artist to take a huge paycheck (he reportedly received $3 million) in exchange for a private performance. But this was controversial because of who he put that performance on for. He apparently held a concert for the grandson of the brutal Kazakhstan leader Nursultan Nazarbayev and that didn't sit well with a lot of people who were familiar with his background. But Kanye didn't seem to care.
Photo Credit: Daily Mail
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What Kanye West Did: Went on a long rant during Pusha T's My Name Is My Name listening session in New York City
When He Did It: September 2013
Why It Was So Controversial: It would be one thing if Kanye had gone on a rant at his listening session or his concert. But he essentially stole the spotlight away from Pusha at his listening session by yelling things like, "I don't give a fuck about none of these corporations! None of these fucking sellouts!" Yikes.
Photo Credit: New York Daily News
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What Kanye West Did: Used a different accent during his appearance on Kris Jenner's talk show
When He Did It: August 2013
Why It Was So Controversial: What in the world was that voice?! That was what we were all left wondering after this interview took place. Ye said a lot of crazy things during the interview. But it was how he said them that had everyone talking.
Photo Credit: Atlanta Black Star
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What Kanye West Did: Dissed Justin Timberlake and Jay Z's song, "Suit & Tie"
When He Did It: February 2013
Why It Was So Controversial: "Suit & Tie" was one of the biggest singles of 2013. But Kanye doesn't care about commercial success. He cares about the actual music. And apparently, he wasn't a big fan of JT's banger and let that be known. It's rare to hear an artist as big as Kanye make an admission like that.
Photo Credit: AllHipHop
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