Kanye West’s Black KKK Mask Stunt Receives Backlash

From “White Lives Matter” to Black KKK Masks, Kanye West is back at it again.

The Chicago rapper discovered a new way to draw attention while also pissing people off by dawning the pointy Black hood while previewing new music from “Vultures,” his collaborative album with Ty Dolla $ign,

Ye held an impromptu listening event at Miami’s Wynwood Marketplace Monday night. Events like this have become a staple of West’s recent studio albums, which includes the process of announcing an album, putting together an unorganized listening event, changing the album date multiple times, and then releasing the album weeks after it was initially supposed to come out.

Many artists attended the event including Lil Durk, Offset, Kodak Black, Chris Brown, Freddie Gibbs, and even his daughter, North West. The entire event is available to stream on the YEEZY website.

While Kanye’s Black KKK mask antics may shock some, longtime Hip-Hop fans will likely remember it appearing in the music video for the 2013 song, “Black Skinhead” from his album “Yeezus.”

For most of the listening event, Ye did not don the Black hood, wearing what appeared to be a towel for most of the “rave.” Unfortunately, he decided to put it on as the title track for the album started to play.

Initially, there was no comment from Black organizations. But on Friday, Black Lives Matter shared some scathing words for the Chicago MC.

In a statement to TMZ, the organization said, “The shock and disgust that Ye generated should be channeled into supporting efforts to eliminate this repugnant ideology from society.”

They later added that “Hate groups are growing at an alarming rate in America. Of the list of over 1,200 active hate groups in society, the KKK is the largest with hundreds of chapters nationwide — making it larger today than any other point in the group’s long history.”

Just two weeks ago, the title track for Ye’s upcoming collab album with Ty Dolla $ign was cloaked in controversy due to West being accused of using “disgusting, antisemitic” language on the track. In the song, he addresses his previous antisemitic controversy: “How can I be antisemitic? / I just fucked a Jewish b***h.”

In response, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) told TMZ, “At a time of rising antisemitism worldwide, it’s disgusting to see Kanye once again use his platform to spew Jew hatred.”

The spokesperson of the American Jewish Committee, Richard Hirschhaut, also commented on the song, saying it is “particularly pathetic and sad.”

Kanye has done everything he can to disrespect both Black and Jewish people over the last few years, whether it’s wearing “WHITE LIVES MATTER” in capital letters on a T-shirt, slapping the confederate flag on his “Yeezus” tour merchandise nearly a decade ago or saying that Hitler was “not that bad.”

This is just the latest example of his offensiveness. And likely not the last.