Kanye West has been called out over his choice of guest stars during the latest listening party for his latest album.
On Thursday night, the rapper held the third promotional event for his upcoming album Donda at the Soldier Field stadium in his home state of Chicago.
The special event was live-streamed on Apple Music, and saw Kanye appearing outside a replica of his childhood home, while the unreleased album played for the 40,000 fans in attendance.
However, when Kanye brought out Marilyn Manson and DaBaby as guests during one song, many fans were disappointed and outraged.
In the past year, Marilyn Manson has been accused by multiple women – including his ex-fiancée Evan Rachel Wood – of sexual, physical and emotional abuse.
Addressing these allegations, he wrote on Instagram: “Obviously, my art and my life have long been magnets for controversy, but these recent claims about me are horrible distortions of reality.
“My intimate relationships have always been entirely consensual with like-minded partners. Regardless of how – and why – others are now choosing to misrepresent the past, that is the truth.”
As of June 2021, Manson is facing four lawsuits for sexual abuse. He has continued to refute the allegations made against him.
Alongside Manson was another masked figure, revealed to be rapper DaBaby, who has been accused of homophobia and fuelling stigma around HIV after comments he made at a music festival last month.
DaBaby also contributed a verse to a song heard during the listening party, seemingly replacing Jay-Z on the track in question.
Since the event on Thursday night, Kanye has faced heavy criticism for his choice of guests:
After his stunt with Manson and DaBaby, Kanye stunned those in attendance when he appeared to light himself on fire.
Later in the show, he was joined by his estranged wife Kim Kardashian West, who appeared in a wedding dress.
Earlier this week, Kanye made headlines when he filed legal papers requesting to change his name to “Ye”.
The musician has previously spoken out about his admiration for the two-letter moniker, claiming it’s the most used word in the bible.