Kanye West is once again stirring controversy—this time for publicly supporting disgraced R&B singer R. Kelly, who is currently serving a 30-year sentence for multiple sex crimes.

Earlier this week, Ye took to X (formerly Twitter) to share a post of Kelly singing “Happy Birthday” to a fan from prison. Alongside the video, Kanye wrote: “FREE R KELLY,” igniting a wave of backlash online.

R. Kelly, once one of the most successful figures in music, was convicted of a string of serious charges, including racketeering, sex trafficking, and child pornography. Despite this, Kanye has continued to defend him. In February, Ye praised a viral image of Kelly wearing Yeezy sneakers in prison, writing:
“My n*a Kells still got that Chicago spirit. They ain’t break him. And he got on Yeezy. Yeezy over everything.”**

The latest outburst comes in the wake of criticism from rapper Cam’ron, who recently addressed both Ye and Kelly during an episode of It Is What It Is. Cam called their behavior a stain on Chicago’s reputation:
“Y’all putting a stain on a good city, man. Y’all need to cut the sh*t, baby.”

While Kelly remains behind bars for his crimes, Kanye has faced his own controversies—ranging from antisemitic posts to bizarre rants and public feuds with fellow artists. His support for R. Kelly has only added to growing concern over his public behavior and statements.

KANYE AND PARIS HILTON

The rapper has also caught people off guard recently with comments about his ex wife and mother to his children, Kim Kardashian, in a viral video. In the clip he states how his life would be different if he was with the hotel mogul Paris Hilton.

He believes Kim Kardashian was more like her assistant and that he made the wrong choice in marriage.

Kanye West wishes he had children with Paris Hilton instead of Kim Kardashian. 😮‼️

“Can you imagine, if I had babies with Paris Hilton, how many hotels I’d have now?” pic.twitter.com/26whozoTWT

— DramaAlert (@DramaAlert) April 25, 2025