His lust for courting controversy and shocking people is nothing new, but Kanye West took things to unprecedented levels last week – embarking on a week-long hate campaign that only ended when his X account was finally deactivated last Sunday.
In the days prior, he had reiterated and doubled down on previous antisemitic comments; professed his support for P Diddy – and defended the latter’s alleged abuse against women; claimed that he himself had abused women in the past; hawked Swastika-emblazoned T-shirts on his website; and defiantly claimed to have 'dominion' over his wife, Bianca Censori. As the dust settled on the disgraced rapper’s unbridled diatribe, one thing remained clear: Kanye doesn’t change his behaviour – not least towards the women in his life. As far as he’s concerned, he is the puppet-master, they are his playthings, and his “dominion” knows no limits.
By all accounts, Kanye’s offensive spree began earlier this month on the Grammy Awards’ red carpet. Stepping in front of the cameras with Bianca in tow, the rapper cued her to remove her black floor-length fur coat – which she duly did to reveal her seemingly naked body. While she was actually wearing a sheer mesh dress without underwear (designed by Kanye himself) the effect was just as shocking as if Bianca wasn’t wearing anything at all. Lip readers reported that Kanye told her in the moment, 'Make a scene, I’ll say it’ll make so much sense. Drop it behind you and then turn, I got you.' His wife, who married Kanye in 2022, seemingly did so willingly – but critics still noted the apparent glazed look in her eyes. Once again, she was being exposed to the world as Kanye’s 'art piece', and this was neither the first time it had happened – nor the first woman associated to Kanye that this happened to.
Let’s not forget, Bianca has been put on display in X-rated and shocking ways ever since she first got together with Kanye, 47, in 2022 and married him that December – following his split from ex-wife Kim Kardashian the year prior. During their marriage, which many insiders say is defined by his control and 'vision' over her image, the 30 year old has stepped out in increasingly X-rated outfits. She’s worn bondage and barely-there underwear in public, walked through the streets of Italy with just a pillow for cover, and – in an 'obscene act' that shocked the world, was pictured with her head nestled in Kanye’s naked lap while on a canal boat. All this has been executed, it seems, by Kanye – whom insiders have previously told heat 'gets a huge rush from showing Bianca off – it all comes down to his ego.'
Concerns have been consistently raised for Bianca’s welfare, with sources close to the Australian architect, who first met Kanye when she started working for his Yeezy brand, reporting that she’s been controlled by him in increasingly manipulative ways. Both Kanye and Bianca have argued she is fully complicit in their modus operandi whereby she’s exhibited as his living doll; indeed, following their Grammy’s stunt, the couple’s spokesperson Milo Yiannopoulos argued that 'the "battered Bianca" narrative is hysterical and absurd.' But her exposure doesn’t exist in a vacuum – and whether Kanye’s hateful online diatribes were simply posted to provoke the masses or not, his abusive sentiments were made clear.
Taking to X days before he was finally removed from the platform, the rapper wrote:'“I HAVE DOMINION OVER MY WIFE. THIS AINT NO WOKE AS FEMINIST S**T … PEOPLE SAY THE RED CARPET LOOK WAS HER DECISION […] YES I DON’T MAKE HER DO NOTHING SHE DOESN’T WANT TO BUT SHE DEFINITELY WOULDN’T HAVE BEEN ABLE TO DO IT WITHOUT MY APPROVAL…'
This was in additions to a plethora of vile and hateful posts he shared, including claiming, 'I love Hitler' and 'I’m a Nazi'. He also re-posted CCTV footage of P Diddy – who is currently awaiting trial for criminal charges of sex trafficking, racketeering and transportation to engage in prostitution – committing domestic violence in 2016 against his then-girlfriend Ventura. Kanye wrote, 'When I [sic] man truly loves a woman he may express it in rage I empathise with both sides.' He wrote in a separate tweet, 'I HAVE HIT WOMEN BEFORE.'
All this has, quite rightly, sparked global outrage – but it’s the women who have previously been involved with Kanye who must be feeling most triggered by his latest stunt. Primarily, there’s his ex-wife Kim, with whom he shares four children – North, 11, Saint, nine, Chicago, seven, and Psalm, five. During their seven-year marriage, Kanye’s control over Kim was plain to see. At the time, it was pegged as if she was the muse and he was the enamoured artist, but his “dominion” over her self-presentation has been reappraised with a 2025 lens. Looking back, we can see how, like Bianca, her body was increasingly exposed – including in Kanye’s music video for his song Bound 2, which saw her sitting naked and straddling him on a motorcycle. Kim herself said that Kanye had always encouraged her to 'dress sexier' – but had then turned against her when she did just that. As their relationship soured, Kanye publicly shamed her on an episode of Keeping Up With The Kardashians, telling her, 'You are my wife, and it affects me when pictures are too sexy.'
In public, Kim has historically sought to defend Kanye’s erratic behaviour, highlighting his bipolar disorder (which Kanye himself has called his 'superpower') as the route to his being a 'brilliant but complicated person' whose 'words sometimes do not align with his intentions'. But in recent times, she has remained quiet – and one can only imagine the dilemma she now faces in striving to shield their children from their father’s unbridled behaviour, while also keeping them in his life.
As for the other women who have stepped out with Kanye in the past, the story isn’t much different. In 2022 – shortly after he split with Kim and before he got together with Bianca – Kanye briefly dated actress Julia Fox. During their fling, Julia stepped out in racy and provocative outfits which seemed to align heavily with Kanye’s aesthetic. She’s since said she felt like a 'pawn' during their time together. 'I regret that relationship so much. I hate it!' she told The Times last year. 'It was only a few weeks but enough to last me a lifetime. I was in probably the most uncomfortable position in my life and that’s saying a lot.'
Then, there is Amber Rose, who says she was 'bullied' and 'slut-shamed' by Kanye during their relationship from 2008 to 2010. 'That’s what narcissists do,' she said in 2020. 'You share two years with someone, you take them around the world, you buy them all the jewellery, you shout out to the world how much you love them and how much fun you have with this person, and then the person decides that this isn’t what they want their life to be… I opted out.' This came after Kanye continually lashed out against her in public, and claimed that he’d had to take '30 showers' after splitting with her.
So, where does Kanye go from here? He’s now been removed from X (though he claimed, hours before being removed, that he was leaving willingly), meaning he no longer has such easy access to the masses to spew his hate. But as for what happens behind closed doors, all bets are off. Here’s hoping Bianca has enough free-will to reclaim control and put an end to Kanye’s 'dominion' for good.