Two of the most controversial artists right now

SHINGAI DARANGWA

YE: There’s really no other place to start than with Ye, the artist formerly known as Kanye West. Despite a hugely successful career that includes a whopping 21 Grammys and a billion dollar clothing line. Since he emerged as JAY-Z’s prodigy in the early aughts, he has shown himself to be incredibly unpredictable and hotheaded time and time again. His first major brush with controversy came in 2009 when he infamously stormed the MTV VMAs stage during Taylor Swift’s acceptance speech and proclaimed that Beyoncé was the rightful winner of the award. He’s since made a habit of frequently sparking controversy on social media and in public.

Just last week Ye grabbed headlines when images emerged of him sporting a bizarre new hairstyle went public. The sequence of seemingly random patches on his head has had fans joking that he let one of his young children cut his hair.

AKA: AKA has never shied away from expressing his adoration for Ye. Musically, the influence has been clear since the days of his critically acclaimed sophomore album, Levels. At times AKA has also taken to Ye's brash persona. A few years ago he allegedly slapped his nemesis Cassper Nyovest across the face and had someone in his entourage flash a gun at the rapper.

He’s since maintained a bad boy image feuding with everyone from Julius Malema, Burna Boy to Riky Rick and Black Coffee. There are those who believe AKA’s long-running feud with Nyovest is a carefully orchestrated publicity stunt to keep both artists relevant. Earlier this year, AKA’s fiancée Anele Tembe fell to her death outside Cape Town’s Pepperclub Hotel. The circumstances around Tembe’s death have sparked several conspiracy theories and left a cloud hanging over the embattled rapper that he may never be able to escape.