'I am Ye': Kanye West's name change and eyebrow-raising Saturday Night Live appearance

KANYE West is no stranger to controversy, and he delivered a string of them during his appearance on Saturday Night Live.

The outspoken rapper, 41, performed his song I Love It dressed as a giant green bottle of Perrier mineral water.

His co-star on the explicit track, rapper Lil Pump, sported a Fiji water costume in an apparent reference to Justin Timberlake’s famous Liquorville sketch.

During his SNL appearance, West wore a pro-Trump “make America great again” cap and delivered a political rant after cameras stopped rolling, calling for “dialogue not a diatribe”.

It must be a hard life still stanning Kanye.

— Quinta (@quintabrunson) 30 September 2018

Kanye West, the meme. #SNL pic.twitter.com/0Z87XEoKDQ

— Stacy Lambe (@sllambe) 30 September 2018

“So many times I talk to a white person about this and (they) say, ‘How could you like Trump he’s racist?,’” West said.

“Well, if I was concerned about racism I would’ve moved out of America a long time ago.”

Variety reported that SNL cast members shook their heads during West’s unscripted rant and “the entire studio fell dead quiet”, according to the Hollywood industry site.

West was also philosophical during his off-camera monologue.

“You wanna see the sunken place? Okay, I’m-a listen to y’all now,” West told the audience, according to Variety.

“I’m-a put my superman cape on, because this means you can’t tell me what to do. Follow your heart and stop following your mind. That’s how we’re controlled.

“You want the world to move forward? Try love.”

.@kanyewest and @lilpump perform "I Love It" in Studio 8H. #SNLPremiere pic.twitter.com/rZgvkzdvnX

— Saturday Night Live - SNL (@nbcsnl) 30 September 2018

West performed K.T.S.E, a new song with Teyana Taylor, and Ghost Town with Kid Cudi.

He was expected to drop a new album, titled Yandhi, after his appearance on the long-running variety sketch show but it has still not been released.

Meantime, West today announced he would now be known professionally as “Ye”.

the being formally known as Kanye West

I am YE

— ye (@kanyewest) 29 September 2018

West previously told a US radio station: “I believe ‘ye’ is the most commonly used word in the Bible, and in the Bible it means ‘you’.”

“So I’m you, I’m us, it’s us,” West said, speaking to Big Boy about the album, Ye.

“It went from Kanye, which means the only one, to just Ye … just being a reflection of our good, our bad, our confused, everything.

“The album is more of a reflection of who we are.”

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