There's no better example of unrealized potential than Azealia Banks. It's been over two years since "212" dropped and we're still not sure when (or if) her oft-delayed debut album will ever be released. It's frustrating to see a young artist prioritize petty feuds over making music, and it's especially frustrating because I like Azealia's music. I think she's insanely talented. Everything she's put out so far suggests that her debut album would be a must-listen. Fantasea was a great showcase for the rapper. The few songs she's released this year ("Yung Rapunxel" in particular) show that she knows how to pick good producers and she knows how to experiment within her comfort zone. When I saw her at Governor's Ball earlier this year, she knew how to put on a show and entertain. She can be a great artist, but she's held back by her insistence on taking down other artists via Twitter. Azealia's become the music world's Twitter troll and it's tarnished her image forever. But should we really be surprised? Our introduction to the world of Azealia was "212," the ultimate shit-talking song. Is the visceral and caustic nature of her breakout hit really that far removed from anything Azealia's said on Twitter? Should we have expected anything else?
I'm not going to pretend to know what's going on with her label or why her debut album has been pushed off for so long (it's due to come out in January -- we'll see). Two and a half years between a demo and a debut isn't a long time, especially for someone who is still trying to figure out her sound -- hell, look at Sky Ferreira. But it's one thing to have an album take a while and another to continually put yourself in the public eye without delivering the goods. At this point, she's wasted so much goodwill in the industry and made so many enemies that it doesn't really matter if Broke With Expensive Taste is rap's Next Big Thing or a flop. She's soured her reputation enough that, no matter what she does, her cred is shot. So instead of celebrating her music and what could have been one of the best albums of the year, here we are looking back at our Year In Azealia: a bunch of trivial spats.
10. The Stone Roses
Following a performance at the Future Music Festival, Banks took on an unlikely opponent in the reunited Manchester band the Stone Roses. After sharing a bill with them at the festival, Banks claimed on Twitter that her former tour manager "made a pact with the stone roses to sabotage my set because I fired him." She followed that up with wishing "nothing but excrement and death" on the group, calling them some "old saggy white niggas." The band never responded (though Banks later said that they apologized to her) and this one fizzled out pretty quickly.
9. Rita Ora
UK singer Rita Ora also appeared at the same festival as the Stone Roses and came under fire from Azealia as well. Allegedly, Ora was taking photos of Bank's backup dancers in their dressing room. Banks said that the singer was "going out of her way to try and intimidate me" and said that she was just "mad she's Rihanna's understudy." Rita responded via text, which Banks posted on Twitter, but overall this is a pretty weak entry in the Banks pantheon.
8. Iggy Azalea
Azealia has a long history with the Australian rapper and 2013 wasn't the first time they beefed. It all started after Iggy's "Pu$$y" started to gain traction and Azealia tweeted: "Fuck Iggy Azalea, I had a song called 'Pussy' before she ever did. Here's a link to my song. It's better." Even T.I. got involved in that one. The war between the two continued into 2013 after Iggy talked about her relationship with the New York rapper in an interview with Shut Your Pretty Mouth: "She says shit about fucking anything. She called Perez Hilton a faggot. I think she trivialised gay culture... fucking whatever. She's biased about everybody and everything, even towards the people who help her." Banks responded: "Lol they're STILL asking you, about ME, in what's supposed to be YOUR interview ? #YUNGRAPUNXELWINSAGAIN." Iggy (wisely) learned not to engage. Maybe the best way to deal with an Azealia beef is to just not respond at all.
7. Lady Gaga
Banks and Gaga were rumored to be collaborating for ARTPOP, but things apparently didn't work out between the two and it turned nasty. In late August, Lady Gaga performed at the VMAs wearing a clam shell bikini and Banks implied that the outfit copied the rapper's mermaid/seapunk visuals: "hmmmm sounds alot like Azealia Banks' mermaid balls." A fan asked Gaga about Banks and she responded, "She's got a bad attitude," and a video of the response made it on the web. Banks retaliated by calling out Gaga for allegedly using their collaboration "Red Flame" on ARTPOP, which hadn't been released at that point. "Red Flame" never made it onto the album.
She's just mad cause sucking her husbands dick is like playing thumb wars.
— AZEALIA BANKS (@AZEALIABANKS) July 13, 2013
@lilyrosecooper go suck on your mans thimble dick and put thumbalina to bed. Goodnight.
— AZEALIA BANKS (@AZEALIABANKS) July 13, 2013
Not even gonna @ her but if she wants to talk about weak , I'm sure her record sales to date should suffice. One hit wonder.
— Lily Allen (@lilyallen) July 11, 2013
Ugh, bitch byepic.twitter.com/wl2PatJd5z
— AZEALIA BANKS (@AZEALIABANKS) July 13, 2013
And Allen finished everything off with a picture of some beef. Good fun was had by all.
It's official pic.twitter.com/YL99MzB1jt
— Lily Allen (@lilyallen) July 11, 2013
1. Angel Haze
And the biggest beef of the year goes to... Azealia's spat with Angel Haze, which resulted in two dis tracks and a warning from gay rights activists. Following the success of Detroit-born rapper Angel Haze's "New York," where she asserts that she "runs New York" throughout the song, Azealia tweeted that she had a problem with "non-new yorkers claiming NY." Azealia insisted the tweet wasn't about Haze, but it didn't matter because what happened after was one for the record books.
Angel Haze started things off:
(via Complex)
And Banks retaliated: "Angel Haze has a crush on me. Thats it. Case Closed." and "Whatever, angel haze was just waiting for an opportunity to express her Azealia Banks jealousy." Things got even messier from there. Gossip blogger Perez Hilton got caught in the crosshairs after siding with Haze in a post on his website, which caused Azealia to go after him, calling him a "messy faggot" and suggesting that he kill himself. She later defended these comments even after she was called out by GLAAD for her use of homophobic language.
The feud didn't stop there. Each rapper issued dis tracks shortly after the Twitter fight. Haze's "On The Edge" called out Azealia for her delayed album: "Bitch put an album out/ I think my album's more done than yours and I just started a week ago" and Azealia responded with the passive aggressive "No Problems."
The relationship between the two rappers hasn't improved in the year since the fight. When Haze leaked her album earlier this week, she alluded to Azealia: "I did not promise an album and not deliver, unlike every fucking one else."
