How Kanye West Paid Tribute To Britney Spears With His Recent Hairstyle

Kanye West has never been shy about sharing his opinions about Britney Spears. While airing his grievances against MTV during a 2007 appearance on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" in 2007, the outspoken artist accused the network of using Spears to get ratings by allowing her to take the stage when "she wasn't ready" at that year's Video Music Awards. West suggested that MTV had to know that her performance was going to be lackluster ahead of time, adding that it "still wouldn't have been up to par to start off the MTV Awards" even if it had been executed flawlessly.

West opined that Spears was "not important in music" at the time, but by 2011, her single "Hold It Against Me" was topping the charts. West took aim at her achievement on Twitter by referencing his infamous stage-crashing moment at the 2009 VMAs, where Taylor Swift was the pop princess whose success was getting under his skin. "Yo Britney, I'm really happy for you and I'mma let you be #1, but me and Jay-Z's single is one of the best songs of all time! LOL," he wrote, per MTV News.

West later assured his critics that the tweet was a joke, but by 2014, he was taking another dig at Spears. "I'm the smartest celebrity you've ever f***ing dealt with. I'm not Britney Spears," he said during a deposition, per TMZ. He might not come off as Spears' biggest fan, but he did just pay tribute to the pop star.

As reported by Page Six, Kanye West debuted a new buzz cut at the end of October. It was uneven and patchy, as if he'd randomly run a pair of clippers over the back of his head. Speaking on the podcast "Drink Champs," he explained that his hairstyle was meant to make a statement about the "phobia of mental health," adding, "The declaration of insanity is a form of control." He revealed that it was inspired by Britney Spears, who infamously shaved her head herself at a hair salon in 2007. Not long afterward, she pummeled a paparazzo's vehicle with an umbrella. According to TMZ, West attacked that same photographer in 2013.

West said that rocking his new 'do "was harder than wearing the Trump hat," referencing his early support for Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential election. "You know as a Black man, your haircut means so much," he continued. The singer further explained that his haphazard haircut was "a representation of my thoughts developing."

There's no word on how Spears feels about West's follicular tribute to her, which he deemed "the Ye," but she did use his song "Fade" in an October tweet thanking her fans for supporting her during her conservatorship battle. And despite West's negative comments about her, she called him "a sweet guy" in a 2016 interview with 92.3 AMP Radio, adding, "I can't take him too seriously anymore."