Kanye West has had a turbulent few months. Amidst allegations of infidelity and the early birth of his daughter with Kim Kardashian, the Hip Hop star has had to deal with the betrayal of an unknown source, possibly from within his record company Def Jam. West's latest album, Yeezus, due to be released in the US on Tuesday (18th June) has been leaked online. The culprit is currently unknown and with so many people involved in all aspects of the albums production will be difficult to track down. 

West's reaction to this, according to TMZ, has been somewhat blasé. This should come as a surprise for anyone considering the amount of time and effort which goes into making an album. However, when we think of all the personal issues West has dealt with, the early 'release' of his album will hardly be his primary concern. 

Leaking an unreleased and highly anticipated album is not a new phenomenon. Earlier this year Daft Punk's album Random Access Memories was leaked whilst West's last album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy suffered the same fate. The hype surrounding the album has only been intensified by the leak, could this be a clever ploy on behalf of the record company to get West in the headlines? 

West's last leaked album was met with rave reviews as has Yeezus. Jon Pareles of the New York Times describes the album as 'raw and jolting'; although West's angry tone has been construed as 'an aggressive demand for attention'. Other critics follow Pareles' line varying only slightly on how much each individual enjoys West's vulgarity and bluntness. 

Kanye WestWest performing at Victoria's Secret Fashion Show in 2011

Kanye West and Kim KardashianKim Kardashian and Kanye West at the Costume Institute Gala