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Azealia Banks‘ a surprising move to Israel may not be exactly what fans believed. A new report suggests the rapper will only be staying temporarily, casting doubt on her plans to make Tel Aviv her permanent home.
Banks initially painted a very different picture of her new life abroad, expressing surprise at how much she enjoyed Tel Aviv despite previously vowing not to return to Israel.
Azealia Banks surprises fans with an unexpected move to Tel Aviv
Azealia Banks surprised fans earlier this month by announcing that she had moved to Israel, a country she never thought of calling home.
The “212” rapper shared the news on X on Tuesday, October 6, along with a photo of what appeared to be her new apartment in Tel Aviv.
“Moving in,” she wrote. “If you had told me years ago that I would be moving to Tel Aviv and enjoying it, I would have called you crazy.”
Banks had vowed not to return to Israel after an unpleasant previous visit. However, the 35-year-old seemed enthusiastic about her new surroundings and suggested that the change of scenery was beneficial to her music career.
Israel Movement Azealia Banks Takes a Twist amid the Airbnb Show
Despite Banks’ enthusiasm about her new home, it seems she may not be putting down roots in Israel after all.
According to outlet Israel Ice, the rapper’s live arrangements are reportedly far more stable than her news suggested.
Citing the entertainment program “Good Evening With Guy Pines,” the publication said people close to Banks have disputed the idea that she is settling in Tel Aviv for good.
Instead, the apartment she showed her fans would be an Airbnb rental that she originally booked for just a month.
Banks later extended her stay for another month, but sources said she had no plans to move permanently.
The report also noted that the rapper had arrived in Israel about a month earlier to work on new music with Israeli producer Yinon Yahel.
Azealia Banks finds her creative place in Israel amid Album push
Regardless of her long-term plans, Banks seems to be making the most of her time in Israel, especially when it comes to her music.
According to Complex, the 35-year-old is now finishing her album with producer Yinon Yahel.
She credited Israel’s established art scene and the support of her music community for helping her get back into a creative rhythm.
“I’m 5 hours away and here I’m finally making my album. I found real friends and a really cool music team here, and ironically it’s just been easier to create here because the Israeli art scene is very mature,” she wrote.
The rapper said, “People don’t hold back and hold back accusations about social issues, and it’s freeing. Everyone in Israel thinks my political views are off-putting and think I have trashy taste in men, but no one’s trying to damage me for that. This is the most creative potential I’ve felt in years.”
She was scheduled to perform at the Tel Aviv Amphitheater on Thursday, October 8, marking her first show in the country since becoming a resident.
The Harlem-born star goes from swearing at Israel to singing his praises
Banks previously vowed not to return after claiming she received racist treatment during an earlier visit to perform at Barby Tel Aviv nightclub.
However, she later returned to perform in the country and has since expressed more favorable views about Israel.
Back in June, she compared her experiences with Israelis as a Black person to those she had with Americans and Britons.
“For the headache that Britain and America have given me for supporting Israel, I must honestly say that I have never, not once in my life, seen this level of bare-knuckle racism towards black people from Jews or Israelis,” she wrote.
The ‘212’ Hitmaker is no stranger to major controversies
Banks remains one of the most controversial artists in the music industry and has made a name for herself by clashing with her colleagues.
She once criticized Iggy Azalea for the lyrics of her song “DRUGS,” specifically for referring to herself as a “runaway slave master,” according to The Guardian.
In May 2016, she accused Zayn Malik of copying ideas from her work after the music video for “Like I Would”.
The controversy escalated when Banks directed racist and homophobic insults at Malik, who is of Pakistani descent, calling him a “curry-smelling b-tch”.
She also picked a fight with Grimes and Elon Musk after traveling to the tech billionaire’s home in Los Angeles for a planned music collaboration with her then-boyfriend.
Banks said she waited for Grimes for days and used Instagram Stories to express her frustration.
“Lol I stayed around all weekend while Grimes was making fun of her boyfriend for being too stupid to know not to go on Twitter while on acid,” Banks said at the time. “Then she had the nerve to go ghost and “book me a first class flight” through Roc Nation as if she was big enough to get me out of LA Ha!”
“Apparently ‘they’ also (Grimes and Musk? Team Musk?) told her she couldn’t bring her boyfriend in,” she said
