Azealia Banks splits from Universal, celebrates on Twitter

Controversy-courting NYC rapper Azealia Banks has split from Universal Music Group, according to her Twitter. In one of the extended tweet-tirades that have become her trademark since her 2011 single “212” elevated her to underground stardom, she declared, “IM ABOUT TO GET OUT OF MY DEAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THATS THE BIG SURPRISE!!!!!,” fantasized about becoming “the cool indie chick I imagined I would be when I was 14,” and repeatedly compared herself to Celie, the protagonist in The Color Purple.

Banks signed with the mega-label in 2012, just weeks after “212,” a nearly seamless fusion of rap, dance music, and pop, became a viral sensation. While she’s released a mixtape and several singles since then, her musical output has been consistently overshadowed by her outspoken online presence, which includes publicly feuding with a wide range of musicians including Lil Kim, Lady Gaga, Diplo, Iggy Azalea, T.I., and “Harlem Shake” producer Baauer, as well as the occasional shot at her management and label.

The fate of Banks’s official debut album, Broke with Expensive Taste, which most recently had been slated for release this summer, remains unclear.