Iggy Azalea defends her blood-stained album cover: 'It's a statement about women'
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Iggy Azalea's recent album announcement gained a lot of media attention, but it's not just because of the music.
On Monday, Azalea revealed the album artwork for her upcoming second LP, "In My Defense," which is her first record in five years.
The graphic cover for the album, which drops in July, depicts Azalea's body propped against a grey sedan, with her hair and clothes covered in blood.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}WARNING: GRAPHIC IMAGES BELOW
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Aside from sharing the main album artwork, Azalea also shared a follow-up image on Twitter, depicting her bloodied head laying on the pavement near the car.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The provocative cover certainly turned some heads, but many fans of Azalea voiced their support for the Australian artist on social media.
"OMG THIS IS F---ING ART," one fan account tweeted.
"We WILL be pre ordering, buying and streaming," another fan wrote.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Despite the praise from fans, the cover was later bashed by some social media critics, who labeled the cover "sickening" and "gross." A headline from AllHipHop.com reads, "Did Iggy Azalea Go Too Far With Her Graphic Album Cover?"
After one Twitter user asked the singer if her album cover depicted her "rebirth," Azalea clarified the meaning behind the bloody artwork, explaining it was based on women being unable to "defend themselves under public gaze"
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Azalea returned to Twitter earlier this year, after briefly deactivating her account due to "a flood of inappropriate comments" following a series of topless pictures that leaked.