Amethyst Amelia Kelly (born 7 June 1990),[4] known professionally as Iggy Azalea (/əˈzeɪliə/ ə-ZAY-lee-ə), is an Australian rapper, songwriter, model and businesswoman.

[7][8][9] In addition, she achieved three top ten hits simultaneously on the Hot 100 with the aforementioned songs and the album's fifth single, "Black Widow" (featuring Rita Ora), which debuted later that year.

'"[22] After she arrived in the US, she received her General Educational Development (GED), and resided in the country on a visa waiver for six years, returning to Australia every three months to renew it.

[29] On 27 September 2011, Azalea released her first full-length project, a mixtape titled Ignorant Art, saying she made it "with the intent to make people question and redefine old ideals.

The video features a cameo appearance from character actor and former wrestler Tiny Lister, which earned her more attention due to its rising popularity online.

[37] In early 2012, Azalea was featured on the cover of XXL, as part of its annual "Top 10 Freshman List", along with fellow up-and-coming rappers French Montana, Machine Gun Kelly, Danny Brown, Hopsin, and Roscoe Dash.

"[41] Also in April, Azalea starred alongside Grammy-nominated producer Diplo and FKi in the world's first fully interactive shoppable music video for Canadian fashion retailer, SSENSE.

It was later revealed in the interview that she was in negotiation with labels other than Interscope, possibly Def Jam Recordings (wherein Bu Thiam, whom of which originally placed a bid to sign her is VP of A&R).

She later premiered teaser visuals for the track "Bac 2 Tha Future (My Time)",[46] On 9 October 2012, Azalea made her US national television debut, appearing alongside T.I., B.o.B and other Grand Hustle artists in a cypher at the 2012 BET Hip Hop Awards.

[48] On 16 December 2012, Azalea performed live alongside Natasha Bedingfield and Bootsy Collins, covering Deee-Lite's 1990 hit disco song "Groove Is in the Heart", on the annual television series VH1 Divas.

[52] On 15 April 2013, Vevo announced Azalea as its second LIFT artist of 2013 and that she would film live festival performances, fashion and style pieces and behind-the-scenes interviews as part of the eight-week-long campaign.

[53] On 16 March 2013, it was announced that Azalea would perform in the benefit concert "Chime for Change", scheduled to take place on 1 June in London, alongside Beyoncé, Jennifer Lopez and others.

[56] On 25 May 2013, Azalea performed an acclaimed carnival themed set on the In New Music We Trust stage as part of Radio 1's Big Weekend in Derry, Northern Ireland.

[67][non-primary source needed][68][69] Azalea later revealed the song was in fact produced by the Invisible Men and the Arcade, whom she collaborated with on the entire album.

[70][non-primary source needed] In February 2014, Azalea announced that she would be releasing a new single titled "Fancy", featuring English singer-songwriter Charli XCX.

The New Classic also attained the highest number for a female rapper's debut album since Minaj's Pink Friday (2010), which had entered at number-two with 375,000 copies sold.

[80] On 24 June 2014, Azalea's song "Black Widow", featuring Rita Ora, was serviced to rhythmic contemporary radio, as her debut album's fifth single in the US.

On October 25, 2014 Azalea made her debut on Saturday Night Live episode, hosted by Jim Carrey, where she performed "Black Widow" together with Rita Ora and "Beg for It" with MØ.

[83] Entertainment Tonight called it "one of the most cringe-worthy live moments in recent history," and highlighted that it was MØ's "nervous dancing and offbeat singing" that garnered the worst of the criticism.

[96] In March 2016, Azalea revealed she had started a production company, having "bought the rights to a couple of books that I really like, and also some television shows from Australia that I really believed in and was a fan of when I was a kid, and I had some ideas to rework [them].

[99] On 12 June 2016, Seven Network revealed that Azalea had signed on to be a judge replacing Chris Isaak on The X Factor Australia for its eighth season, broadcast from October to November 2016.

"[131] In August 2023, Lanez was sentenced to 10 years in prison and with that her upcoming fourth album was abandoned and she seemingly announced her retirement from music again in 2024 to focus on more creative projects.

[132][133] In 2023, Azalea joined subscription-based platform OnlyFans where she posted creative projects called "Hotter Than Hell", which includes music, videos and art.

"[140] While Azalea's debut extended play, Glory, was intended to focus on hardcore rap, the EP also touched up on other genres including electronic dance music.

[161] In 2012, Azalea caused controversy for her song "D.R.U.G.S", a remix of Kendrick Lamar's "Look Out for Detox", having adapted one of its lyrics to "When the relay starts, I'm a runaway slave / Master", leading her to release a letter online apologizing, stating that it was a "tacky and careless thing to say.

"[164] Her use of an African-American English accent[165] has been compared to blackface[166][167] and part of a "broad, vague area of white people pretending to be black: those who do it culturally, rather than cosmetically"[168] but also conversely as "wilful ignorance".

[179] In a feature covering Azalea's career, Clover Hope wrote, "Rather than seeing race as an issue, Iggy focused on the trend of women in rap being over-policed and accused of not writing their own rhymes, while in the process overlooking how artists like herself and Macklemore hold a broader industry advantage, even as they feel like outcasts in their field.

"[183] In March 2015, while talking about her body shape with Vogue, Azalea revealed she had undergone breast augmentation, saying, "I did change something: Four months ago, I got bigger boobs!

"[184] In August 2015, she talked about having a rhinoplasty, or nose job with Seventeen magazine, adding, "Your perception of yourself can change a lot over time, so I think it's important to wait and make sure it's the right choice.

[215][216] Azalea received four nominations at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards, including Best New Artist, Record of the Year and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for "Fancy" and Best Rap Album for The New Classic.