Is it a "Kardashian kurse" or is Kanye West losing his cool
all on his own? In any case, popularity problems seem to be
plaguing the once untouchable rap sensation.
West’s performance this week brought just 4,500 people to
the Sprint Center, a venue built for 19,000, meaning less
than 24 percent of seats were occupied. He has had to cancel
several other shows throughout his nationwide tour and
drew criticism when he stopped a Florida concert after only
three songs and demanded the lights be turned off before
launching a profanity-laced rant at the tech staff and
storming off the stage.
So is West’s egotistical, bizarre behavior finally taking its
toll on fans?
“We are often drawn to people who have an ego and
confidence that is derived from their talent. But an empty
ego, based on a fake self-inflated image and concept, creates
an over powering sense of desperation and superficiality,”
human behavior expert Patrick Wanis told FOX411.
West has made headlines frequently lately, more due to his
outlandish remarks than his trailblazing talent. We’ve heard
the rapper compare himself to everyone from Jesus, Michael
Jordan and Steve Jobs to Nelson Mandela, Michelangelo and
Michael Jackson – and amid all that talk, he has also
managed to offend much of the Jewish population.
The Anti-Defamation League is accusing West of anti-
Semitism over comments he made to a Chicago radio
station last month, urging him to take responsibility for
saying that Obama can't execute moves because "he ain’t
got those connections. Black people don’t have the same
level of connections as Jewish people.”
Adding insult to injury, a new study released in November
suggests that West’s connection to the Kardashian family
may also be the reason for his popularity decline. Q Scores,
a website marketers use to measure recognition, reported
that West’s popularity has dipped a whopping 66 percent
since he first started dating his reality star fiancée in April
2011, and that he now ranks far below the average hip hop
artist and male celebrity.
"When putting two egotistical, self serving individuals
together, you'll create a rather vile spark. And in times of
economic hardship across the country, bragging about
materialism is typically frowned upon,” says California-
based public relations expert Angie Meyer-Olszewski.
 “The Kardashian brand is a sinking ship. Anybody who jumps on
board will eventually fall. A successful celebrity in his own
right, Kanye made a horrible strategic decision by engaging
himself with Kim."
And while West’s highly-anticipated album “Yeezus”
initially shot to No. 1 on the billboard charts, it fell an
embarrassing 80 percent the following week, the largest
second-week performance drop for a No. 1-debuting album in more than a year.
Then there was the release of that scandalous music video
for “Bound 2,” co-starring his topless fiancée and baby
mama, which become an instant laughing stock across the
web and was slammed with a viral video spoof courtesy of
comedians Seth Rogen and James Franco.
Things are not exactly coming up roses in the Kardashian
empire either, with recent reports indicating that the show
has been on a steady decline over the last four seasons and
has lost almost one million viewers per episode since season
five.
But according to some communications experts, West can
get back on top if he plays his cards right.
“He can definitely win back favor with fans, as soon as the
attention moves back to his music since he is such a talented
artist,” says Elissa Buchter, founder of Schmooze PR.
 “The amount of ego you're allowed to get away with in
Hollywood is directly proportional to success of your
projects. As long as his songs are on top of the charts, his
romantic life isn't going to crush his credibility as a
superstar.”
A rep for West did not respond to a request for comment.
Culled from Google