Azealia Banks directs 'racist and homophobic' Twitter tirade at Zayn Malik

US rap artist Azealia Banks has been accused of racism and homophobia after launching an abusive Twitter rant at Zayn Malik.

The spat was sparked when Banks posted a picture on Instagram pointing out what she saw as similarities between her previous music video styles and that of the former One Direction singer.

Malik responded with tweets aimed at Banks.

Banks then launched a lengthy expletive-filled rant against Malik, using racial slurs and referring to the Bradford-born singer as One Direction's "token brown boy" .

A seemingly bemused Malik then responded to Banks, saying his initial tweets were not about her.

Banks has a reputation known for making a number of controversial comments in recent years.

She recently endorsed Donald Trump for US president, saying he is "evil like America".