"They exploited Britney in helping to end her career," West told deejay JJ at New York radio station Z100 on Monday.
"When Britney was opening [the VMA telecast], near the end, I felt so bad for her. I said, 'Man, it's a dirty game. This game will chew you up and spit you out.'"

The rapper doesn't just take umbrage with the handling of Spears, whose performance has been maligned by critics and fans alike, US reports.

"I wasn't mad that I just didn't win any awards," West says. "For me, [MTV] made it seem like performing on the main stage was a bad thing, and the suites were just so great. It was my dream when I made 'Stronger' to open up the VMAs with a real power performance.

"And I just feel like I got betrayed by them," the rapper continues. "I feel like they tried to make it seem like I was so into everything that was going on in the show."