Hip-hop artist Kanye West has been praised by a top psychiatrist for his 'refreshing' take on bipolar disorder in his new album.

In a candid interview promoting 'Ye', West - only diagnosed with the condition two years ago - declared it was 'not a disability but a superpower'.

The cover of the star's new album has the words 'I hate being bi-polar it's awesome' scrawled across it in neon green.

Professor Wendy Burn, president of the Royal College of Psychiatrists in the UK, yesterday praised the 41-year-old for speaking out about bipolar disorder.

In a blog for the British Medical Journal, she wrote that West 'divides opinion to say the least' but added: 'Much credit to him for sharing this [his diagnosis].

In a candid interview promoting 'Ye', West - only diagnosed with the condition two years ago - declared it was 'not a disability but a superpower'

'Among a sea of public figures who are more than happy to talk about milder mental conditions, severe conditions are still cloaked under a certain kind of unacceptableness - spoken of far more rarely.

'Hearing positive, empowering language around mental illness is refreshing, making West’s revelation all the more powerful in minimising stigma.'

Professor Burn added that she was not 'trying to bag tickets to Kanye's next UK tour for one of my offspring by name dropping'.

She added: 'The condition he speaks about, and other serious mental illnesses, can be completely debilitating without support.'

'If a global star was almost 40 before being diagnosed and supported for a severe mental illness, it’s too easy to see how everyone who isn’t Kanye West could go far longer without support.

'We need to ensure that we have enough skilled doctors to stop this from continuing for yet another generation.'

The cover of the star's new album has the words 'I hate being bi-polar it's awesome' scrawled across it in neon green

Professor Wendy Burn, president of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, yesterday praised the 41-year-old for speaking out about bipolar disorder

It is estimated that 570 more psychiatrists are needed by 2021 to meet Government targets - but Professor Burn said this was a 'tall order'.

However, she pointed to recent figures which show there has been a 30 per cent rise in the number of doctors choosing to train in psychiatry.

Professor Burn said: 'I’m certain that more open attitudes to mental illness and de-stigmatisation have played a large part in this.'

There has been a great deal of speculation on West's health over the past few years but this is the first confirmation of an official diagnosis.

Bipolar disorder is a mental health disorder that can cause sufferers to experience episodes that shift between extreme highs called mania and lows called depression.

According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, it strikes about 2.6 per cent of people in the US. Figures suggest it strikes more than a million in the UK.

West - who turned 41 today - opened up about his diagnosis with bipolar disorder in an interview after his listening party for 'Ye' in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, last week.

He spoke to radio host Big Boy straight after and opened up. He said: 'I had never been diagnosed until I was 39.'

In 'Yikes', which is currently listed as number 17 in the Spotify charts - just eight days after the album was released, West also tackled his condition.

He rapped: 'That's why I f*** with Ye. See, that's my third person. That's my bipolar s***, what? That's my superpower, ain't no disability. I'm a superhero!'

In other lyrics on the album, West addresses his suicidal thoughts and fears that his wife Kim Kardashian will leave him.

www.choosepsychiatry.co.uk