Kanye West Apologizes For Antisemitic Remarks, Attributes Behavior To Undiagnosed Brain Injury
American rapper Kanye West, now known as Ye, has issued a public apology for his past antisemitic remarks, attributing his behaviour to an undiagnosed brain injury sustained more than two decades ago. Ye took out a full-page advertisement in the Monday, January 26 edition of The Wall Street Journal, titled “To Those I’ve Hurt,” in which he detailed his struggles with mental health and the impact of his bipolar type-1 disorder. The ad was signed by Ye, marked as paid for by Yeezy, and included contact information for the company’s CFO. He revealed that a car accident 25 years ago caused a jaw fracture and injury to the right frontal lobe of his brain, which went largely unnoticed at the time. The undiagnosed injury, he said, contributed to his bipolar disorder and episodes of detachment from reality. “Twenty-five years ago, I was in a car accident that broke my jaw and caused injury to the right frontal lobe of my brain,” the advertisement read. “The deeper injury, the one inside my skull, went unnoticed. That medical oversight caused serious damage to my mental health and led to my bipolar type-1 diagnosis.” Ye described bipolar disorder as a “debilitating disease” that distorts perception, leaving sufferers convinced they are seeing the world clearly while losing touch with reality. He admitted that his manic episodes caused him to act in ways he now deeply regrets. “In early 2025, I fell into a four-month-long manic episode of psychotic, paranoid, and impulsive behavior that destroyed my life,” he said. “I lost touch with reality, and some of the people I love the most, I treated the worst. Looking back, I became detached from my true self.” He credited his wife, Bianca Censori, for encouraging him to seek professional help after “hitting rock bottom,” and said he has since found stability through medication, therapy, exercise, and clean living. Addressing his antisemitic outbursts, Ye described those actions as an “out-of-body experience” linked to his mental health struggles. He admitted that in his “fractured state” he gravitated toward destructive symbols, including selling merchandise bearing the swastika, but emphasized that he is not a Nazi or antisemite and expressed love for Jewish people. He also issued an apology to the Black community, writing: “To the black community – which held me down through all of the highs and lows and darkest of times. The black community is, unquestionably, the foundation of who I am. I am so sorry to have let you down. I love us.” Ye concluded by asking for patience and understanding as he continues to recover and rebuild his life. His antisemitic remarks first gained widespread attention in late 2022, including a controversial tweet in which he threatened action against Jewish people.
