After years of escalating antisemitic rhetoric, Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, is attempting another public reset.
The rapper took out a full-page advertisement in the Wall Street Journal apologizing for his behavior, blaming an undiagnosed brain injury and bipolar disorder and insisting he is "not a Nazi or an antisemite."
While Ye said he is now in treatment and committed to accountability, reactions online were deeply divided, with many questioning whether mental illness can absolve the harm he caused—especially given that this is not his first apology, and that his highly-anticipated new album "Bully" is set to drop in four days.
"I lost touch with reality," Ye writes in the Wall Street Journal
Ye has courted controversy and been mired in legal issues for decades, starting in the 2000s. During the last few of years, he began to post antisemitic screeds online, including Holocaust denial, selling swastika shirts, praising Adolf Hitler, and identifying as a Nazi.
In Monday's ad titled "To Those I’ve Hurt," the rapper spoke on the brain injury that went undiagnosed since 2002.
"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," he wrote.
"Comprehensive scans were not done, neurological exams were limited, and the possibility of a frontal-lobe injury was never raised. It wasn’t properly diagnosed until 2023. That medical oversight caused serious damage to my mental health and led to my bipolar type-1 diagnosis."
Ye claimed his illness made him lose touch with reality, and the manic episodes made him deny that anything was wrong. He went into how he hurt the people he loved and "said and did things I deeply regret."
"I regret and am deeply mortified by my actions in that state, and am committed to accountability, treatment, and meaningful change," he claimed. "It does not excuse what I did though. I am not a Nazi or an antisemite. I love Jewish people."
He held up the four months in early 2025 as a particularly bad episode marked by "psychotic, paranoid and impulsive behavior that destroyed my life."
This was around the time he took back a previous apology for antisemitism, called himself a Nazi, and praised Hitler.
Reactions: Some see growth, others say the apology changes nothing
Ye went on to say that he's on new meds and in therapy and that he "found comfort in Reddit forums of all places." His latest apology is receiving mixed reactions across social media.
Some found his words sincere and hoped that he finally gets better, even if they're not expecting much.
It's also worth noting that Ye's album "Bully" is set to drop on Jan. 30, 2026—four days after the WSJ apology.
"I wish him well in his healing journey but it’ll be a long time before I’ll feel enough trust to support him with my money/energy/time," said u/irisbeyond. "I hope he takes an extended period of time to stay out of the public eye and heal."
"This is the most thorough admission I've seen from him ever and as a black person with proximity to severe mental illness, I do want to believe him, but my experience also lets me know that the 'real' him and his illness are separate yet conjoined entities, so…" u/chilaaa trailed off.
Meanwhile, others dismissed mental illness as an excuse for Ye's past behavior.
"Classic case of weaponizing mental health to excuse sh*tty behavior. millions of people deal with mental health issues without calling children slurs or sell literal nazi merch," wrote @beyzhive.
"Blaming his mental health for his antisemitism, misogyny and anti-Blackness isn’t it," wrote u/TheRavenSeven. "Bigotry is learned. And he’s never been a 'leader' in his community."
"Hope he gets the help he needs. Apology not accepted."
"Few people have the cultural and financial clout in their worst moments to cause the incredible harm he has caused," wrote u/DarlingBri.
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