Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, took out a full-page advertisement in the Wall Street Journal on Monday to issue a formal apology for the disturbing behavior that has made him a pariah in recent years. The hip-hop titan said that he has been getting treatment for a brain condition after last year suffering “a four-month-long manic episode of psychotic, paranoid and impulsive behaviour that destroyed my life.”
Writing about his manic state in 2025, and noting that he “hit rock bottom a few months ago, Ye said, “As the situation became increasingly unsustainable, there were times I didn’t want to be here anymore.”
Ye addressed his history of antisemitic rants, pro-Hitler declarations and embrace of the swastika in the statement, blaming the hate speech on how he “lost touch with reality.” He wrote: “I regret and am deeply mortified by my actions in that state, and am committed to accountability, treatment and meaningful change. It does not excuse what I did, though. I am not a Nazi or an antisemite. I love Jewish people.” (Read the full text of the advertisement below.)
The statement comes ahead of the release of Ye’s long-gestating album “Bully,” which, according to its Spotify listing, will finally becoming out Friday.
The lengthy statement begins with Ye addressing “those I’ve hurt.” He then discusses the well-known automobile accident he was in a quarter-century ago, shortly before his rise to superstardom. He says he suffered a frontal-lobe injury at that time that was not properly diagnosed until 2023, which he says was the cause of his bipolar condition — a diagnosis he at one time embraced, then was rejecting as false as recently as last year, but is now accepting again.
“You feel like you’re seeing the world more clearly than ever, when in reality you’re losing your grip entirely… The scariest thing about this disorder is how persuasive it is when it tells you: You don’t need help,” he writes in the ad. “It makes you blind, but convinced you have insight. You feel powerful, certain, unstoppable. I lost touch with reality.”
Ye had claimed in recent years that he did not suffer from bipolar disorder but rather a form of autism; he now says that it was doctors who were telling him he was autistic and not bipolar. He says he came to understand what he was really going through by reading Reddit forums about the brain disorder, and through help he got at the urging of his wife.
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“Having bipolar disorder is notable state of constant mental illness. When you go into a manic episode, you are ill at that point. When you are not in an episode, you are completely ‘normal’. And that’s when the wreckage from the illness hits the hardest. Hitting rock bottom a few months ago, my wife encouraged me to finally get help.”
This is not Ye’s first time apologising for antisemitic statements, although it is the lengthiest and perhaps most significant. He previously offered penitence for his threat to go “Death-con 3” on Jewish people, then seemed to backtrack as he went on to sell the swastika shirts and record a song titled “Heil Hitler” to further antagonize Jews and others he believed were allied against him.
The song “Heil Hitler” made news again last week when a Miami nightclub drew backlash for playing the incendiary track while white nationalist and avowed antisemite Nick Fuentes and brothers Andrew and Tristan Tate were visiting the club, as some patrons reportedly sang along with the title and raised arms in a Nazi salute.
It’s unclear who is in Ye’s closest circle at present. Far-right commentator Milo Yiannopoulos stepped down as the rapper’s “chief of staff” in 2024, but his X bio says, “He remains Mr. West’s personal confidante, as well as chief legal and public relations advisor and consultant.” Yiannopoulos posted Ye’s statement on his X account Monday — atop a feed that refers to “kamikaze Jews” and “non-sensible blacks,” claims most Puerto Rican men are drag queens, and reposts statements calling for Tim Walz to be hung for treason and supporting the “morally justified execution” of Alex Pretti.
The full text of Ye’s statement:
To Those I’ve Hurt:
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. At the time, the focus was on the visible damage — the fracture, the swelling, and the immediate physical trauma. The deeper injury, the one inside my skull, went unnoticed.
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.
Bipolar disorder comes with its own defense system. Denial. When you’re manic, you don’t think you’re sick. You think everyone else is overreacting. You feel like you’re seeing the world more clearly than ever, when in reality you’re losing your grip entirely.
Once people label you as “crazy,” you feel as if you cannot contribute anything meaningful to the world. It’s easy for people to joke and laugh it off when in fact this is a very serious debilitating disease you can die from. According to the World Health Organization and Cambridge University, people with bipolar disorder have a life expectancy that is shortened by ten to fifteen years on average, and a 2x-3x higher all-cause mortality rate than the general population. This is on par with severe heart disease, type 1 diabetes, HIV, and cancer — all lethal and fatal if left untreated.
The scariest thing about this disorder is how persuasive it is when it tells you: You don’t need help. It makes you blind, but convinced you have insight. You feel powerful, certain, unstoppable.
I lost touch with reality. Things got worse the longer I ignored the problem. I said and did things I deeply regret. Some of the people I love the most, I treated the worst. You endured fear, confusion, humiliation, and the exhaustion of trying to have someone who was, at times, unrecognizable. Looking back, I became detached from my true self.
In that fractured state, I gravitated toward the most destructive symbol I could find, the swastika, and even sold T-shirts bearing it. One of the difficult aspects of having bipolar type-1 are the disconnected moments — many of which I still cannot recall — that led to poor judgment and reckless behavior that oftentimes feels like an out-of-body-experience. I regret and am deeply mortified by my actions in that state, and am committed to accountability, treatment, and meaningful change. It does not excuse what I did though. I am not a Nazi or an antisemite. I love Jewish people.
To the black community — which held me down through all of the highs and lows and the 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.
In early 2025, I fell into a four-month-long manic episode of psychotic, paranoid and impulsive behavior that destroyed my life. As the situation became increasingly unsustainable, there were times I didn’t want to be here anymore.
Having bipolar disorder is notable state of constant mental illness. When you go into a manic episode, you are ill at that point. When you are not in an episode, you are completely ‘normal’. And that’s when the wreckage from the illness hits the hardest. Hitting rock bottom a few months ago, my wife encouraged me to finally get help.
I have found comfort in Reddit forums of all places. Different people speak of being in manic or depressive episodes of a similar nature. I read their stories and realized that I was not alone. It’s not just me who ruins their entire life once a year despite taking meds every day and being told by the so-called best doctors in the world that I am not bipolar, but merely experiencing “symptoms of autism.”
My words as a leader in my community have global impact and influence. In my mania, I lost complete sight of that.
As I find my new baseline and new center through an effective regime of medication, therapy, exercise, and clean living, I have newfound, much-needed clarity. I am pouring my energy into positive, meaningful art: music, clothing, design, and other new ideas to help the world.
I’m not asking for sympathy, or a free pass, though I aspire to earn your forgiveness. I write today simply to ask for your patience and understanding as I find my way home.”
With love,
Ye
From Variety US