Kanye West has taken out an ad in the Wall Street Journal to apologise for his past antisemitic comments, saying he “lost touch with reality”.
The rapper, now known as ‘Ye’, shared a lengthy message in today’s (January 26) edition of the newspaper. He addressed his apology to “those I’ve hurt”, before explaining his erratic and controversial behaviour in recent years.
West opened up about a “four-month-long manic episode of psychotic, paranoid and impulsive behaviour that destroyed [his] life”, admitting that he “didn’t want to be here anymore” on some occasions.
Ye also shared details of his bipolar type-1 diagnosis, which he’d dismissed early last year. At the time, he said it was “really a case of autism”.
He recalled being involved in a car accident 25 years ago in his WSJ ad, and said this had “caused injury to the right frontal lobe of [his] brain”.
“Comprehensive scans were not done, neurological exams were limited, and the possibility of a frontal-lobe injury was never raised,” West continued. “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.”
He added: “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 Organisation 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.”
Ye went on to look back on a period in which he “lost touch with reality”, adding: “Things got worse the longer I ignored the problem.”
Ye, fka Kanye West, takes out a full-page in the Wall Street Journal to apologize to the Black community, and for antisemitism:
“I lost touch with reality” pic.twitter.com/Po8s4gNz5P
— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) January 26, 2026
He remembered things he “said and did” that he “deeply regret[s]”, writing: “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, unrecognisable. Looking back, I became detached from my true self.”
The ‘Donda’ artist then looked back on the “fractured state” he found himself in at the time, going on to speak specifically about his antisemitic outbursts: “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 behaviour that oftentimes feels like an out-of-body-experience.”
West expressed his “regret” and told fans he was “deeply mortified by [his] actions in that state, and [is] committed to accountability, treatment, and meaningful change”. He wrote: “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.”
West faced further backlash in 2022 after he wore a shirt emblazoned with the slogan ‘White Lives Matter’ at Paris Fashion Week.
Ye continued: “In early 2025, I fell into a four-month long manic episode of psychotic, paranoid and impulsive behaviour that destroyed my life. As the situation became increasingly unsustainable, there were times I didn’t want to be here anymore.”
Speaking further on bipolar disorder, the rapper described living with the condition as a “state of constant mental illness”. He shared: “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 realised 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’.”
Ye said: “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 centre 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.”
He concluded: “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.”
Last November, West held a meeting with a rabbi and apologised for his antisemitic comments. He had earlier apologised to Jay-Z, seemingly relating to vulgar and insulting remarks about his and Beyoncé’s children.
Ye shared a string of highly controversial posts early last year, when he took back his past apology to the Jewish community for his previous antisemitic remarks, and declared himself “a Nazi”.
He later said on X/Twitter that, “after further reflection”, he’d “come to the realisation that I’m not a Nazi”. But this was followed only a few days later by yet more swastika apparel appearing on his X page.
In 2022, numerous key figures from the entertainment world condemned West over his antisemitic comments. The star was also suspended from X/Twitter after he shared an image containing a swastika inside a Star of David. His Instagram account was locked, too, due to a violation of the platform’s rules and guidelines.
Ye’s behaviour led to Adidas ending its deal with the artist under their collaborative Yeezy brand. Elsewhere, both Balenciaga and Gap severed ties with West amid the controversy.
Last week, the owners of a Miami nightclub issued an apology for playing West‘s ‘Heil Hitler’ at an event with far-right influencers.
