Kanye West publishes full-page newspaper ad to apologize for ‘poor judgment and reckless behavior’

Kanye West is trying to make amends with his fans.

The entertainer known now as Ye took out a full-page advertisement in the Jan. 26 edition of The Wall Street Journal to apologize for the antisemitic and racist remarks he has made over the past few years.

The ad, titled “To Those I’ve Hurt,” can be found on page A18 of the printed newspaper, which can also be read via e-reader here.

He said a 2002 car accident damaged the right frontal lobe of his brain, KTLA reported.

“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,” 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.”

He also wrote about his bipolar diagnosis, which he said has “its own defense system” called “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,” he said. “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.”

He said that it makes you feel “unstoppable,” adding he lost touch with reality, and it got worse as he ignored the issues, KTLA reported.

“I said and did things I deeply regret,” he said. “Some of the people I love the most, I treated the worst. You endured fear, confusion, humiliation, and the exhaustion of trying to love someone who was, at times, unrecognizable. Looking back, I became detached from my true self.”

Ye said he is taking accountability for what he did and is trying to change, but that does not excuse what he did.

He tweeted in 2022 that he would go “death con 3 on JEWISH PEOPLE” as part of the statements that led to being locked out of Instagram and his then-Twitter, now X, accounts. He also lost a lucrative, 10-year deal with Adidas.

He also printed and sold a shirt with a swastika on it, E! Online reported.

“I am not a Nazi or an antisemite. I love Jewish people,” he said.

Ye’s wife, Bianca Censori, persuaded him to get help and he found people on Reddit who were experiencing similar episodes.

He also said, “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,” he said. “I am pouring my energy into positive, meaningful art: music, clothing, design, and other new ideas to help the world.”

He said he is “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.”

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