January 26, (THEWILL) — American rapper and songwriter Kanye West, now known as Ye, has apologized for years of controversial and offensive actions, saying his behavior was linked to a brain injury and mental health struggles.
In a full-page advertisement titled “To Those I’ve Hurt,” published on January 26, 2026, in The Wall Street Journal, West said he was involved in a serious car accident in 2002 that broke his jaw and damaged the right frontal lobe of his brain.
He wrote that the “deeper injury, the one inside my skull, went unnoticed” because doctors focused on visible injuries.
He said the brain injury was not diagnosed until 2023 and “caused serious damage to my mental health and led to my bipolar type-1 diagnosis.”
West described the effects of his bipolar disorder, including moments of denial and impaired judgment.
“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, and unstoppable,” he wrote.
According to West, this contributed to periods when he “lost touch with reality” and behaved recklessly.
West said that during these difficult periods he “said and did things” he now regrets, including publicly promoting and selling T-shirts featuring a swastika.
“In that fractured state, I gravitated toward the most destructive symbol I could find, the swastika, and even sold T-shirts bearing it,” he wrote.
He expressed deep regret and said the actions were not acceptable.
“I regret and am deeply mortified by my actions in that state… It does not excuse what I did though. I am not a Nazi or an anti-Semite. I love Jewish people,” West wrote.
He also described a four-month manic episode in early 2025. He said the episode was “psychotic, paranoid and impulsive,” and it “destroyed my life.”
He added that there were times he “didn’t want to be here anymore” and credited his wife, Bianca Censori, for encouraging him to seek help.
West also apologized to the Black community.
“To the black community – which held me down through all of the highs and lows and darkest of times… I am so sorry to have let you down. I love us,” he wrote.
In closing, West said he is now focusing on treatment and positive work.
“As I find my new baseline and new center through therapy, medication, 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 wrote.
He asked for “patience and understanding as I find my way home” and said he hopes to earn forgiveness, not sympathy.
West has faced major controversy in recent years, including statements widely seen as anti-Semitic.
This led to major business losses when partners like Adidas, Balenciaga, and Gap ended their relationships with him.
In 2025, he released a song titled “Heil Hitler” and reportedly sold swastika-branded items, leading to bans in countries like Germany and Australia.
Evi Ben Ezaga writes on entertainment, culture, and trending stories.
