Ye has apologized in the past for other antisemitic remarks, before praising Hitler and the Nazis
Ye – the rapper formerly known as Kanye West – apologized to the Jewish community on Tuesday for his past antisemitic remarks.
The apology was posted on Instagram in Hebrew and comes ahead of Ye’s new album next month.
“I sincerely apologize to the Jewish community for any unintended outburst caused by my words or actions,” Ye wrote. “It was not my intention to offend or demean, and I deeply regret any pain I may have caused.”
FILE: Kanye West, aka Ye, is seen wearing a Balenciaga boxing mouthguard, outside Givenchy, during Paris Fashion Week – Womenswear Spring/Summer 2023 – Day Seven on October 02, 2022 in Paris, France. (Edward Berthelot/GC Images)
The statement comes less than two weeks after Ye went on an antisemitic rant in Las Vegas while promoting his upcoming album “Vultures.” In the rant, he made insidious insinuations about Jewish influence and compared himself to Jesus Christ and Adolf Hitler.
“After causing untold damage by using his vast influence and platform to poison countless minds with vicious antisemitism and hate, an apology in Hebrew may be the first step on a long journey towards making amends to the Jewish community and all those who he has hurt,” the Anti-Defamation League said in response to Ye’s post. “Ultimately, actions will speak louder than words but this initial act of contrition is welcome.”
Ye, who legally changed his name in 2021, has a history of offensive and antisemitic comments, including repeated praise of Hitler and the Nazis.
In October 2022, Ye tweeted he was going to go “death con 3 on JEWISH PEOPLE,” an apparent reference to the U.S. defense readiness condition scale, DEFCON.
Later that month, the Balenciaga fashion house cut ties with Ye, and he lost the lucrative partnership with Adidas that helped catapult him to billionaire status.
FILE: Rapper Kanye West speaks during a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump in the Oval office of the White House on October 11, 2018 in Washington, DC. (Oliver Contreras – Pool/Getty Images)
He was also dropped by talent agency CAA, and his documentary with MRC Entertainment was scrapped. He was locked out of his accounts on Instagram and what was then known as Twitter, though he has since returned to both platforms.
This is not the first time Ye has apologized for antisemitic comments. The rapper expressed some remorse for his “death con 3” tweet on a podcast in October 2022, characterizing the initial tweet as a mistake and apologizing to “the Jewish community.” He also apologized during an appearance on “Piers Morgan Uncensored.”
But less than two months later, he told conspiracy theorist and host Alex Jones that he sees “good things about Hitler.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
