“I love Jewish people”: Rapper Cites Bipolar I Diagnosis and Undiagnosed Brain Injury for Tumultuous 2025
Kanye West has publicly apologized for years of controversial and harmful behavior in a full-page advertisement published Monday in The Wall Street Journal, offering one of his most direct acknowledgments yet of the damage caused by his words and actions.
In the nearly 750-word letter, titled “To Those I’ve Hurt,” the 48-year-old artist reflected on what he described as a tumultuous 2025, addressed his past antisemitic remarks, and disclosed that he was formally diagnosed with bipolar I disorder in 2023. West linked the diagnosis to what he believes was undetected frontal-lobe damage from a near-fatal car accident in 2002.
That crash, which occurred after a late-night studio session in California, left West with a shattered jaw. Two weeks later, he famously recorded “Through the Wire” with his mouth still wired shut — a moment that became central to his rise and later appeared on The College Dropout. In his letter, West said medical care at the time focused almost entirely on his jaw.
“The deeper injury, the one inside my skull, went unnoticed,” he wrote, calling the lack of neurological scans and follow-up a “medical oversight.”
West described bipolar I disorder as particularly dangerous because of the denial that can accompany manic episodes. He wrote that the illness can distort perception, fueling certainty, impulsivity, and a false sense of control.
“The scariest thing about this disorder is how persuasive it is when it tells you: You don’t need help,” West wrote. “It makes you blind, but convinced you have insight.”
Reflecting on last year, West said he became “unrecognizable,” pointing to a months-long manic episode marked by paranoia, psychosis, and impulsive behavior. That period included antisemitic social media rants and public statements in which he declared himself a Nazi — actions he said now leave him “deeply mortified.”
“I regret and am deeply mortified by my actions in that state, and am 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.”
West also addressed the Black community directly, acknowledging its role in shaping his career and identity.
“To the Black community — which held me down through all of the highs and lows and the darkest of times,” he wrote. “The Black community is, unquestionably, the foundation of who I am. I am so sorry to have let you down. I love us.”
He credited encouragement from his wife, Bianca Censori, with pushing him to seek treatment and said he found reassurance reading about others living with bipolar disorder. West said he is now focused on stabilizing his mental health and establishing a treatment regimen that works.
“I’m not asking for sympathy or a free pass,” he concluded. “I write today simply to ask for your patience and understanding as I find my way home.”
