The spirit of Christmas must be upon Ye, as the controversial rapper has made an apology to the Jewish community for his repeated antisemitic comments. Reconciliation at last, or strategic amends before his new album drops?
ADVERTISEMENTKanye ‘Ye’ West has apologised to the Jewish community for his previous antisemitic comments in a new Instagram post written in Hebrew.
The post, translated into English, reads: “I sincerely apologise to the Jewish community for any unintended outburst caused by my words or actions. It was not my intention to hurt or disrespect, and I deeply regret any pain I may have caused."
It continues: "I am committed to starting with myself and learning from this experience to ensure greater sensitivity and understanding in the future. Your forgiveness is important to me and I am committed to making amends and promoting greater unity.”
The rapper was first accused of antisemitism in October 2022 following a series of hateful social media posts. His controversial comments led him to be dropped by his talent agency, record label, and saw fashion brands like Adidas, Gap and Balenciaga end their partnerships with him.
As a further quick refresher, West said that he would go “death con 3 on JEWISH PEOPLE”; had a memorable appearance on Alex Jones’ Infowars talkshow, in which he seemed to praise Hitler (“There’s a lot of things that I love about Hitler,” he said, prior to posting an image of a swastika blended with a Star of David); was accused by an ex-staffer at TMZ of also praising “Hitler and the Nazis”; was alleged to have drawn a swastika in a meeting with Adidas about his Yeezy footwear line; donned a Ku Klux Klan-esque hood at a Miami listening party. And we’re probably missing a few.
As an extra depressing accolade, West was also labelled the ‘Antisemite of the Year’ by watchdog group StopAntisemitism, with Jonathan Greenblatt, the national director and chief executive of the Anti-Defamation League, calling West a “vicious antisemite” who “put Jews in danger”.
Last month, West referenced the antisemitism allegations against him in a new song called ‘Vultures’, which featured the charming lyrics: “How I’m antisemitic? / I just fucked a Jewish bitch."
West is preparing to release his latest album, a collaboration project with Ty Dolla $ign also titled ‘Vultures’, on 12 January.
With promotional duties, album sales and streams in mind, as well as considering the erratic and emphatic nature of the man’s hateful outbursts, the apology does seem a little too neat.
Or, warranted cynicism aside, could this be West turning a page and on the road to better understanding the hurt he has repeatedly caused?
Watch this space.
