(JTA) – A year after a series of antisemitic tirades against the Jewish community, Kanye West, the rapper and fashion mogul who now goes by Ye, has posted what appears to be an apology, written entirely in Hebrew.
“I sincerely apologize to the Jewish community for any unintended outburst caused by my words or actions,” he posted in Hebrew to his 18 million followers on Instagram and nearly 32 million followers on X. “It was not my intention to hurt or disrespect, and I deeply regret any pain I may have caused.”
“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 unity,” it continues. It is unclear whether West used Google Translate or had a Hebrew speaker help him write the post.
The post raised some eyebrows, especially the fact that it was written in Hebrew with no English translation provided. One commenter wrote, “Takes a lot of chutzpah to google translate a weak-sauce apology into Hebrew,” before comparing the rapper to Amalek, an enemy of the Israelites in the Hebrew Bible.
Another Jewish user commented, “Lol. Using Hebrew to apologize so his fans can’t read it. Can’t even write in English anywhere on the post as he’s too embarrassed to be seen apologising to us Jews … coincidence his album is out soon? Give me a break.”
For others, the apology was cautiously well-received.
“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 posted on X. “Ultimately, actions will speak louder than words but this initial act of contrition is welcome,” the organization, which tracks and combats antisemitic activity, wrote.
The short missive, currently the 46-year-old rapper’s only post on Instagram, has garnered over 1.2 million likes in just ten hours. West also posted the statement on X, one of just three posts there.
West made headlines last fall after a series of comments across social media and in public appearance alleging Jewish control of the music industry and for citing a baseless doctrine that Black Jews are the only authentic Jews. On X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, he vowed to “go death con 3” on Jewish critics of some of his antisemitic posts. During an appearance on the far-right show “InfoWars,” with Alex Jones, he said “I like Hitler” and “Hitler had a lot of redeeming qualities.” He also brought along the white supremacist Nick Fuentes to a dinner with Donald Trump at Mar-A-Lago and tweeted a photo of a swastika.
The posts lost him millions of dollars in sponsorships and briefly got him suspended from X.
The apology arrives just ahead of the release of his forthcoming album “Vultures,” made in collaboration with Ty Dolla $ign, which was originally supposed to arrive mid-December but was delayed until Jan. 12. The statement could be a way of getting in front of potential antisemitic allegations when the album is released. In a single for the album that was released on Nov. 17 — also titled “Vultures” — West raps, “How I’m antisemitic? I just f–d a Jewish b–h/I just f–d Scooter’s b–h and we ran up like Olympics.” The line is referring to West’s Jewish former manager Scooter Braun and possibly his ex-wife Yael Cohen.
West’s apology also arrives during a period of rising antisemitism in the United States and Europe as well as during the war between Israel and Hamas.
Some users suggested their own ideas for how West might make amends in light of recent events. “Start by going to ISRAEL immediately & speak to families of Hostages & witness the devastation with your own eyes,” wrote the actor and comedian Michael Rapaport.
The Jewish-Israeli rapper Rami Even-Esh, whose stage name is Kosha Dillz, suggested an “Album release in israel, switch all scooter lines, and donate $$ to Hatzalah,” the Jewish ambulance corps. He also suggested that Ye open forthcoming concerts with Israeli and Palestinian rappers.
