Jewish groups are calling on Kanye West to remove the song “Heil Hitler” from his catalogue after he took out a full-page ad in The Wall Street Journal on Jan. 26 to issue an apology for his history of antisemitism.
In the ad, West blamed a bipolar Type-1 diagnosis he said stemmed from an injury sustained in a car accident 25 years ago. “It wasn’t properly diagnosed until 2023,” he said. “That medical oversight caused serious damage to my mental health.”
West, also known as “Ye,” said the mental-health disorder “makes you blind, but convinced you have insight. You feel powerful, certain and unstoppable.”
“I lost touch with reality,” he said, and described gravitating “toward the most destructive symbol I could find, the swastika.”
West recalled selling T-shirts bearing the symbol.
“I regret and am deeply mortified by my actions in that state and am committed to accountability, treatment and meaningful change,” West said, noting that his wife, Bianca Censori, encouraged him to get help. “It does not excuse what I did, though.”
“I am not a Nazi or an antisemite,” he added. “I love Jewish people.”
David Draiman, the pro-Israel frontman of Disturbed, shared the apology and thanked the musician, noting that “unfortunately, it doesn’t undo the damage done.” He suggested West participate in “black/Jewish unity events” and delete the song “Heil Hitler” from his music catalogue.
End Jew Hatred agreed, calling on the artist to pull the song. “Words matter, but actions matter more,” the organization wrote. “When someone profits from swastikas, sells Nazi imagery and amplifies genocidal symbols, the harm is real.”
“We believe in forgiveness, but forgiveness requires accountability,” the group added. “We call on Ye to put resources behind real change and to help fund the fight against extremism. He can begin to do that by pulling his 2025 song ‘Heil Hitler.’ No artist or influencer should ever profit off of hateful rhetoric.”
The Anti-Defamation League also called on the musician to remove the song from his catalogue.
“Ye’s apology to the Jewish people is long overdue and doesn’t automatically undo his long history of antisemitism—the antisemitic ‘Heil Hitler’ song he created, the hundreds of tweets, the swastikas and myriad Holocaust references—and all of the feelings of hurt and betrayal it caused,” the ADL said. “The truest apology would be for him not to engage in antisemitic behavior in the future. We wish him well on the road to recovery.”
