Ye insists his recent apology to the black and Jewish communities was not a ploy to regain goodwill ahead of the album’s release.
Vanity Fair published a Q&A with Ye on Tuesday (January 27), in which Ye was asked to explain the reason and timing of the apology after what many viewed as a PR move. The artist, born Kanye West, countered that despite making himself a pariah due to his comments over the past few years, his music remains extremely popular.
“For me, as evidenced by this letter, this is not about restoring my commercial nature,” Ye said. “It’s because these feelings of remorse weigh so heavily on my heart, on my spirit. I apologize again for everything I said that hurt the Jewish and Black communities. All of this was too much.”
He added, “I looked at the wreckage of my episode and realized this was not me. As a public figure, a lot of people pay attention and listen to my every word. It’s important that they realize and understand which side of history I want to be on. That’s love and positivity.”
On Monday (January 26), Ye took out an ad in the Wall Street Journal titled “To Those I’ve Hurt”, apologizing to the black community and asking for forgiveness for his years of anti-Semitic behavior.
Ye’s apology comes in the week that his Bully album is set to be released on Friday (January 30).
