Ye, the controversial American rapper and fashion designer formerly known as Kanye West, has retracted his previous claims of being a Nazi in a social media post shared on Monday—only to delete it shortly after.
The Grammy Award-winning artist posted on X (formerly Twitter), stating: “Okay […] I’ve come to the realization that I’m not a Nazi […] And hopefully you guys have come to the realization that I can and will say whatever the fck I feel like whenever the fck I feel like it.”
The post was swiftly removed but not before screenshots circulated widely online.
The statement marks a rare reversal from Ye, who has sparked widespread outrage over the past two years with a series of anti-Semitic remarks and public endorsements of Adolf Hitler. His incendiary behaviour led to the loss of lucrative partnerships with brands such as Adidas and Balenciaga, resulting in a substantial financial fallout.
Earlier this year, Ye further inflamed tensions by donning a white T-shirt emblazoned with a swastika in a video released by US tabloid TMZ. He later described the stunt in a now-deleted post as his “greatest dream.”
In February, during the Super Bowl broadcast, Ye aired a commercial directing viewers to his online store, which featured a $20 white T-shirt marked “HH-01”—a code Jewish advocacy groups say alludes to the Nazi salute “Heil Hitler.” Following widespread condemnation, e-commerce platform Shopify shut down his online shop.
The backlash against Ye’s conduct has been swift and severe. His talent agency dropped him in 2022, and he was banned from numerous platforms. In a widely publicised interview on InfoWars that same year, Ye praised Hitler and denied the Holocaust, comments that many deemed beyond redemption.
While Ye has long attracted headlines for his erratic behaviour, his mental health has also been a recurring topic of public discussion. Diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2016, the artist has since claimed he was misdiagnosed and has more recently stated that he is autistic and no longer taking medication.
Despite his apology—or apparent retraction—Ye’s recent post has left critics and observers questioning his sincerity. For many, the damage to his reputation, once built on musical genius and fashion innovation, may already be irreparable.
Neither Ye nor his representatives have issued any further statements regarding the deleted post.
