Kanye West‘s absence at Donald Trump’s inauguration was noticeable. Why did the rapper have to skip the talked-about event? In an exclusive conversation on Justin LaBoy’s podcast, Ye revealed that the invitation arrived to him with the condition that he wasn’t okay with it. West is currently in the spotlight after his attendance at the Grammys 2025. His wife Bianca Censori’s shocking red carpet outfit became the talk of the town overnight. However, during the after-party of the event, the rapper revealed something even more interesting.
TMZ obtained an exclusive preview clip of the Vultures rapper’s appearance on Respectfully Justin. It was being played out during the Grammys after-party, where Ye revealed that “censorship stigma” led him to miss Trump’s inauguration.
The clip, which was shared on a big screen, showed Kanye saying, “I was gonna go to the inauguration, but they told me I had to write another apology, saying yeah, that I wasn’t… what’s the word?” “Antisemitic,“ Justin LaBoy, who was hosting the podcast, completed his sentence.
During the promotions for his album Vultures, Ye engaged in a few antisemitic activities. Later, he apologized to the Jewish community for his outbursts. On December 25, 2023, he took to his Instagram and shared the apology written entirely in Hebrew.
The Runaway rapper wrote (translated), “I sincerely apologize 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. I am committed to starting with myself and learning from this experience to ensure greater sensitivity and understanding in the future.”
Later, the message was deleted from his Instagram. However, despite his apology, it seems like his “antisemitic“ image continues to give him trouble. The series of his outbursts includes many shocking incidents.
Kanye YE West deleted all his posts on IG, and posts an apology for his antisemitic comments in Hebrew on IG — dude has an album dropping. 🖕🏼 pic.twitter.com/N0q8SsKtMA
— Outspoken™️ (@Out5p0ken) December 26, 2023
In 2022, the rapper was withdrawn from his lucrative partnership deals with two of the biggest brands – Adidas and Balenciaga after he made some hateful remarks on social media about Jewish people. He accused Sean Diddy Combs of being “controlled by Jews.” He shared a screenshot of their conversation, seemingly supporting the conspiracy theory that “Jews rule the government, media, and everything else.”
Following this, Meta indefinitely suspended his Instagram account. However, he continued with his outbursts on X (formerly Twitter). During his latest antisemitic tirade in Las Vegas in December 2023, Ye shocked everyone. He “lost it“ with his 10-minute-long rant where he shouted, “Jesus Christ, Hitler, Ye! Sponsor that!“ The All of the Lights rapper also commented that he “wouldn’t support Trump running for presidency if he didn’t free former Chicago gang Gangster Disciple leader Larry Hoover from prison.
Despite everything else, Kanye West has been a longtime supporter of Donald Trump. According to the New York Post, the president also embraced him, ignoring his antisemitic remarks. “He’s a really nice guy, but he can get some people into trouble. He’s got a good heart,“ the 78-year-old president called West “complicated.”
Hence, Kanye’s absence at the inauguration seemed unexpected initially.