Transcript
Jake Brennan (0:00)
Foreign.
Zeth Lundy (0:04)
Double Elvis. All right, guys, it's the new year. New year, new you. Are you ready for a New Year's resolution that's going to actually work out for you? That's going to actually stick? That you're going to be able to stick to well. Groons is the one resolution that actually sticks. Groons is the simple daily habit that will succeed. It's. It's easy. Extreme resolutions, they're not easy. That's why they fail. But Gruins can deliver real benefits with minimal effort. If you haven't heard me talking about grins before, listen, it's so simple. They're just a super convenient comprehensive formula packed into a snack pack of gummies that you eat every day. This isn't a multivitamin, a greens gummy or a prebiotic. It's all of those things and then some at a fraction of of the price. And it tastes great. You gotta get into these daily snack packs of gummies because you can't fit the amount of nutrients Grunds does into just one gummy. And it's a fun little treat. I look forward to it. It's like a nice little, nice little dessert after my lunch. These are low in sugar, they're vegan, nut free, gluten free, dairy free, no artificial colors, no junk, no artificial flavors, and they include 6 grams of prebiotic fiber. They taste great. Super convenient. I keep a pack of the gummies in my car at all times if I want a little snack. Kick your new year off, right? And save up to 52% off with code DISGRACELAND at GRUUNS CO. That's code DISGRACELAND at G R U N S DOT CO. A year from today, what.
Advertiser/Announcer (1:36)
Would your dream private practice look like? Would you spend less time chasing claims or only working with clients who value your skill set? What if you had more time for yourself? Alma empowers you to confidently accept insurance backed by an all in one EHR that simplifies scheduling, documentation and day to day practice operations. Your dream practice is closer than you think. Learn more about alma@helloalma.com getstarted.
Zeth Lundy (2:06)
Hey discos. Need a little more Disgraceland in your life? Just a touch to get you through. Yeah, me too. This is the podcast that comes after the podcast. Welcome to Disgraceland. The after party. Welcome to the Disgraceland bonus episode. A little thing we like to call the after party. This is the show after the show. The party. After the party. The bridge to get you from one full episode of Disgraceland to the other. Backyard to dig into the dirt our Mission to uncover the truth, to confront the myth, to reclaim the story. On this bonus episode, we are discussing Lady Gaga conspiracies, Kanye West's apology. And in our exclusive section, we're going to dig into the David Bowie Kanye west conspiracy to end all conspiracies. Plus tell the stories they didn't want told, the kind you'll end up telling someone else. All right, discos, let's get into it. Okay, as noted in our recent episode on Lady Gaga, the best conspiracy theories are fueled by bizarre truths. Which is why the Gaga conspiracy theories are compelling compared to, say, the conspiracy theories about Kanye West. The theory that Kanye is a clone. The theory that Kanye is Taylor Swift's protector, that Kanye is David Bowie's starman. This theory, by the way, is bat shit crazy, and Seth and I are unpacking it in the exclusive section of the After Party that's coming up later. The Kanye Bowie theory aside, though, there are also the numerous conspiracy theories Kanye himself has spread. Now, most are gross anti Semitic vitriol that I'm not going to repeat here, but good examples of the awful behavior that Kanye is now seeking to redeem himself of. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is news. Okay, just this past Monday, on January 25, 2026, Kanye. Excuse me, I keep calling him Kanye. I'm supposed to call him Yee or Yay or however the hell it's pronounced. I'm calling him Kanye. Kanye took out a full page in the Wall Street Journal earlier this week. On Monday. Okay, I'm going to read it in its entirety. Don't worry, it's relatively short, but I'm doing this for a reason. Mainly because I want to know what you guys think of this apology. Is it enough for you to forgive him? I'm sure you're all aware of his transgressions, and he's going to talk about the worst of them in this letter. So I want to know if this apology, if it. If it holds up for you guys, if it carries the water, and if not, why not? I'll let you know my thoughts on the other end. All right, like I said, this is a paid advertisement in the Wall Street Journal titled, To those I've hurt by Ye. Yay. I can never get it right. Formerly known as Kanye West. To those I've hurt. 25 years ago, I was in a car accident that broke my jaw and caused injury to the right frontal lobe of my brain. At the time, the focus was on the visible damage, the fracture, the swelling, and the immediate physical trauma. The deeper Injury, the one inside my skull, went unnoticed. Comprehensive scans were not done, neurological exams were limited, and the possibility of a frontal lobe injury was never raised. It wasn't properly diagnosed until 2023. And that medical oversight caused serious damage to my mental health and led to my bipolar type 1 diagnosis. Bipolar disorder comes with its own defense system, denial. When you're manic, you don't think you're sick, you think everyone else is overreacting. You feel like you're seeing the world more clearly than ever, when in reality, you're losing your grip entirely. Once people label you as crazy, you feel as if you cannot contribute anything meaningful to the world. It's easy for people to joke and laugh it off, when in fact this is a very serious, debilitating disease you can die from. According to the World Health Organization and Cambridge University, people with bipolar disorder have a life expectancy that is shortened by 10 to 15 years on average and a 2 to 3 times higher all cause mortality rate than the general population. This is on par with severe heart disease, type 1 diabetes, HIV and cancer. All lethal and fatal if left untreated. The scariest thing about this disorder is how persuasive it is when it tells you you do not need help. It makes you blind, but convinced. You have insight. You feel powerful, certain, unstoppable. I lost touch with reality. Things got worse the longer I ignored the problem, I said and did things I deeply regret. Some of the people I love the most, I treated the worst you endured fear, confusion, humiliation and the exhaustion of trying to have someone who was at times unrecognizable. Looking back, I became detached from my true self. In that fractured state, I gravitated toward the most destructive symbol I could find, that the swastika, and even sold T shirts bearing it. One of the difficult aspects of having bipolar type 1 are the disconnected moments, many of which I still cannot recall, that led to poor judgment and reckless behavior that oftentimes feels like an out of body experience. I regret and in deeply mortified by my actions in that state and am committed to accountability, treatment and meaningful change. It does not excuse what I did. Though I am not a Nazi or an anti Semite, I love Jewish people. To the black community which held me down through all the highs and lows and the darkest of times. The black community is unquestionably the foundation of who I am. I am so sorry to have let you down. I love us. In early 2025, I fell into a four month long manic episode of psychotic fear, paranoid and impulsive behavior that destroyed my life. As the situation became increasingly unsustainable, there were times I didn't want to be here anymore. Having bipolar disorder is a notable state of constant mental illness. When you go into a manic episode, you are ill at that point. When you are not in an episode, you are completely normal. And that's when the wreckage from the illness hits the hardest. Hitting rock bottom A few months ago, my wife encouraged me to finally get help. I have found comfort in Reddit forums of all places. Different people speak of being in manic or depressive episodes of a similar nature. I read their stories and realize that I was not alone. It's not just me who ruins their entire life once a year. Despite taking meds every day and being told by the so called best doctors in the world that I am not bipolar but merely experiencing symptoms of autism, my words as a leader in my community have global impact and influence. In my mania, I lost complete sight of that. As I find my new baseline and new center. Through an effective regime of medication, therapy, exercise, and clean living, I have newfound much needed clarity. I am pouring my energy into positive, meaningful art, music, clothing, design and other new ideas to help the world. I'm not asking for sympathy or a free pass. Though I aspire to earn your forgiveness, I write today simply to ask for your patience and understanding as I find my way home. With love, Ye. So what do you think? I really want to know, and I'm. I'm hesitant to let you know what I think because I don't want to. I don't want to influence your opinion in any way. And I guess I. I don't have. I don't have a firm take on this yet, you know, noticeably the phrase I'm sorry or I apologize is missing from that entire statement. He does talk about earning our forgiveness. He does talk about his regret over what he had said, and he clearly damns and judges himself for it. So that could just be a semantic thing, but everything else seems so intentional in this letter that it also seems kind of intentional that that phrase wasn't there. I don't know. I don't know. I'm willing. I guess what I'm saying is I'm willing to give this guy the benefit of the doubt. I think Kanye west is one of the greatest musical artists from pop music that we've ever had. He's tremendous, tremendously talented, you know, on the level with the great, greatest of all time. And I think what, what has happened to him is, to use a word, intentionally disgraceful and, you know, though I'm not part of the black community, I do feel let down by him just as a. As. Not even as a Kanye fan, but just as a fan of music. So I don't really know what to make of this. I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. I'm trying not to look at this with 100% cynicism because that's not my jam. That's not how I look at anything really, except politics. So it's a difficult one. I think what I'm going to do is I've done some thinking here. Okay, I've done very little research, but I've done some thinking. And you know, that thinking. You know, let me. When I read this, I had a couple thoughts. First, why now? Why is he doing this now? Second, is Kanye broke? And the answer to that question is no, not even close. After his racist breakdown, his net worth plummeted from 2.7 billion down to an estimated 400 million. Now, Kanye disputes this valuation, pegging his net worth himself closer to the original 2 billion. But after losing valuable partnerships with Adidas, the gap Balenciaga. Is that how you pronounce that? Balenciaga? It's hard to see how that 2 bill number is. Even the less than 2.7 bill, the 2 bill number that Kanye is saying. It's hard to see how that's accurate. But still, even if it's just 400 million, that's 400 million. And I don't care who you are, what type of lifestyle you're used to, 400 million is still fuck you, money. So, no, Kanye west isn't broke and he doesn't need the money here. So if it's not the money, can we presume perhaps that Kanye, despite whatever other selfish reasons he might have, social standing, access to his kids, audience growth, whatever. Can we presume here that he's being sincere, that his bipolar condition is the actual reason and that he's truly sorry? I can buy the excuse, I guess. I think even though that's not what he's calling it, I don't want to put words in his mouth. He didn't really come up and literally say this is the excuse, though he is giving it as a reason. Lots of people are sick and Kanye west certainly seems like he's one of them. But is he truly sorry? That I don't know, but I hope so. So what I'm going to do is dig more into Kanye west and try to find out all to say it feels like there's a Kanye west episode coming soon. In the meantime, however, I want to know what you guys think of this apology. Do you believe number one, do you believe his remorse is sincere? And number two, can you still listen to his music? Either or Both? Answers to 617-906-6638 to Let Me know and you might hear your answer on next week's afterparty bonus episode. And don't sleep on this David Bowie Kanye west conspiracy theory that I mentioned earlier. Zeth and I are unpacking it in the exclusive section of this episode. Exclusive section of the after party is for All Access members. If you're not an All Access member and you want to unlock this story and more exclusive content like our weekly mini episodes, our all new video podcast. This film should be played loud if you want a place to connect and talk music and movies and everything else with your fellow discos in the community. Chat and get ad free listening on all Disgraceland and Hollywoodland episodes. Then go to Disgracelandpod.com to become an All Access member today for as little as a dollar a month. All right, back to Gaga and the Conspiracy Theories. Our two part Lady Gaga episode is available right now for you to check out. Coming up tomorrow in the Rewind slot is our Kendrick Lamar episode. And then next week our brand new episode on Jane's Addiction. This is part two of our Jane's Addiction story. We'll be rolling out part one on Monday from our archive as a refresher. And then the new Jane's Addiction story on the grimy true crime origins of the band will hit on Tuesday. So when you're listening to Jane's Addiction Part 2, be thinking about which band best embodies the 1990s 90s? Is it Jane's Addiction? Now hold up. I know some of you are going to go straight to Nirvana or to another Seattle band, but without Jane's Addiction paving the way through the mainstream first, as we discuss in this coming episode, it's hard to imagine Nirvana or anyone else breaking out in that most glorious decade. So the question is, which band best embodies the 90s? For you guys, text me or call me and leave me a voicemail 617-906-6638 and you might just hear your an on next week's afterparty. Coming up, your answers to last week's Question of the Week right after this. This episode is brought to you by FX's the Beauty Official Podcast. Join host Evan Ross Katz on the Official podcast for FX's hottest new series the Beauty, taking you behind the scenes.