‘Everyone’s complicit’: Radio 1 star Annie Mac blasts the music industry over ‘misogyny’ in grime culture following the rape conviction of Solo 45
- Annie Mac said the entire music industry was complicit in grime’s misogyny
- The Radio 1 DJ was commenting following the conviction of grime star Solo 45
- Andy Anokye, 33, was convicted of 21 rapes and nine other abuse charges
- She said she never wanted to hear lyrics again about women on their knees
A top BBC DJ claims the corporation must consider the lyrics used by misogynistic rappers before broadcasting their songs.
Annie Mac claimed in a series of tweets yesterday that broadcasters and the music industry are all complicit in promoting artists whose lyrics demean women.
Her comments follow the conviction of grime star Andy Anokye, 33, who performs under the stage name Solo 45. He was found guilty at Bristol Crown Court of 21 rapes, five counts of false imprisonment as well as four other charges over the course of two years.
Radio 1 DJ Annie Mac, pictured, has criticised the BBC and the music industry for promoting grime artists who use misogynistic lyrics in the music
The DJ was commenting after the conviction of Andy Anokye, who performs under the stage name Solo 45, who was found guilty of 21 rapes and nine other charges at Bristol Crown Court on Wednesday
Anokye, who was remanded in custody for sentencing on Wednesday appeared on Radio 1 with the Boy Better Know grime collective.
During the trial, graphic video clips – filmed by Anokye on his mobile phone – were played to the jury.
In the footage, Anokye is seen interrogating the women about previous sexual partners, slapping them, insulting them and raping them.
One clip showed a woman crying and saying ‘I hate you’, with the musician laughing and making a thumbs-up sign to the camera.
In a series of tweets, Annie Mac, the self-confessed grime and rap fan wrote: ‘Thinking of all the girls who testified against Solo 45 over the last four months. Who had the courage to stand up in court and relive the immeasurable pain they suffered.
‘So relieved for them and their families.
‘His actions are way beyond the realms of misogyny – but it has made me think of how he was able to have a long, successful career in music. We have to wake up to the systemic misogyny that exists on every level within rap culture. Still, girls are accessories, brags, video props.
‘Yes, there are exceptions to the rules. Stormsy’s Big For Your Boots video, which showed women with agency, fully clothed and powerful. That was revolutionary for me as a rap/grime fan. He turned the rule book on it’s head.
‘Everyone is complict. The labels, the management, the streaming companies, the radio stations. It’s a constant moral conundrum for my team and I.
‘Does playing a radio edit validate the original lyrics in the first place? Do we not play the song at all?’
I am a woman. I f****** LOVE rap music. I don’t want to hear any more lyrics about women on their knees.’
Annie Mac made an impassioned plea about the level of misogyny in the rap and grime scene
Anokye, who was signed to Island Records, was described as a ‘violent, controlling narcissist and a bully’ by prosecutors during the case.
Jurors heard how he derived sexual pleasure from torturing the women by water-boarding, interrogating, assaulting and raping them.
The musician spoke of dacryphilia – sexual arousal from tears – and enjoyed playing a game he called ‘Catch me, Rape me’.
He forced one woman to lie in a bath of freezing cold water, held a shotgun to the head of another woman and made one sit with a bottle of water tied to her finger with a shoelace.
Police launched an investigation in 2017 after a woman claimed she had been raped at Anokye’s waterfront apartment in Bristol.