ABritish rapper has sparked fury after holding up an effigy of Boris Johnson’s severed head, during an awards ceremony that was broadcast on the BBC last night.
Tyron Frampton, better known by his stage name ‘slowthai’ screamed “f *** Boris” while clutching the head before his Mercury Prize performance which was shown on BBC Four and is available on the iPlayer service.
And at the end of his medley, with the cameras still on, the rapper again picked up the fake severed head from the side of the stage and held it aloft.
After stripping to the waist, taking off a t-shirt that also read ‘f *** Boris, he again shouted: “F *** Boris Johnson. F *** everything”.
The BBC quickly cut away and awards host Lauren Laverne said: “Slowthai, with his own views there.”
ABBC spokesperson has since defended the performance, saying: “We applaud the expression of music and we maintained the integrity of slowthai’s performance, but we did have to make some visual edits in order to minimise offence. “
Online, the reaction was heated, with one social media user saying: “Shameful and disgusting behavior.”
Another started an online petition demanding an apology from the Mercury Awards saying: “On the evening of September 19 th 2019, nihilistic rap act “slowthai”, real name Tyron Kymone Frampton, simulated throwing the decapitated head of Prime Minister Boris Johnson to his crowd while spreading a message of hopelessness about our country.
“Social tensions are high, and to award this behavior with a Mercury Prize is highly irresponsible.”
Slowthai was nominated for his album Nothing Great About Britain, which casts a critical eye over life in the modern UK.
He is one of 12 acts whose work was shortlisted for the 2019 Mercury Prize, but he lost out to grime artist Dave .
Among the judges is Stormzy, who raised his own profile by criticizing then prime minister Theresa May during his performance at the Brit Awards in 2018.
The BBC and Mercury Prize have been contacted for comment.
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