On another episode of Chuckie’s Halfcaste Podcast, guest and UK rap veteran Harvey joined the sofa to discuss the topic of social media.
The conversation stems from the recent controversy around homophobic tweets produced by Stormzy between the years 2011 and 2014. Since emerging in the public sphere, Stormzy has apologised for the tweets, describing them as “foul” and “offensive”. His obvious and sincere remorse has lead to many debates regarding the care that should be taken before publishing tweets, especially amongst aspiring young professionals. In turn, offensive language used in the past can have a knock on effect on employment and social status if such language re-appears in the public domain.
MC Harvey was invited on the show due to his prolonged time in the public eye, as well as his experiential time in television, which came as a result of his success with So Solid Crew back in the early 2000’s. Harvey stated how he has learnt to take extra care with what he says both in person and on online formats, explaining that as individuals obtain a certain level of success, the backlash that can potentially come with it grows greater.
In the podcast, Harvey raises some important points, especially in coming from a working class standpoint, which allows for him to understand the diction used by some young individuals living in London.
He said, “Its called being a teenager bro. It’s a devils playground, they bring you up to bring you down.”
In his explanation, Harvey elucidates that although it is not an excuse, some young males have grown up where certain words, which may be offensive to other demographics and audiences, carry a far lighter humorous meaning in their social surroundings. He went on to expand on this and used Stormzy as a positive example, saying that young people should be extra careful when posting online and be more vigilant of how material posted, can hold implications late in life.
Another topic raised in the podcast was the issue of “self-snitching” in drill rap, a sub-genre of UK rap, which has seen immense growth and popularity over the past year. Once again, both Chuckie and Harvey used this example as a positive discussion point, reinforcing the importance of learning from your peers.
Stormzy’s apology came after a spotlight was placed upon the views and language celebrities have put on social media in recent history. Jack Maynard’s exit from I’m A Celebrity came after a series of tweets, in which he used forms of inappropriate language, were published in the Sun newspaper.
Check out the podcast in its entirety above, before watching his podcast with Poet, as they speak on the idolisation of drug use right here on GRM Daily