Nigerian Afrobeats sensation, Asake, honored the individuals who tragically lost their lives in a fatal crowd mishap during his 2022 London performance. The artist took to the stage at London’s O2 Arena on August 20th, marking his first show in the city since the unfortunate incident. The concert commenced with a heartfelt commemoration for the deceased, Rebecca Ikumelo and Gaby Hutchinson. Prior to Asake’s performance, attendees were treated to a moving recitation of poetry, accompanied by a video montage that featured snippets from the ill-fated 2022 concert, its aftermath, and personal images of Ikumelo and Hutchinson.

The poet recited, “Fifteenth of December, 2022/Observe, respect, where respect is due, I don’t know what you’ve been through, but/Let’s hold space for something true/A Brixon night took place we cannot forget/I know some feel loss and some regret/Some came out that night and ain’t returned/We need to hold this moment.”

Following the recital, Asake made a dramatic entrance by descending in a helicopter while his song “Olorun” played. He then transitioned into his 2022 track, “Organise.” (The complete concert was live-streamed and remains accessible on YouTube.)

Yet, there was some dissent concerning Asake’s tribute, particularly from Ikumelo’s sister, Rachael. On Twitter, she labeled the tribute as “insincere,” expressing her view that she shouldn’t feel compelled to be “appreciative” of a memorial that even included visuals from the stampede in which her sister tragically perished.

Directly addressing Asake on Twitter, she added, “My sister lost her life at your show and you haven’t spoken to a single member of my family since. But you can hold another concert in London less than 9 months later and play her videos as a ‘tribute’?” (Rachael clarified that while the family received communication from Asake immediately after the tragedy, they hadn’t heard from him since.)

Despite Rolling Stone’s outreach, Asake’s representative did not respond promptly to their request for comment.

While Asake did offer his condolences to the crowd crush victims following the tragedy, he has refrained from discussing the incident in great detail, as evidenced by a recent interview with Rolling Stone. In the interim, authorities are actively investigating the occurrence and are seeking relevant information. There have been allegations that security personnel working the event accepted bribes to allow additional individuals into the venue. The location where the crowd crush unfolded, Brixton Academy, remains closed as its licensing undergoes review.

In the first part of his interview for Brut published on Wednesday, March 4th, Booba discussed the George Floyd case and had a very critical view of how France handled it. According to the rapper, “we all abandoned him.” “People made me laugh posting black squares and protesting, but… it was just trendy. Does anyone care about the four cops who were released on bail and are free? No one talks about it,” lamented the 44-year-old artist.

The rapper then criticized false commitments by mentioning a song from his upcoming album “Ultra,” set to be released on Friday, March 5th, in which he says, “They wage war with tanks, we post black squares on Insta.” When asked about the mobilization of the Justice for Adama committee and the protest that gathered 20,000 people in Paris in June 2020, Booba labeled it as “exploitative.” “If we have to wait for another death to talk about Adama, it’s not sincere. […] It’s good to fight, but only if we can win,” he stated. He continued, “France will never imprison one of its soldiers. Let’s be realistic.”

The native of Boulogne-Billancourt (Hauts-de-Seine), of Senegalese origin, praised the determination and nobility of activist Assa Traoré’s struggle, although he seemed to have a rather dichotomous view of the outcome of the case: “I think it’s a lost cause unfortunately.” Reflecting on his decision to leave France, the rapper emphasized the importance of not getting caught up in utopian ideals, saying, “thinking we can change an entire country, an entire continent, is unrealistic.”

Le parquet de Paris a classé sans suite son enquête ouverte après la diffusion au printemps d’un clip de rap aux propos polémiques sur la France de Nick Conrad, déjà condamné pour un précédent titre, a-t-on appris lundi de source judiciaire.

Cette enquête avait été ouverte en mai pour « apologie de crime d’atteintes volontaires à la vie aggravées » à la suite d’un signalement du ministre de l’Intérieur, Christophe Castaner.

La procédure a été classée sans suite le 23 septembre en raison d’une infraction insuffisamment caractérisée, a détaillé le parquet, confirmant une information de LCI.

« J’vais poser une bombe sous son Panthéon »

Dans un clip intitulé « Doux pays » diffusé ce vendredi 19 mai sur Youtube, le rappeur continue de cracher sa haine de la France. On entend le rappeur mettre en musique des paroles très explicites : « Je ba*se la France, ba*se la France / Jusqu’à l’agonie / Je brûle la France », « Cet hexagone, j’l’enc*le sa grand-mère », « J’vais poser une bombe sous son Panthéon », « Que dit l’autre con de Charles Trenet / N’a jamais été doux, le pays ».

Dans cette première affaire, Nick Conrad –un pseudonyme– a écopé le 19 mars de 5.000 euros d’amende avec sursis pour provocation au crime.

Dans un clip précédent, appelé « Pendez les Blancs » et diffusé en septembre 2018, il chantait dans un clip truffé de paroles de haine et de scènes d’une violence inouïe: « Je rentre dans des crèches et je tue des bébés blancs, attrapez-les vite et pendez leur parents, écartelez-les pour passer le temps, divertir les enfants noirs de tout âge petits et grands. Fouettez-les fort faites-le franchement, que ça pue la mort que ça pisse le sang !» « Pendez les tous ! Pendez les Blancs !», éructait le rappeur entre deux scènes de torture.

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