Others have written about the parallels between the current discussion of drill music and moral panics over gangsta rap, aggressive metal with explicit lyrics and other genres that have been demonised or labelled a bad influence. The genre, imported from Chicago, undoubtedly reflects the ongoing crisis that has seen at least 37 people fatally stabbed, and 62 overall killed in London alone since the beginning of the year. Social-media moderators are also going to have to spend time brushing up on their “bars”.It’s not difficult to see the link between violence and drill music. Executives face hefty fines and even jail time if they cannot properly police their platforms. But the Online Safety Bill, which is going through Parliament at the moment, is designed to hold tech giants directly to account for harmful content. YouTube says it currently relies on the Met to interpret slang and identify real threats in drill-music videos. Nonetheless, the number of videos that will be removed from the internet is likely to grow. “Censored” is available, in full, on Spotify. And when songs are removed from YouTube, some rappers have simply re-uploaded them elsewhere. Banning videos can simply make them more alluring. Removing the videos-and potential income-of up-and-coming drill artists can “put them off doing music”, so some focus on “street stuff” (crime) to make money instead, says TK. In some cases Alpha’s work might be counterproductive. Social media may even reduce violence in some cases, says Mr Stuart, because gang members can now build a tough reputation without stabbing people in the streets. They were going to do it anyway,” says Forrest Stuart of Stanford University, who has studied drill music in Chicago, where the genre originated.
“In most of these feuds, people don’t need a YouTube video to hurt each other.
#Drill music Offline#
“The intention is to incite a response, which is often violent…If we remove the content, it prevents an escalation.”īut there is little evidence that drill songs lead directly to offline aggression. If rappers taunt rivals by belittling victims or referencing previous killings, that crosses a line, says Mr Seager. The bigger question is whether Alpha is doing any good. To keep abreast of slang, Alpha has hired people familiar with the sorts of estates where drill music is often made.
James Seager, who leads the unit, says it doesn’t track every drill song-just those by people involved in real, violent disputes.
#Drill music free#
The Met denies Alpha is restricting free speech. There’s only so much training you can do,” says Toby Egekwu (“ TK”), co-founder of a record label that signs drill artists. “People in the Met aren’t coming from these areas. Many musicians also doubt that police officers can properly parse drill’s hyperlocal slang. Rappers feel unfairly singled out-heavy-metal bands have been screaming about death and destruction for decades. Some, like “Zone 2”, bleep out words or upload censored tracks.Ĭivil-liberties groups view Alpha as a concerning creep towards censorship. Industry insiders say that officers sometimes warn YouTube channels that they plan to flag videos to the platform, at which point channel owners may remove the clips themselves. The real numbers are probably higher still.
More than 350 pieces of online content, mostly YouTube videos, have been removed this year after requests from Alpha just 130 were removed in 2019.
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