Concerns over conflating ‘art with evidence’
More than 60 senior legal and cultural figures have backed a push for clearer statutory safeguards on the use of music lyrics as evidence in criminal trials, amid concern about how rap and drill are being interpreted in court.
As it stands, prosecutors can rely on lyrics written by defendants (and even appearances in music videos!) as evidence of gang affiliation or involvement in criminality. Campaigners argue that the practice disproportionately targets young black men and risks criminalising creative expression.
A proposed amendment to the Victims and Courts Bill, tabled by Labour peer Baroness Shami Chakrabarti, is due to be debated in the House of Lords this week. Supporters say the change would introduce statutory guardrails around when creative material can be admitted in evidence, ensuring it is used only where it is genuinely relevant, reliable and probative.
Signatories to the letter include rapper Giggs and DJ Semtex, senior academics from the universities of Oxford, Manchester and the London School of Economics, as well as 18 King’s Counsel, including Riel Karmy-Jones KC, chair of the Criminal Bar Association.
Commenting on the amendment, Chakrabarti asks: “Does my love of The Godfather trilogy make me a gangster?” She continues: “If not, why should young Black men in particular be stereotyped and criminalised for their taste in music? This amendment will protect freedom of expression and strengthen the integrity of fair trials.”
Concerns about the use of rap lyrics as evidence were thrown into the spotlight with the ‘Manchester 10’ case, where prosecutors pointed to defendants’ interest in drill music — alongside their postcode and social circles — as evidence of gang involvement. One defendant’s conviction was later quashed on appeal, but only after he had served three years in prison.
The push for reform comes amid growing concern about the reliance on this type of evidence in criminal cases. Research cited by The Guardian suggests that appeals involving the use of lyrics or music videos have tripled in recent years, with London and Manchester emerging as particular hotspots where this type of evidence is commonly relied upon.
The amendment was put together by Keir Monteith KC of Art Not Evidence, a coalition of lawyers, academics and creatives working to combat the prejudicial use of creative expression in criminal trials. The group has long argued that lyrics are frequently performative, exaggerated or fictional, and should not be read literally in court. In an open letter to the Justice Secretary, campaigners urged him not to “[conflate] art with evidence.”
The group stresses that the proposal would not amount to a blanket ban as genuinely incriminating creative material could still be used, but only where it has a clear and direct link to the alleged offence.