British rapper Skepta apologized Wednesday after artwork for an upcoming single called “Gas Me Up (Diligent)” was criticized online for evoking the Holocaust.
The cover art showed several men with shaved heads, one of whom had the phrase “GAS ME UP” tattooed on the back of his head. Some social media users said the images were reminiscent of the Nazi treatment of Jews in extermination camps during World War II, in which many victims were tattooed, had their heads shaved, and were murdered in gas chambers.
The Mercury Prize-winning artist later apologized and explained that any allusions to the Holocaust were unintentional. He also deleted the image from his Instagram after sharing it on the account on Monday.
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“I’ve been waiting to drop Gas Me Up (Diligent) since teasing it April last year, worked hard getting the artwork right for my album rollout which is about my parents coming to the UK in the 80’s, Skinhead, Football culture and it has been taken offensively by many,” Skepta wrote in an X post. “I can promise you that was definitely not our plan so I have removed it and I vow to be more mindful going forward,” he added.
Skepta followed up a few hours later saying he can “honestly see how my single artwork without context can be deemed offensive, especially in a time like this but again that was not my intention.” By way of illustration, he also shared a “mood board” for his upcoming album, Knife & Fork, which included a collage of images of 1980s soccer hooligans and skinheads, according to the BBC. Another image shows a man with a tattoo on the back of his head which appears similar to a Nazi eagle insignia.
The collage also featured the logo for 2 Tone Records—the label which boasted acts including the Specials and Madness—along with images of multiracial fans of the movement, The Guardian reports.
Skepta said he released the mood board to “help with context,” adding: “I don’t feel like I could continue being the artist you all know and love if my art is policed, I have to quit if I can’t express my art as I see it.”
