British Grime artist Joseph Adenuga, more commonly known as Skepta, has apologised on Twitter, and has removed his upcoming single’s cover artwork. The artwork in question features a photograph of several men with shaved heads, one of which is tattooed with the phrase “GAS ME UP”, in reference to the single’s title. Speaking on Twitter, Adenuga said: “it has been taken offensively by many and I can promise you that was definitely not our plan so I have removed it and I vow to be more mindful going forward”
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 and I can…
— Big Smoke – (@Skepta) January 10, 2024
After the artwork was posted, many were quick to point out that the photograph evoked imagery of the Holocaust. Men lined up with shaved heads in combination with the phrase “GAS ME UP” can understandably be taken as a tasteless pun, in reference to the millions of victims systematically murdered by the National Socialist Party throughout the early 1940s. According to Adenuga, this was by no means the intention, following up his first tweet with another post outlining how the artwork was inspired by British Skinhead and football culture of the 1980s, rather than anything more sinister. Citing the cultural environment that his parents entered when they moved to the UK from Nigeria in the 1980s, the track’s artwork was designed to capture the image of British football culture. In a follow up tweet, Skepta shared a selection of images that were used to inspire the creation of the “Gas Me Up (Diligent)” artwork. Speaking on the matter, Skepta said: “I 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.”
I 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. But after some thought I don’t feel like I could continue being the artist you all know and love if my art is policed, I have to… pic.twitter.com/59oUOPe8Hp
— Big Smoke – (@Skepta) January 10, 2024
To ‘gas’ someone or to be ‘gassed’ means to be excited for someone or about something. Pioneering Grime MC Dylan Mills, also known as Dizzee Rascal, used the colloquial term in a similar way with his track ‘Don’t Gas Me’ in 2018. The track is about Dizzee wishing to avoid being hyped up by others because he hypes himself up enough. In a similar manner, Skepta’s “Gas Me Up (Diligent)” means that he wishes for others to be excited for him and his music.
Some fans have applauded Skepta’s hasty removal of the controversial single cover with one Twitter user saying: “Thank you for taking and down and going with different artwork”. However, many other Twitter users have expressed their dissatisfaction with the change, claiming that the decision is a suppression of artistic expression. Given that Skepta has gone on record several times to say that the Holocaust reference was by no means his artistic intention, he is well within his right to remove the work.
Skepta’s single “Gas Me Up (Diligent)” will release on January 26 as planned in the lead up to his new studio album Knife & Fork.
