3 Reasons Why Drill Music Is Not All Bad
For me, the news has painted drill music as only about stabbing and killing. Drill music is a form of art: it is young men expressing their life and adventures through music.
Pic: Pexels Creative Commons / Vishnu R Nair
1. Drill is for the youth
Drill music embraces the youth as many of the famous drill artists are young. Many of the other music genres in England appeal to older generations or other young adults who don’t really know what life is like as a youth in London.
Pic: Pexels Creative Commons / Sebastiaan Stam
2. It has received unfair criticism
Drill music has had a lot of attention from the government and news outlets, as it has been accused of increasing the amount of knife crime in London. For me, the true cause of the increase of knife crime is the poverty in England, the drop in police numbers, and the lack of opportunities that youth living in lower class conditions have. On the BBC’s Today programme, DJ Bempah said: “if that’s what you see in your environment, as an artist, that’s what you portray in your lyrics.” He said that the music “can glamorise [violent crime], but it can’t force your hand to commit those actions.”
3. Mentors and role models
Drill artists use music to earn money, so they can get off the streets and make a living for themselves. For young children who live in deprived areas, they are role models, whether that is a good thing or not. Drill artists are people who were in the children’s positions but through their music were able to find a way out.
Pic: Pexels Creative Commons / fotografierende