A rapper who served 14 years in jail for the murder of a London schoolboy has been recalled to prison for breaching his licence conditions after media reports exposing the lyrics to his music.
Jake Fahri, then 19, was given a life sentence in 2009 with a minimum term of 14 years for killing Jimmy Mizen by throwing an oven dish at him. The glass dish shattered and severed blood vessels in the 16-year-old’s neck in a south London bakery.
The Sun reported that Fahri, now 35 and no longer in prison, is the masked drill artist TEN, who was showcased on BBC Radio 1Xtra, with the presenter DJ Theo Johnson saying he “really stands out”.
In one of TEN’s tracks available on Spotify and YouTube, the balaclava-clad rapper references killing.
On Friday, the Probation Service said Fahri had been recalled to prison for breaching his licence conditions.
A Probation Service spokesperson said: “Our thoughts are with Jimmy Mizen’s family who deserve better than to see their son’s murderer shamelessly boasting about his violent crime.
“All offenders released on licence are subject to strict conditions. As this case shows, we will recall them to prison if they break the rules.”
TEN’s lyrics include the lines: “Stuck it on a man and watched him melt like Ben and Jerry’s. Sharpen up my blade I’ve got to keep those necessary.
“Stay alert and kept it ready, any corner could be deadly. Judge took a look at me, before the trial even started he already knows he’s gonna throw the book at me.”
The lyrics of another track include the lines: “See a man’s soul fly from his eyes and his breath gone. … I wanted more, it made it less wrong. Seeing blood spilled same floor he was left on.”
Fahri was released on licence in June 2023 and his music was played on Radio 1Xtra less than 18 months later, the Sun reported, adding that Johnson named him an “up-and-coming star”.
The BBC has come under pressure for playing the tracks. On Friday, the culture secretary, Lisa Nandy, said it should “reflect” on the decision to showcase the rapper, adding she would be having a discussion with the public service broadcaster.
“I think this is a horrendous case, and obviously I think the BBC in particular will want to reflect on the featuring of the person who killed [Mizen],” she told LBC radio.
In a statement issued earlier this week, the BBC said TEN did not feature on any of its playlists and the broadcaster had never played the lyrics printed by the Sun newspaper.
“He’s had two other tracks played twice,” the statement added. “1Xtra has no further plans to play his music, we were not aware of his background and we in no way condone his actions.”
