Two Liverpool prisoners have shot a rap video while in jail.
The inmates, known as L1 Manny and Mazza L20, appear to have used smuggled phones to record themselves mouthing the words to their rap in cells and on the wing of Forest Bank, in Salford. In parts of the footage they are surrounded with the "mandem" with prison officers nowhere to be seen.
After shooting the video in prison, L1 Manny and Mazza L20 have then uploaded it to social media including YouTube and TikTok with the hashtags #Scouserap and #Liverpool in the caption.
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A spokesperson for the privately-run prison told the MEN: "We constantly review our activity to tackle the issue." The two-minute clip, featuring the rappers, stated it is "filmed by all the mandem" and starts with a message reading: "This music video was filmed on the wings."
It includes wide shots of prisoners associating on a wing outside their cells and also a screenshot of a news story published in January last year about a prison officer who brought paper laced with spice into the jail. One of the rappers is then seen strolling along a corridor outside the cells making gun signs.
In another section, inmates can be seen walking around the prison yard. One of the lines in the rap states: "Do you know what it's like when you lose hope, seven years straight and you still gotta do sosh."
At the end of the video, viewers are directed to a number of Instagram accounts including one for L20 Mazza, the bio confirms he is from Liverpool and shares a link to his Spotify page. Another account for L1 Manny includes a picture which appears to show him making another gun sign beside a cell door, surrounded by other inmates.
The MEN has reported that Forest Green, which is operated by Sodexo on behalf of the Ministry of Justice, has struggled with a string of incidents including a recent "ten-man-brawl." While On January 4, an inmate died at the prison, the latest in a series of deaths there.
Other fatalities include Michael McDonagh , 27, who was found unresponsive in his cell in February 2019 and 63-year-old Raymond Lucy, who was found dead in his cell in July of that year. More recently, an inmate died at the prison in June of last year.
In December firefighters were called to put out a fire at the prison. In October, it was reported how vandals damaged three cars belonging to staff. It followed a similar wrecking spree in July when another three cars were vandalised.
In May, the prisons' watchdog said the prison was "unable to fill its role successfully". Their report also noted "an ongoing problem with mice."
The damning report by HM Inspectorate of Prisons detailed "cramped and overcrowded cells" in the category B jail. The watchdog's unannounced visit in February found the jail had 1,354 prisoners, nearly 300 above its baseline capacity. Sodexo's contract runs until 2025.
Asked about the rap video, a spokesperson for HMP Forest Bank said: "We can confirm that this video was filmed several months ago. The use of mobile phones in any prison is illegal, and we constantly review our activity to tackle the issue. Where individual prisoners are identified, action is taken."
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