'Suicide goal': Experts criticize police attempt to 'censor' Australian rapper

“I have a story. I have lived through conjecture [gang] war. I am here to tell my side of the story,” said Huncho recently Spectrum.

The West Sydney crew of OneFour had trailed for a local practice but found themselves crippled by police intervention when it came to performing their music. In 2019, three members of the group, YP (Pio Misa), Lekks (Salec Sua) and Celly14 (Dahcell Ramos) are jailed after being found guilty of recklessly causing severe bodily injury after a fight at a Rooty Hill pub. There is no suggestion that other OneFour members are involved in any criminal activity.

Merrylands rapper Ay Huncho has attracted fans for his uncompromising songs.

According to OneFour’s manager Ricky Simandjuntak, police have used a number of tactics in the past to influence the group’s ability to tour.

“Normally, when it comes to shows, they don’t shut us down directly, so they pressure the venue, threaten to investigate past differences, and pressure venues and agents not to do business with OneFour,” said Simandjuntak.

“We had cases where they asked a festival promoter or venue not to book OneFour. We’re used to it now; when you’re the first one out of the gate, you’re being set as an example, and NSW Police often try to set the example for OneFour.

“But they should have learned their lesson last time; when you try to ban something, that’s the way to make it appear.”

OneFour’s profile skyrocketed after the 2019 national tour was cancelled. At the time NSW Police admitted to “turning off” the group’s concert. A number of well-known rappers the masthead spoke to for this story declined to comment on the recordings, fearing they would be targeted by the police and their music could potentially be de-platform.

According to Professor Murray Lee, a criminologist and dean at the University of Sydney’s School of Law, any push to ban drill music could produce a similar push for the genre.

“Without taking anything from OneFour’s music, the NSW police have been the best thing to happen to them from a publicity standpoint. They’ve been inserted straight into their narrative to be authentic, which in turn has made them more popular, so the police have kicked in an own goal there,” Lee said.

Lee also believes that by focusing on drill artists, police reinforce the view that they are targeting minorities.

“It goes back to the aesthetic of not liking what is said and disliking the people who say it, people from minority backgrounds,” Lee said. “Country music is full of domestic violence, and so is folk, rock and roll. Are we looking for reality in those genres?”

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NSW Civil Liberties Council president Josh Pallas said police in the UK were “pretty effective” in using takedown requests aimed at drilling out rappers, and such a move “had the capacity to be downright shocking”.

While he questioned what legal authority NSW Police would have to direct or even engage with social media companies on this matter, Pallas said: “if it did, it would have a clear chilling effect on cultural and creative expression”.

Ultimately, the decision to remove the current artist or music rests with the streaming platform.

In a statement, a YouTube spokesperson said:

“While YouTube is a platform for free and creative expression, we prohibit videos, including music videos, that incite violence.”

Spotify said they could not comment on whether they had discussions with authorities or whether they would comply with police requests.

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