Latest podcast episode on – Safe

As a youth worker I used to regularly deliver workshops using UK rap and drill music to engage with young people at risk of exclusion and violence. This ranged from printing out lyrics to dissect with groups of secondary school students, to holding recording studio sessions in youth clubs, to chairing philosophical debates and sparking creative writing exercises in prisons. 

It was rewarding because music opens up a type of honest, creative and critical conversation that is otherwise difficult to achieve with young people, especially those hiding behind the mask of bravado. But it was challenging because of the risks of provocation that now come with releasing music onto social media. 

Alongside my frontline work, I would interview prominent artists – from Dave to Potter Payper – to understand their journeys in navigating out of challenging circumstances.  

All of these experiences reinforced my lifelong love of music and allowed me to see its power as a therapeutic, educational and even life-saving tool.  

When done safely, creating space for young people to analyse, write and record music can help them open up about trauma, develop self-worth and career skills, and escape the trappings of interpersonal or territorial violence. 

Indeed, the evidence suggests that when delivered by a trusted adult and combined with mentoring, arts participation programmes can be a powerful hook to prevent violence. 

Safe Episode 2 with Justin Finlayson and United Borders 

Nobody understands this better than Justin Finlayson, who recently joined YEF for the second episode of our new podcast, Safe.  

As Founder and CEO of United Borders, a charity which uses a double decker London bus kitted out with a recording studio to work with young people across London, Justin is one of the most knowledgeable practitioners around when it comes to combining music and mentoring to intercept violence. 

He grew up in Harlesden, northwest London, and later became a prison officer and bus driver, before setting up United Borders after a tragedy in his local community in 2016. Since then, he has overcome significant challenges – including damages to his bus, harms to loved ones and the wider landscape of financial cuts to youth services – to become a leading voice in violence prevention and London music culture. 

Drill Music: the Personal, the Political and the Practical 

As well as tracing the evolution of London music culture since the 1980s and the growth of United Borders over the last decade, I was particularly moved by Justin’s perspective on the complexities of drill music.  

With rare clarity, he explains why the hyperviolence and digital risks of the music genre make him personally uncomfortable, but also why its criminalisation in the court room is misguided and makes him politically uncomfortable.  

Most importantly, he outlines some practical steps for how to keep young people safe inside and outside of the recording studio, whilst empowering them with the equipment, skills and self-worth and to find their voice. 

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