MC Franklyn takes on tabloids

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Franklyn Addo, 17 years old and from Hackney, has been the centre of an unwelcome media storm. As a "rap academic"  from "one of London's toughest estates" he was interviewed in a number national papers after apparently turning down an offer from Cambridge University "because it had no music scene."

But all is not as it seems...

Here's one version of Franklyn's story that ran last week under the title Rapper rejects Cambridge Uni

But, Franklyn says, that's not the reason he gave for rejecting Cambridge, and it's not what he told reporters: Read his side of the story here

In the last Young Hackney poll you told us that the media hyped up inner city violence to sell copies, and this is arguably evidence of the same kind of dynamic: a story that (to quote from Franklyn's article) "conforms to the stereotype that individuals in my demographic are ignorant and short-sighted."

And, if Franklyn's studying sociology, he's going to have a take on society, right? And rap is social commentary pure and simple...so... well you make your own mind up, here's a clip from Franklyn's mixtape (you can add to the debate on YouTube):