Aitch says he was “fuming” over Ian Curtis mural ad cover up

nme.com:

Aitch has opened up about the recent row over an advert for his new album, which was painted over an Ian Curtis mural in Manchester.Last week, an advertisement for the rapper’s ‘Close To Home’ was placed over a much-loved mural of the late Joy Division frontman in the city’s Northern Quarter.The mural, based on a photo of Curtis that was taken by Philippe Carly, was painted by Manchester street artist Akse P19.

It debuted in 2020 in collaboration with the music and mental health festival Headstock to raise awareness around mental health issues, and was supported by Manchester Council.In a tweet last week, Aitch said: “It’s come to light that the iconic Ian Curtis mural on Port Street has been painted over with my album artwork.

This is the first time I’ve heard of this, me and my team are getting this fixed pronto. No way on earth would I want to disrespect a local hero like Ian.” He added that he was “getting [it] fixed as we speak.”Speaking to BBC Breakfast, Aitch has now opened up about the incident, saying he was left “fuming” by what had happened.“I seen it on Twitter… when there was an outrage burst of like, ‘what’s Aitch doing putting his album over Ian’s mural?’, and then I was like, ‘oh god, what’s this?’,” he said. “I don’t pick and choose where I put my billboards or album promo.

I just wake up and drive past it, or see it on the internet, just like everyone else.”Aitch went on to say the situation had left him “fuming for two reasons”: “I was fuming for Ian, and his people and what that mural stands for, and then I was fuming for myself, because I was having such a good week,” he said.“I was like, ‘the album is coming out in a couple of days, I can’t wait, everything’s going so well’, and then next minute, I.