Rapper jailed for three and a half years after criticising Spanish royal family

Mallorcan rapper Josep Miquel Arenas Beltrán, stage name Valtonyc, has been sentenced to three and a half years in prison over the content of his song lyrics.

Catalan News reports the Spanish Supreme Court ruled that his work, which he made available to listen to online for free, contained glorification of terrorism, slander, ‘lèse-majesté’ (defamation against the crown), and threats. Lawyers defending Valtonyc pushed for their client’s right to freedom of expression and artistic creation, arguing that hip-hop and rap often contain provocative or symbolic language.

In “Tuerka Rap” the 24-year-old rapper criticises the Spanish monarchy over their relations with the Saudi royal family, their foreign policy, and their spending, as he raps: “The situation worries me quite a bit, how to support two families: mine, and the royal one.”

Elsewhere, the lyrics presented in the court case included, “We want death for these pigs”, referring to corrupt politicians and the Bourbon monarchy, and “may they be afraid like a [Spanish] Guardia Civil police officer in Euskadi [the Basque Country]”, which references the armed conflict between Spain and the Basque National Liberation Movement, which sought independence from both Spain and France, lasting from 1959 to 2011.

Arenas took to Twitter after the decision to write: “The Supreme Court sentence is already out. Three years and six months of jail for my songs. I have to enter prison. As soon as I have more information, I’ll say more.”

The Mayor of Barcelona, Ada Colau, expressed solidarity with Arenas, adding on Twitter: “Sad and dark times when you have to fight for something so obvious as #rappingisnotacrime, singing about Bourbon thieves... is #freedomofexpression.”

Rapper Pablo Hansel had previously been sentenced to two years in prison by the Spanish National Court, with members of rap collective La Insurgencia being sentenced to two years and a day over charges of glorification of terrorism connected to the Basque conflict.

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