Did Skepta’s Gas Me Up single artwork allegedly evoke the Holocaust? Details explored as rapper issues apology 

Skepta revealed the artwork for his upcoming single Gas Me Up, which will be released as part of the singer's forthcoming album Knife and Fork sometime in 2024. The artwork, now unavailable, featured an image of a group of men with shaved heads, wearing drab uniforms, and with the song's title tattoed on their forehead.

The artwork, which drew criticism for its evocation of the Holocaust, has, as mentioned above, been taken down, with the rapper issuing an apology statement on his now unavailable Instagram Story, stating,

“I’ve been waiting to drop Gas Me Up (Diligent)nsince teasing it April last year, worked hard getting the artwork right for my album rollout which is about my parents coming to the UK in the 80’s."

The singer continued,

"Skinhead, Football culture and it has been taken offensively by many and I can promise you that was definitely not our plan so I have removed it and I vow to be more mindful going forward”

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More on Skepta and his "Gas Me Up" single statement

Skepta's apology statement regarding the former artwork of his single was welcomed by the pro-Israel US-based Jewish non-governmental organization Anti Defamation League, which specializes in pro-Israel actions as well as anti-semitism and extremism eradication programs.

The organization released a statement on the matter, welcoming the singer's apology, stating,

“We’re pleased to see that Skepta has apologized and removed the offending artwork. At a time when Holocaust denial is on the rise and knowledge of the history of the genocide of the Jewish people is dwindling, especially among young people, it is profoundly disturbing to see the Holocaust trivialized in this way.”

The matter comes at a time when there is increasing anti-semitism and Islamophobia on the rise following the October 7 attacks on Israel by a coalition of Palestinian militia organizations led by Hamas and the subsequent blockade and the subsequent ceaseless bombardment and invasion of Gaza by Israel, which protesters and governments alike have term "genocidal" in nature.

Skepta announced his new album, Knife and Fork, will be released via Boy Better Know sometime in 2024, stating in a general press statement on January 1, 2024,

"It’s been years since I dropped my last album and I want to thank you for all the love during my hiatus...I’m happy to announce my next studio album #KnifeAndFork is loading, the first single #GasMeUp (Diligent) will be out January 26th."

Skepta is best known for his fourth studio album, Konnichiwa, released on May 6, 2016. The gold-certified album peaked at number 2 in the UK and 13 on the Australian and Irish album charts, respectively. The album also won the Album of the Year award at the 2016 Mercury Prize.