Kano means many things to many people: he's an insightful voice from grime's golden era, a poster boy for a once subterranean scene, an open-mined musician capable of collaborating with artists outside of his genre... the list goes on.

With that in mind, it would take a pretty huge leap of imagination to classify Kano as a 'foul-mouthed rapper', but that's exactly what The Sunday Times called him in an article critiquing the Creative Diploma TV ad campaign, published on January 10, 2010 (click here to have a read for yourself).

As far as TheUpDown is concerned, utilising the talent of an established UK recording artist to shed light on how the creative industries can work with the education sector is a major coup. The Sunday Times' cheap jibes, and Jack Grimston's poor attempt to quote Kano's ‘controversial’ lyrics, only exposes an inability to understand youth culture (and grasp the similies and metaphor that drive much of urban music). Had the Times been around in Shakespeare's day, they would have probably slated the playwright for the graphic violence and prevalence of dagger culture in Macbeth.

Come on guys, if you want to vilify an urban artist you'll have to chosen a better target. Keep doing your thing Kano, at least the youth from Lister community school and Notre Dame high school appreciate your efforts.

Your thoughts on the subject, as ever, are always welcome.