Skepta Cleared Up The Meaning Behind His ‘Gas Me Up (Diligent)’ Cover Art With A Thorough Explanation

Lil Nas X isn’t the only rap star riling up the internet with the cover art for his comeback single.

UK grime star Skepta recently announced his return, sharing the artwork for his upcoming single “Gas Me Up (Diligent).” However, after a backlash, he’s since rescinded that artwork, while also offering an explanation clearing up his intentions for it.

The cover, which featured a photograph of men with the song’s title tattooed onto their shaved heads, was criticized for evoking Holocaust imagery. Fans apparently connected the term “gas me up” with the Nazis’ practice of gassing Jewish prisoners in concentration camps, where they also shaved inmates’ heads.

According to Skepta, though, the imagery was meant to instead evoke a different historical period (arguably, one that was politically diametrically opposed to the fascist leanings of early 20th century Germany.

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

However, he acknowledged, “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.”

In a follow-up tweet, he presented images of the time period to which the art pointed, along with a further explanation — and a warning. “I can honestly see how my single artwork without context can be deemed offensive, especially in a time like this but again that was not my intention,” he wrote. “But after some thought I don’t feel like I could continue being the artist you all know and love if my art is policed, I have to quit if I can’t express my art as I see it. So to help with context here are some pictures from our mood board for the 1980’s UK story for my album ‘Knife & Fork.’”

He also made sure to note that “Gas Me Up” is still scheduled to be released on January 26.

For more context, check out some of the photos provided by fans below. For reference, “skinheads” were an entirely different thing in the UK in the ’80s, and the neo-Nazi groups that arose in the US later in the decade notably co-opted the look for themselves, because bigots are nothing if not terribly uncreative.