UK (Parliament Politics Magazine) – The rapper Stormzy was restricted from driving for nine months after being caught using a mobile phone while driving in West London.
The rapper, Michael Ebenazer Owuo Junior, 31, also known as Stormzy, confessed in a letter that he used his cell phone while riding a Rolls-Royce Wraith on Addison Road, West Kensington, at around 3:30 p.m. on March 7 last year.
According to the court, an undercover officer knocked on Stormzy’s tinted window and told him to stop using his mobile phone and get rid of the window tint.
Prosecutor Alice Holloway explained that Stormzy had previously admitted to driving a Lamborghini Urus with front windows illegally tinted at 4%, violating the required 70% light transmission limit.
Mr. Holloway stated the vehicle’s use was hazardous and compromised the safety of vulnerable road users.
The musician had six points on his license from past driving offences before the court hearing on Thursday, which may be considered during the proceedings.
The rapper was not present at the hearing; however, District Judge Andrew Sweet banned him from driving for nine months and also ordered him to pay a £2,010 penalty.
As reported by The Guardian, Mr Stormzy was stopped by officers on Coombe Lane in Kingston upon Thames at around 12:45 p.m. on 17 October 2023. The police confirmed that he had already been warned regarding his vehicle’s tinted windows.
The judge also remarked that Stormzy’s riding history was “not good” and described his behaviour as “dangerous and irresponsible.”
Stormzy’s representative in court, Peter Csemiczky, said that the rapper accepted responsibility and offered an apology. He added that his client had removed the tints from the windows.
He got fame in 2014 with his Wicked Skengman freestyles and hit track “Shut Up,” which reached number eight on the UK Singles Chart. He won Best Grime Act at the MOBO Awards in 2014 and 2015.
Stormzy has shared his journey growing up in London and his rise from local rap battles to global fame. He also dated Maya Jama from 2015 to 2019 and resumed their relationship in late 2023.
In 2018, at the BRIT Awards, he used his live music show to condemn the government’s failure to handle the 2017 Grenfell Tower fire that took the lives of 72 individuals.
In London, tinted windows are already under strict regulation to ensure road protection and visibility.
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) and officials use special equipment, such as photometers, to analyze how much light passes through window tints. If the tints are too dark, the driver may face legal action and heavy fines.