Idris Elba shares new single ‘Knives Down’ and calls for ban on ‘zombie knives’
'[I] can’t stay silent as young lives are lost to brutal and heartless crimes'
By Nick Reilly
Idris Elba has shared a new single to rally against knife crime, while also calling on the UK government to take stronger action to “zombie knives”.
The actor and DJ has lent his vocals to ‘Knives Down’, which sees the Luther star pleading with politicians to tackle knife-relates crimes in the UK. In 2024 alone, London has already seen two fatal stabbings.
Alongside Idris on the track is rapper DB Maz, while production comes from Fraser T Smith and FaNaTiX.
“My guy, you don’t look fly with the samurai and its blood dirty/ Eyes cry in the neighbourhood when the blood spills when they die early,” comes the track’s hard hitting opening .
Elba is appealing for the government to ban the total sale of machetes and zombie knives. The latter, which feature a serrated edge to cause maximum damage among gangs, were added to a list of prohibited offensive weapons in 2016, but a loophole means they can still be purchased online.
He also told the BBC that the issue had not received “the focus it deserves”.
The new song forms part of Elba’s new ‘Don’t Stop Your Future‘ campaign, which has teamed up with a series of brand and organisations to tackle youth violence.
Today (January 8), clothes of victims of knife crime were displayed in Parliament Square in a bid to offer a visual representation of the human cost of knife crime.
The song comes as part of Elba’s ‘Don’t Stop Your Future’ campaign, which works alongside local communities and famous brands to tackle serious violence in the UK.
As well as the song, clothes have also been displayed in London’s Parliament Square today (January 8), containing the attire of victims of knife crime. This has been done in the hopes of providing a visual representation of the cost of knife crime to MPs.
“[I] can’t stay silent as young lives are lost to brutal and heartless crimes,” Elba said.
A government spokesperson said: “Knife crime tears families apart, and we know more needs to be done. Though hospital admissions for assault by a sharp object have fallen by 25 per cent across England and Wales, we remain committed to further intervention measures.
“Through our Criminal Justice Bill, police will be given new powers to seize, retain and destroy knives found on private properties that are likely to be connected with unlawful violence.”