One man was known as a killer, jailed for life in 2009 for killing a 16-year-old London student in a gruesome confrontation in a bakery.

The other man was a balaclava-wearing South London rapper known as TEN, whose drill-genre music about prison life, crime and gore had given him a small but new profile.

Two once unrelated identities became entangled in Britain after tabloid investigation claimed this week that Jake Fahri, who was paroled for the bakery murder, and the artist TEN are the same person.

This conclusion cast TEN’s texts on killing, bloodshed and weapons in a new light. It also contributed to the ongoing debate about drill music, a controversial style of hip-hop that artists say is a creative outlet for their experiences. However, officials blamed a genre for playing a role in inciting violence.

Mr. Fahri what convicted of murder at the age of 19 in the murder of Jimmy Mizen, who was mortally wounded after Mr. Fahri threw a glass baking dish during the fight. The container broke when it hit Mr. Mizen, severing an artery in his neck and causing him to collapse from blood loss.

Then Mr. Fahri said that he was not guilty and that he acted in self-defense. He was sentenced to life in prison with a minimum sentence of 14 years, and was released with conditions in 2023.

A day after the article appeared in The Sun on Wednesday, Mr Fahri was detained for breaching the terms of his parole, a spokeswoman for the Probation Service said in a statement.

It did not identify the violations or specifically link it to TEN. But it says the Mizen family deserved more than “to see their son’s killer shamelessly brag about his violent crime.”

TEN rapped about being a “killer in the streets” and “running around a blade.” One poem, with an expletive, reads: “Have you ever seen a man’s soul fly out of his eyes and lose his breath? I wanted it more, it made it less wrong. I saw blood spilled on the same floor where he stayed.”

Barry Mizen, Jimmy Mizen’s father, said in an interview Saturday, “It’s wrong for him to make money off of what he did to our son — to make money off of someone’s murder.”

Margaret Mizen, Jimmy Mizen’s mother, speaking about the experience of listening to TEN’s music and the obvious references to their son’s murder in the lyrics, said: “It was incredibly painful. He took Jimmy’s life.”

But the Mizens are also concerned, they said, that rap music like TEN’s is promoting violence and drugs to impressionable young people.

“It’s almost like a war on our streets, and this kind of music helps and supports that,” Ms Mizen said.

The BBC, Britain’s national broadcaster, has come under fire after it radio show which features new UK acts including music from TEN last year. Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s office he told the BBC that the broadcaster had to “urgently answer some questions”.

A BBC spokeswoman said in a statement that they played two TEN songs, which did not contain the explicit lyrics highlighted in the tabloid reports. There were no further plans to play TEN’s music, she said, adding: “We were not aware of his past and do not condone his actions in any way.”

Attempts to reach Mr Fahri on Saturday were unsuccessful and the Instagram and X accounts linked to the TEN Spotify page were made private. In a statement posted on his Instagram account on Friday, which appeared to be from Mr. Fahri, he apologized to the Mizen family “if my words caused any harm or distress.”

“I want to make it clear that none of my lyrics are aimed at the victim or his family,” the text reads, adding that the lyrics are an “artistic expression” of his life in prison. “I don’t glorify those experiences, but they are part of my past that shaped me,” he said.

Since his release, he said he has focused on rebuilding his life, adding that he has served his entire sentence. He said he never intended for anyone to die.

“All I want is a chance to move on with my life,” he said.

Drill music, which originated in Chicago more than a decade ago, it expanded to cities like London, New York and Stockholm and sparked conversations about the balance between censorship and public safety.

Artists and fans say the songs are a form of self-expression that reflects the frustrations of struggling communities, where issues like gang conflict, gun violence and poverty are part of life. Some groups were criticized focus on drill rap as discriminatory.

But officials and authorities did blamed music to glamorize and incite violence, and even scrutinized songs as evidence of potential criminal activity. Drill rappers say they are forbidden since performing in New York and under heavy police in London, where violent crime has risen in recent years.

“It’s not about wanting him to stay in prison,” said Ms Mizen, who said Mr Fahri could have chosen to write music expressing remorse for what he had done. “It’s a case of wanting him to change.”

She was worried that this attention might bring more fame to her son’s killer.

“In some people’s eyes he will be a celebrity,” she said. “That’s the thing, the culture we live in. And that’s worrying.”