Watch prisoner Charles Bronson ask Derbyshire rapper ICE.T.21 to work with him - as parole hearing continues

Rapper Thomas Cseve, 38, who performs under the name ICE.T.21, said that George Bamby, Charles Bronson’s son, has asked him to work with his father on a new song to help fight knife crime. Notorious prisoner Bronson, 70, hopes to regain freedom after almost 50 years behind bars as he faces his parole hearing this week.

ICE.T.21, who lives in Derby, where he grew up, was approached by the prisoner’s son after Bronson heard his song raising awareness about knife crime. George messaged the rapper on Facebook and sent him an audio recording of a phone call with his dad, during which Bronson mentions ICE.T.21.

Bronson said to his son: “Make a meet with me and ICE-T. Us three, nice cup of coffee somewhere. Because I think I could do a rap with him. I heard he's doing something with the knife crime.”

ICE.T.21, who has almost a million Instagram followers, said: “I was shocked and scared because at the beginning I didn’t even know if it was really him. Now that it was confirmed I'm quite excited to see how his parole hearing goes. If he will be released, I will have a meeting with him to discuss what we could do together to help other people and raise awareness about knife crime.

“If he doesn't get released, I hope we can talk about what he could do inside the prison to help me get the message across. Now I have to wait until the results of the parole hearing but I would definitely want to work with him.

"For me, knife crime is a very important topic because I've lost a friend through knife crime. Growing up in Derbyshire and having friends and family here and in Nottinghamshire, I noticed that this type of crime is a big problem here and it also affects many other areas in the UK. It is everywhere.

ICE.T.21, who is currently touring in Hungary, added: “I have a tingling feeling when I think how many people I could help if I work with Charles Bronson. It would give me a unique opportunity to raise awareness about knife crime. And maybe could help him get his parole in the future if he is not released now? I think you must take every opportunity to try to turn any negative situation into something positive.

“When I started rapping, I couldn't even do it properly. But I wanted to make a difference with my music. I realised you don't have to be like everybody else to make it in the music industry. You should always do what you feel is correct. Now I have almost two million followers across social media. I did songs about bullying, crime, and war in Ukraine. I want to influence people in a positive way and I’m honoured that I can do this.”

Bronson, who has been in jail for 48 years, almost continuously, much of it in solitary confinement, said he is now reformed. The parole hearing, which began on Monday, is Bronson’s eighth – the previous seven having been unsuccessful – but his first to be held in public.