U.K. rapper Aitch apologizes after Ian Curtis mural in Manchester is painted over with album ad

Aitch is a U.K. rapper hailing from Manchester, a city steeped in musical history. Despite representing a more modern sound, Aitch has nodded to the Mancunian indie rock lineage in his music, most notably sampling The Stone Roses' "Fool's Gold" on his recent single "1989." However, the rapper has been forced into an apology after a mural of another Manchester icon, Joy Division's Ian Curtis, was plastered over and replaced with an advert for Aitch's new album Close To Home.

Work on the album advertisement began on Port Street in Manchester’s Northern Quarter this week ahead of the album release on Friday, August 19. Onlookers spotted what was happening and began posting about it on social media, leading to an immediate backlash over the decision to replace the much-loved artwork, first painted in 2020 as part of a local council mental health initiative, with an advertisement.

Aitch was quick to avoid any further controversy, tweeting that he was unaware of the plan and had ordered his team to fix it "pronto."

"It’s come to light that the iconic Ian Curtis mural on Port Street has been painted over with my album artwork,” he tweeted. “This is the first time I’ve heard of this, me and my team are getting this fixed pronto. No way on earth would I want to disrespect a local hero like Ian.”

Joy Division bassist Peter Hook was among those to respond to Aitch's tweet, replying: "Thank you @OfficialAitch great gesture."

Akse P19, the artist who painted the mural based on an image of Curtis taken by Belgian photographer Philippe Carly, added: “It doesn’t take much common sense to understand that this mural should have remained for what it represented and stood for.”