British grime godfather Wiley has been charged with burglary and assault after allegedly attacking another man in London, according to BBC. Billboard also reports that Wiley will appear at Thames Magistrates’ Court next week after being arrested on Monday, September 3 in connection with the August 28 incident. Allegedly, Wiley broke into the home of kickboxer Ali Jacko, causing what BBC called “a minor injury” for which “paramedics had not been needed.” However, Wiley will be charged with assault by beating and burglary with intent to cause criminal damage for the incident.
Incidentally, the last time Wiley was in the headlines, he didn’t fare much better. He was banned from Facebook (and Facebook’s subsidiary Instagram) last summer for making anti-Semitic comments on the platform just days after receiving a similar suspension on Twitter. Wiley also got dropped by his management company, capping his fall from grace — which, ironically, came at just about the height of his recognition after a decades-long career spent pioneering the UK grime scene.
His position at the forefront of the scene initially lent at least a little credence to his accusations of cultural appropriation against dabblers in the scene like Drake and Ed Sheeran, but quickly swerved into salty old man-ism when he included new wave leader Stormzy in his tirades. After a back-and-forth battle between the two, Stormzy appeared to come out on top by default as Wiley self-destructed his public image.