{"id":791452,"date":"2026-10-04T07:00:11","date_gmt":"2026-10-04T07:00:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/791452\/"},"modified":"2026-10-04T07:00:11","modified_gmt":"2026-10-04T07:00:11","slug":"protestant-and-proud-young-spencer-meet-the-shankill-roads-answer-to-kneecap-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/791452\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Protestant and proud\u2019 Young Spencer: Meet the Shankill Road\u2019s answer to Kneecap \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

Passing cars slow to beep their horns at Gareth Spence when he walks through the rain-soaked streets of Belfast<\/a>\u2019s Shankill estate. This is the loyalist stronghold where the rapper, known as Young Spencer, grew up.<\/p>\n

Neighbours wave from doorsteps under a sea of red, white and blue bunting as two enormous dogs attempt to jump their owner\u2019s gate.<\/p>\n

It was \u201cUDA country\u201d, says the 32-year-old, nodding his head in the direction of paramilitary murals on gable ends. <\/p>\n

\u201cWelcome to Loyalist Lower Shankill, 2nd Batt C Com\u201d is daubed on a blue wall, a reference to the notorious C Company unit of the Ulster Defence Association<\/a>. The unit \u2013 linked to dozens of sectarian murders \u2013 was embroiled in a bloody loyalist feud more than 25 years ago. <\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a big distinction between coming from here and further up the Shankill Road \u2026 some people see you as coming from down in the gutter when you\u2019re from this part,\u201d says Spence.<\/p>\n

\u201cGrowing up as a teenager, you\u2019re thinking, \u2018maybe change that?\u2019 There\u2019s been people making change here for years. Youth workers, football coaches, community workers \u2013 these people were integral to my upbringing and how I\u2019ve been raised.\u201d<\/p>\n

In August, Young Spencer performed at a sell-out concert headlined by rap group Kneecap, during the F\u00e9ile an Phobail community arts festival in west Belfast.<\/p>\n

Fans draped in Tricolours chanted his lyrics at the Uppa Falls charity gig in Falls Park. Climate activist Greta Thunberg was among many in the crowd wearing Kneecap\u2019s signature balaclavas.<\/p>\n

\"GarethGareth Spence says the country is changing. Photograph: Enda O’Dowd <\/p>\n

\u201cAs a proud British born and raised Protestant from the Shankill estate, I thought I\u2019d died and gone to Fenian heaven for about two hours,\u201d Spence says, with a smile, about the performance.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut do you know what, you live here with a curiosity because often when you\u2019re young, you\u2019re told, \u2018don\u2019t mix with themuns\u2019. They\u2019re not you and you\u2019ll never mix\u2019. So then you grow this curiosity and you confront it. I was the type that always liked asking \u2018why\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

Our interview took place before the resurrection of the Drumcree parades dispute in Portadown.<\/p>\n

Asked about its fallout on Tuesday, Spence admits he is worried.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really starting to separate people again in my community. Tensions are rising,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

He is speaking on his phone while walking up the nationalist Cliftonville Road in north Belfast.<\/p>\n

A motorist beeps the horn and gets out of his car.<\/p>\n

It is day three of the standoff between Garvaghy Road residents and the Orange Order.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s it right there in a nutshell. I\u2019m coming up the Cliftonville and there\u2019s someone called Kevin – who I don\u2019t know – pulling in to shake my hand.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo I still feel confident in the future generation and its abilities – regardless of what happens politically.\u201d<\/p>\n

Back in early September, when we meet on the Shankill Road, he has rushed from his day job at a school in north Belfast. Dressed in a green leather jacket, white top and jeans, headphones hang round his neck. Four teenagers shout his name from their car outside a KFC.<\/p>\n

Despite the visible support, Spence is aware that his association with Kneecap \u201cdivides opinion on this road\u201d.<\/p>\n

\"KneecapKneecap trio M\u00f3gla\u00ed Bap, DJ Pr\u00f3va\u00ed and Mo Chara. Photograph: Yamil Lage\/AFP via Getty Images <\/p>\n

It is the second time in two years he has shared a stage with the Irish language rappers. Online critics have accused him of selling out.<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course, there\u2019s the hatred. There\u2019s people who just don\u2019t understand what you\u2019re doing,\u201d he says. \u201cBut mainly I\u2019ve have been blown away by the love and appreciation. It always outweighs any negativity.\u201d<\/p>\n

Others have claimed he is \u201cchasing headlines\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve had people complain that we\u2019re not really conscious of kids watching us. We are. That\u2019s the whole point,\u201d Spence says.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve had to deal with the ramifications of not growing up directly in the Troubles but being raised by families who were. That\u2019s created a sense of worry within us. We\u2019re just young people who have our ways and methods of how we feel we can bring people together, through music and art.<\/p>\n

\u201cKneecap and Young Spencer could not have supported each other 30 years ago because somebody was dying; someone was getting killed.\u201d<\/p>\n

In an interview with The Irish Times earlier this year, Kneecap\u2019s Mo Chara expressed his respect for the Shankill rapper. Their relationship highlights how young people are \u201cmoving on\u201d, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m a republican and I suppose he\u2019s a unionist. But he is being authentically himself, and I respect that. I respect him. He has this tune, P.R.O.D., and I love that. I think that\u2019s unreal,\u201d Mo Chara said.<\/p>\n

Spence nods on hearing this.<\/p>\n

[\u00a0Stevie Wonder releases four unheard tracks from Songs in the Key of Life sessionsOpens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n

\u2018I don\u2019t agree with everything the lads say and they don\u2019t agree with everything I say, but I respect the artistry,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cI see more than the headlines that people want to create. I see genuine lads that\u2019s telling their story of how they grew up in west Belfast \u2013 that\u2019s what I\u2019ve always related to.\u201d<\/p>\n

Passing a playpark close to his home in the estate \u2013 it was waste ground known as the \u201cMuckhills\u201d when he was a child \u2013 Spence points to a street where children from a nearby Catholic school cut through on their way home.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese are still very much impoverished areas, it\u2019s the same on both sides. But it\u2019s different to when I was growing up,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cI saw two guys the other week at a car wash on the Shankill wearing Celtic tops. It was all right to me. I\u2019m a Rangers fan but I thought, \u2018go do your thing, go get your car washed\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"YoungYoung Spencer in the Shankill area of Belfast. Photograph: Enda O’Dowd <\/p>\n

Not every fan of Kneecap is from the \u201cCatholic\/nationalist side,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cKids come up in the school where I work and tell me quietly, \u2018I listen to Kneecap too\u2019. What\u2019s amazing for me is to see that barrier start to become broken down.\u201d<\/p>\n

Walking up to Beatties fish bar (a \u201cstaple\u201d of Shankill life, he says smiling, \u201cmy granny used to come here\u201d), Spence speaks a few words of Irish. He has started taking classes.<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of people say that\u2019s not my language. But should that deter me from learning Irish? How many proud Irish Protestants have spoken it?<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s a very poetic language because there\u2019s a multitude of things you can say for one thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

[\u00a0New Irish albums reviewed and rated: Driven Snow, David Geraghty, Andy Irvine, Last Apollo, Sorcha RichardsonOpens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n

Windows are misted up in Beatties, where a pensioner is tucking into a chip butty and mug of strong tea before the evening rush. Union flag bunting criss-crosses the entire ceiling of the small premises.<\/p>\n

Spence orders a pastie before returning to the Irish language.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you go on holiday, you always think about learning the language. To me, any genuine person would respect you for trying.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat makes that any different from me being over in west Belfast saying to someone, Sl\u00e1inte a chara, m\u00edle bu\u00edochas [cheers my friend, thanks a million]. It\u2019s just a term of endearment.\u201d<\/p>\n

A so-called Peace Wall divides the Shankill Road from the Falls Road.<\/p>\n

Built at the beginning of the Troubles, it reaches 14 metres (45ft) in height at certain points and stretches for 650 metres, making it the highest and longest of the remaining interface structures in the city.<\/p>\n

Outside the shop, Spence acknowledges that if he \u201cgrew up 10 minutes the other side of that wall\u201d he\u2019d be \u201ccampaigning for the same things\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d be wanting the Irish language to be as pivotal as the English language is.\u201d<\/p>\n

The P.R.O.D acronym he uses on his social media platforms is a \u201cset of principles to live by\u201d as opposed to a label, he says, adding: \u201cPassion, persistence, respect, resilience, opportunity to overcome, dedication, determination.\u201d<\/p>\n

Music has been \u201ctherapy\u201d since his early teens. Educated in an integrated primary school \u2013 \u201cmy mum was big on us mixing with other kids\u201d \u2013 he spent childhood summers playing cross-community football tournaments.<\/p>\n

His parents separated when he was 12.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was bullied in school and things got bad. Thankfully I got help and the writing took over.\u201d<\/p>\n

He beams in torrential rain recalling the moment \u201csome random person\u201d posted a tweet suggesting a Young Spencer-Kneecap collaboration during Covid. \u201cKneecap reposted it. I thought it was crazy but it showed there was mutual respect.\u201d<\/p>\n

When the band\u2019s film was released in 2024, Spence says he remembers watching it and \u201cwanting to reach out to them even if nothing ever comes back\u201d.<\/p>\n

Fears of a backlash stopped him.<\/p>\n

[\u00a0Westside Cowboy at Whelan\u2019s review: Like watching tomorrow\u2019s superstars grow up before your eyesOpens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n

\u201cThe conflict in my own mind was that right away I knew someone from where I\u2019m from is going to have a problem. I then wrote a song called Shankill Son. I said in the song, \u2018Salute the Kneecap from P.R.O.D.\u2019 and I knew it would start the spark and start the conversation.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought then we could build some sort of connection. We don\u2019t have to be best mates but I thought we could do something for the city that we both come from, that we\u2019re both proud of and not be deterred from the fact that you\u2019re from the Falls and I\u2019m from the Shankill.\u201d<\/p>\n

A month before Kneecap\u2019s pre-Christmas SSE Arena performance in 2024, he received a message from them.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was M\u00f3gla\u00ed Bap. He asked if I wanted to do a few songs in the SSE.<\/p>\n

\u201cRight away, I\u2019m pacing up and down the livingroom, thinking \u2018oh my God\u2019. I\u2019ve been dreaming of this … but I was worried about telling my family.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt wasn\u2019t normal for where I was from. And fair play to the lads, I\u2019ll always have respect for them. Not too many people on my side have been offered an opportunity like that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Last month he was invited to perform at the Fleadh in Belfast. The event has been hailed a watershed moment for the city; loyalist marching bands were among those who took part.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere was something like two billion eyes and ears on Belfast because of the Fleadh,\u201d says Spence.<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of people are going to say, \u2018well that\u2019s not us\u2019. But I think now, the conversations we\u2019re having, the news we\u2019re making, the unity we\u2019re bringing among this city and this country regardless of what it\u2019s called \u2013 Northern Ireland or the North \u2013 is breathtaking.\u201d<\/p>\n

At traffic lights on our walk back down the Shankill, Spence laughs when he spots a blue sticker on a lamp-post.<\/p>\n

\u201cBelfast Groove Collective\u201d is written on it.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s my cousin, he\u2019s part of it. He\u2019s in a band,\u201d he says. \u201cRight now, everyone wants to be a rapper. Everyone wants to be an artist.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe thought that you could be a rapper and perform to a sell-out crowd in Belfast was unthinkable 20 years ago. You were a laughing stock to even talk about it.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s so much change.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Passing cars slow to beep their horns at Gareth Spence when he walks through the rain-soaked streets of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":791453,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[1334,19668,96,78664,3703,128,1647,56,260550,54,55,15749],"class_list":["post-791452","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-music","tag-belfast","tag-common-ground","tag-entertainment","tag-greta-thunberg","tag-kneecap","tag-music","tag-northern-ireland","tag-uk","tag-ulster-defence-association","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom","tag-weekendreview"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/791452","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=791452"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/791452\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/791453"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=791452"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=791452"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=791452"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}