Jamz chats to rapper and musician Berwyn on this episode of Between The Lines about his track DEAR IMMIGRATION, taken from his Mercury-Nominated debut album.

The Trinidad-born artist talks to Jamz about how the song was inspired by his treatment at the hands of the UK Immigration authorities.

They also discuss how sacrifice plays a role in Berwyn’s creative process and how his deep love of psychology works its way into his music.

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Watch the Music Video for DEAR IMMIGRATION    • BERWYN - DEAR IMMIGRATION (Official V...  

Lyrics:

Dear immigration, I’m writing you this letter as a part of my application, my lawyer said if I
gave an explanation of my situation and shed a little light on all the shit I’m facing it might
help with my case

Sometimes I think it was the heavens testing Meh
You took my rights and then you took what ever was left of meh
I looked to the sky every night look for the recipe
Whilst you sent letters tryna threaten me about arresting me

You give me a stomach ache
You made me feel like a fugitive and runaway
I hate you for putting away my mother away in Holloway
You made me look in the mirror in horror
and took my tomorrows
You made me despise the person standing front of Meh

Today my little brother told me he wants sell drugs and I hate you for that, I really blame you
for that. How is he born in the country and still he need papers and that. You made him
wanna sell drugs and he’s so much greater than that

I came here in 2005 when I was just 9
Just a child who really needed his mum at the time
I had no idea she was on drugs at the time
She had no papers and couldn’t get no jobs at the time

But she wanted a better life for her son at the time
So she did whatever she could do to find funds at the time
I won’t sit here and lie some of the time
I wish it was different and it weren’t how it was at the time
But I was only nine and my friends had guns at the time
And they was just kidnapping children for fun at the time

I want you to know since I was nine I’ve felt like a crime.
I used to imagine you coming for me every day of my life
Like a movie in my mind and play the shit on rewind.
I used to argue with teachers all of the time
Tell them I’d sit where I wanna
But the truth is I just needed a window to climb
For my peace of mind
How do you sleep at night

You told my mum to give me up, she took me away to hide
Look me in the eyes and say you won’t do the same for your child
Furthermore I’ll never get the chance to look you in the eyes
You’re not even real but you wanna make me feel like i’m the lie
We used to wake up hit the bottle see what job we could find
Working for 30 a day going till 12 in the night
More times bossman would just all ah the ps and then hide
All you did was get us hooked on all these drugs to get us by
I wish you knew what it was like
At the bottom of the pile

You took away my smile
I was just a fucking child
Now my tears run for miles
Coming Like the river Nile
Dear immigration you are vile
And you can stick that on my file
I ain’t begging you for nothing
I don’t know why I’m on trial
For these are my tribulations
For these are my tribulations
All I needed was a SIM card and a heart to make it out the simulation

These are my tribulations
Dear immigration,
I hope you take all of the facts into consideration when you decide on my case.
I don’t mind what you say
It’s been a very long ride and I’m tired,

You’re sincerely
Berwyn the great

Chapters
0:00 Intro
1:29 Being the Sacrificial Lamb
5:18 Vega
6:39 The Internet is the Source of Finding People
8:00 Contemplation
9:33 The Storytelling in YG
11:10 Building a Machine for Information
16:32 Contemplation and the song DEAR IMMIGRATION
17:02 Immigration Status
25:07 The Word "Illegal"
30:11 What he Remembers of Trinidad
31:11 Music of the 50s and 60s
33:06 What Makes a Great Songwriter?
37:32 Getting It Out
40:44 The 3 Pillars of Success
41:18 Faith and Art
42:34 Psychology
45:14 Art is Politics
46:38 Politically Driven Artists