Rapper Morad will sit in the Barcelona Provincial Court’s dock this Wednesday on charges stemming from a mass clash with municipal police in L’Hospitalet de Llobregat during the filming of a music video in August 2021. The prosecution names him as a presumed “instigator” of the events and seeks a total of seven years in prison for inciting public disturbances and for aggravated assault with a dangerous instrument. This is the most serious case facing the 24-year-old artist to date.
Prosecutors allege in their indictment, which this newspaper has obtained, that the confrontation between Morad and members of the local police ended with about a dozen officers receiving egg impacts on their uniforms and six police vehicles damaged by stones and tire punctures valued at 2,041 euros.
According to the filing, Morad, during the filming of a video for the song Paper, shot in the Plaza de los Blocs in La Florida around 14:40 on August 11, 2021, when roughly 150 people gathered, disregarded directions from the Guardia Urbana officers who arrived at the shoot after neighbors complained about noise. The production, attributed to the French label Sativa Music, allegedly took place without the proper authorization from the governing authority, and Morad is said to have acted as the instigator of the later clash with the police.
Defence sources emphasize that Morad was among more than 100 people present and that, as seen in the public video released on August 27, 2021, the rapper interacted with a sergeant to intervene. The defence argues that the crowd gathered due to the popularity of Morad and Rim’K, a French rapper, and that the filming occurred in a public street consistent with the urban genre both artists represent. The track Paper, from Rim’K’s catalog, is described as a street narrative presenting verses in French such as references to a police presence in the morning hours on the street.
Morad is labeled as the instigator in the accusation. The document states that, at the event, he allegedly addressed attendees with phrases like “the street is ours,” and reportedly told the officers present that they “do not matter here.” The indictment indicates that he allegedly ignored officers’ orders to stop filming the video, displaying what the prosecutors describe as hostile and obstructive behavior, and warning that the incident could turn bad if his appearance continued in the plaza.
The prosecution claims that the artist from the La Florida neighborhood continued acting as an instigator, urging the crowd to move to the far side of the square, which enabled the mob to direct insults toward the police, discharging eggs and large stones at officers and vehicles again. The filing asserts that the rapper egged the crowd on against the law enforcement and told them that the police would hit his car, and that when he shouted “now, now,” the crowd hurled stones hitting the vehicles.
The defence denies that Morad, known for songs with protests and social critique, instructed others to disrupt public order. They contend that the singer did not throw anything at officers and that his alleged involvement rests solely on the accounts of the officers involved. They describe the prosecution’s request as disproportionate given Morad’s substantial career and the public nature of the filming.
Morad, who has recently completed a successful European tour and filled three consecutive nights at the Sant Jordi Club in Barcelona, is currently barred from the Plaza de los Blocs in La Florida under a precautionary measure related to events that occurred about two months after the filming. He faces charges of inciting public disturbances, with the prosecution seeking six years of prison for the artist under those allegations.