Italian rapper Fedez accuses state broadcaster of censorship

Italian rapper Fedez has accused state broadcaster RAI of trying to censor him during a union-sponsored May Day concert at which he accused the rightist League party of homophobia, according to Reuters.

RAI denied trying to censor Fedez and said in a statement the concert had been organised by an outside company.

Taking to the stage on Saturday night, Fedez said that for the first time in his career he had been asked to hand over a text of what he had been planning to say.

"The management of RAI 3 asked me to omit the names and the parties. I had to fight a bit, a lot, but in the end they gave me the go-ahead to express myself freely," he said.

He later released a recording in which an unnamed official working on the broadcast urges him not to denounce the League, headed by Matteo Salvini.

"I am asking you to adapt to a system that you probably don't get," the official is heard saying.

Refusing the request, Fedez read out during the concert homophobic comments made by various League councillors. He also accused the group of blocking a bill in parliament that makes violence against women and LGBT+ people a hate crime.