Anti-apartheid singer demands Tommy Robinson cease and desist after using anthem at rally

Singer-songwriter Labi Siffre has told far-right activist Tommy Robinson to stop using his hit song (Something Inside) So Strong and accused him of theft.

Tommy Robinson, whose real name is Steven Yaxley-Lennon, used the anti-apartheid anthem during his recent Unite the Kingdom rally in central London, when a former X-factor contestant singing the song to the over 100,000 people at the march.

Robinson has also reportedly incorporated the song into his social media posts, and posted quotes of the lyrics in August ahead of the rally.

Now 80-year-old Siffre has told The Guardian that he has sent a cease and desist order to Robinson. He told the publication: “Anyone who knows me and knows my work since 1970 will know the joke of them using the work of a positive atheist, homosexual black artist as apparently representative of their movement.”

He added: “They’re breaking all sorts of copyrights. Even in an era when theft is easier than it ever was, it’s still theft.”

Siffre’s hit singles in the 70s included It Must Be Love, Crying Laughing Loving Lying and Watch Me. He came back from a sabbatical from music in 1984 after being inspired by a documentary about apartheid in South Africa. In response, he wrote (Something Inside) So Strong and the song reached number four in the UK charts. It was said to be Nelson Mandela’s favourite song.

A cover of the song was sung by former X-factor contestant Charlie Heaney at the Unite the Kingdom rally in September. The demonstration saw between 110,000 and 150,000 people march through London.

The rally saw tech billionaire Elon Musk attend via video link and address the crowds. Mr Musk claimed that a “dissolution of parliament” was needed and said “massive uncontrolled migration” was contributing to the “destruction of Britain”.

While the demonstration was one of the largest far-right protests in recent memory, singer Siffre told The Guardian that it was not unprecedented.

He said: “It’s just same old, same old. I wish the media would stop talking about this as an unprecedented movement. There’s nothing unprecedented about it. Anyone who has even the slightest knowledge of 20th-century history should know that.”

Tommy Robinson has been contacted for comment.