Adapted from a Church of England release
A rap song aimed at warning young people about the possible dangers of payday lenders is available for free download.
Inspired by the Archbishop of Canterbury’s comments on responsible lending, songwriter and music producer Charles Bailey approached the Church of England with the idea for the rap.
“We Need a Union on the Streets” features Bailey, Question Musiq, and Delilah, and Martin Lewis of MoneySavingExpert.com. It tells the stories of young people who fall into debt because of payday loans with high interest rates, and it mentions credit unions as a better way to borrow.
Charles said of his involvement: “When I listened to the Archbishop of Canterbury speaking out about payday lenders, I felt moved to do something to help his task group to reach to the urban youth who are often the victims and introduce them to a much safer and ethical way of borrowing through credit unions.”
Martin Lewis said: “The payday loan industry is relatively new, and has used powerful marketing to build its business and groom young people to think it is normal. It isn’t normal. It’s an extremely expensive way to borrow that most should avoid. ”
… “I am thrilled that Charles was inspired to contact us and use his creative gifts to support the Church of England’s response to the very real problems of payday lending,” said Elizabeth Henry, the church’s adviser for minority ethnic Anglican concerns. “Efforts like this help the Church to extend its reach and engage with people on issues that affect their everyday lives. The song is appealing and I hope will get the message across to all communities that credit unions are a much safer way to borrow.”
