He is the new star that Britain’s Got Talent hopes can revive its ailing fortunes.
But ITV, production company Thames and boss Simon Cowell are facing a backlash because rapper and social-media influencer KSI has made a string of racist and sexist comments in the past.
The 31-year-old, a former pupil at the £23,000-a-year Berkhamsted School in Hertfordshire, has more than 24 million YouTube subscribers and is worth an eye-watering £34 million. He began filming the talent show last week alongside fellow judges Cowell, Alesha Dixon and Amanda Holden.
But the chairman of Parliament’s culture, media and sport committee last night questioned ITV’s latest hire.
Dame Caroline Dinenage said: ‘KSI clearly brings a whole new audience to Britain’s Got Talent. But in the competition for ratings, surely ITV are questioning whether his back catalogue of unsavoury comments really represents the values that they are keen to promote in a family show.’
In one video, KSI – the initials stand for ‘Knowledge, Strength, Integrity’ – described a female YouTuber as ‘bangable’, adding, ‘there’s so many guys that would destroy her’.
In another video, later deleted, he talked about his desire to sleep with his co-star’s sister: ‘I want to explore her p****. She’s going to watch this and be like, “I need a bit of black d***.”‘
The woman he was referring to issued an emotional video response saying: ‘KSI talked about me in a derogatory and sexist way.’
He has also been condemned by the End Violence Against Women coalition for what he called his ‘rape face’ videos. With a menacing expression, he would make sexually suggestive gestures.
Last year, in a ‘Countdown challenge’ video – based on the Channel 4 show – KSI’s word was the racist term ‘P***’.
The video prompted anger, with BBC presenter Bobby Friction posting: ‘I had this racial slur thrown at me… for my entire childhood. Genuinely upset that KSI (a guy my children love) did this & thought it was funny.’
KSI later apologised and removed the film.
Dr Charlotte Proudman, the founder of Right To Equality, said: ‘KSI’s misogynistic and sexist comments over the years show a deeply troubling pattern of behaviour.
‘By giving him a mainstream platform, ITV is effectively condoning this toxic attitude towards women and bigoted views towards marginalised people. Apologies mean little when followed by repeated offences. In a family show, the values promoted should reflect respect and equality – not give space to someone who’s built a career trivialising rape and objectifying women.’
ITV and Thames were approached for comment.
A source close to KSI said: ‘KSI understands that words have consequences, and he has demonstrated that he is dedicated to making amends and using his platform for good.
‘He has owned his mistakes and continues to strive to do better and be better.’