A Dundee rapper with a growing global fanbase has been blasted by a sheriff after he drove home from court moments after being slapped with a year-long road ban.
Christopher Sharp, who raps behind a skull mask as Sherps, was disqualified last year after getting caught motoring down the A90 with cannabis in his system.
The 34-year-old painter and decorator returned to Perth Sheriff Court this week and admitted driving with no insurance on the day he was disqualified.
Sheriff Alison McKay deferred sentence for background reports.
“This isn’t the first time you’ve driven a car while disqualified,” she told Sharp.
“It is of huge concern that you appear to have been disqualified from driving, walked out of court and simply driven again.”
Sharp told the sheriff his “ban was up about a month ago.”
The sheriff replied: “Not any more.
“As of today, you will be disqualified from driving ad interim – with immediate effect.
“Let me be absolutely clear – if you go out that door and drive, you will be in custody before your feet touch the ground.”
Drugs charge
Sharp, of Finella Place, admitted driving a Nissan Juke down Canal Street and onto the A90 on March 16 2022.
The court previously heard how police seized a small amount of cannabis during a roadside search on the Perth to Dundee road in July 2021.
Sharp was under the influence of the drug but not impaired.
He was found to be four times the legal limit of Delta-9-Tetrahydrocannabinol – the psychoactive substance that produces the high associated with marijuana – in his blood.
He was fined £466 and banned from driving for a year.
Music career
Sharp has emerged as a key player in Scotland’s drill rap scene.
He launched his first track as Sherps, This Life, in April 2021.
Follow-up One Step Forward Three Steps Back has been viewed more than 50,000 times.
He told The Courier his music was inspired by being homeless and his brushes with the law.
Sharp said it had been a form of therapy after losing friends through drugs and suicide.
A disclaimer on his videos states: “The lyrical content should not be taken literally.
“The artists and makers of this music and video do not condone illegal activity or violence of any kind.”
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