Lady Sovereign?
In da hood: Ladies and gentlemen, we have a fashion crisis. The humble hoodie has been worn by everyone from Franciscan monks to Little Red Riding Hood to even Death Himself, but the universal signifier of chav chic is now sadly in danger of becoming extinct. It's been banned from shopping centres across the UK in a bid to combat shoplifting, and now the ban has spread to Ireland. But one very diminutive person has decided to stand up for the hoodie and restore it to its rightful place as the world's number one fashion item. Step forward, Louise Harman aka London rap teen queen Lady Sovereign, whose "save the hoodie" campaign is fast gaining a head of steam.
Little miss dynamite: Sov, as she's known to her friends, grew up on the rather rough Chalk Hill estate in South London, so she's seen a lot of hoodies in her 19 years. She began rapping while still a teenybopper, listening to her mum's Salt 'n' Pepa cassettes and learning her moves from the many pirate radio stations broadcasting underground rap, hip-hop and garage. After being bombarded with Beethoven and Mozart in music class, Sov couldn't wait to get home and hear some real music. The young rebel MC got kicked out of school at 16 and nearly tried out for Arsenal's ladies team, but decided to give it a go as a rapper, even though she had kept her musical side secret from her family and friends. She soon got a chance to rap onscreen when she starred in an educational film about a bored young teenage rapper. Talk about perfect casting.
Rapsody: Sov's music soon found its way into the hands of acclaimed producer Medasyn, the grandson of composer Sergei Prokofiev, and he was suitably impressed with Sov's mix of rap, grime and freestyle. Next, US rapper-turned- mogul Jay-Z got to hear her stuff. He invited young Sov to his offices at Def Jam, and made her rap for him on the spot. Now, Lady Sov is blowing up in the States as well as the UK, and she adorns the covers of top hip-hop magazines and style bibles, wearing her hoodie and her trademark sovereign ring. At the rate she's going, Sov will soon be rapping alongside her heroines, Missy Elliot and Ms Dynamite.
Campaign trail: Her single, Hoodie, makes a case for this much-maligned item of clothing. Produced by Basement Jaxx, the single calls for chavs everywhere to wear their hoodies with pride. She's even taken her "save the hoodie" campaign to Downing Street, meeting Gordon Brown at a young enterprise get-together and recruiting the chancellor to her cause. Then there's the "save the hoodie" website, which details the history of the hoodie and offers tips on the different ways to wear yours (I'll go for the Kenny look).
