Telford rapper raps non-stop up the Wrekin with PA system strapped to his back to raise money for charity

Trademark Blud, aka Tim, battled through severe downpours on Saturday (September 20) to scale the famous Shropshire landmark, rhyming all the way to the summit in aid of Recharge - a Telford-based charity that supports 12- to 21-year-olds struggling with substance use or living with addiction in their families. 

Tim, who began rapping at just six years old and has been on the local music scene since his teens, said he was inspired to take on the challenge after visiting a Recharge open day.

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"I have been rapping for most of my life and I was thinking about how I could use the music as a way of raising money," he said. 

"I was up the Wrekin with the family one day and suddenly thought that I could do a performance at the top. The idea then developed that I could rap whilst walking up, and have a speaker, then it would become a challenge and be difficult to do."

Accompanied by a group of family, friends, and supporters, Tim braved the weather and the weight of a nearly 20kg speaker backpack, rapping non-stop on the climb.

He added freestyles along the way to keep things lively, and kept going until the speaker's battery finally died - just as he reached the summit and was halfway through his final song.

"It was great," he continued. "The weather added to the challenge and made it more difficult.

"But, I had loads of people with me and the atmosphere was really good. Them cheering me on made it feel easier.

"The time passed a lot differently and made it seem like a blink. If I was walking up on my own then I would have been counting every second and really struggled.

"It was non-stop rapping the whole time, and I threw a few freestyles in there as well. They are usually quite comical, a funny way to break up the songs.

"I charged the PA the night before, but for some reason when I turned it on, it only had a quarter of battery. That was scary.

"As I got to the summit, I performed half of my last song and the battery died. I got there to the second really."

The Telford rapper trained for six to seven weeks to prepare for the challenge - but was still feeling the effects the next day.

He added: "The bag with the speaker was just under 20kg. It was a good bag to be fair, so it was designed to distribute the weight, so it wasn't like a 'World's Strongest Man' lift, that's for sure. 

"But, it did make it more difficult. Your body is not used to carrying that weight, it was that little extra and made a difference.

"I was quite stiff the morning after, but not as stiff as I would have been without the training."

The event has raised more than £1,000 for the charity so far - a total that Tim hopes will continue to rise.

Tim first worked with Recharge before the Covid-19 pandemic, hosting music workshops to help young people use rap and songwriting as a creative outlet and a way to "build confidence".

He later supported a knife crime awareness project linked to the Knife Angel sculpture’s visit to Telford.

Tim said: "Through my wok with them, I have realised what a great impact they were having on people's lives. It really touched me, and I am in awe and inspired by the work they do."