Jamie J

Mum

And my Mum I really love you
You’re the angel in my life no one is above you
Without you in my life I’d have no one to run to
I should be truly hated for what I put my Mum through
Yeah listen up this is a love song
See I’m 17 now and I realise that I done wrong
As a single parent Mum you’ve always carried on strong
And you heat up my heart like a red hot tong
And in your heart Mum I hope you feel this
My Mum’s still bringing up kids with an illness
I hope you still love me Mum that’s my real wish
Social workers in your life that’s a real bitch
And I’m sorry for the pain and trouble
They say they lowered your income you should be claimin double
Bringing up 2 more kids that’s a blatant struggle
Dad was hardly ever there but I’m not blamin Russell
From now on I’m going to show my Mum that I’ve grown up
And anything that I do from now on then I own up
In jail I couldn’t wait to pick the phone up
And if I couldn’t hear my Mum’s voice then I’d go nuts
I heard my Mum cry on the phone that day
I went back to my cell I laid down and prayed
I said to God I can’t treat, my Mum this way
He replied and said show her love, from this day.

This project ran not just in Reading Jail but also with young people at risk of going into the prison system, in partnership with Reading Youth Offending Service, and Cranbury College Pupil Referral Unit. Here, Jamie, age 17, describes his experience of writing:

‘I was 14 when I went to Secure Training centre for robbery, and I came out same attitude and I was worser if anything. I was getting arrested all the time. But then I started to write things down what I’ve been through, and now I’m trying to put my life forward. I been sat in that cell for 4 months just thinking of my life, making songs. If I write it down I go deeper into the situation.’