Pablo Hasel didnt want to go to prison.

Although an appeals judge reduced the term to nine months, Hasel still didnt think it was right.

Neither did a lot of people in Spain.

Spanish rapper Pau Rivadulla (32) aka Pablo Hasel, poses in Lleida on February 12, 2021. - Despite moving to ease penalties for “excesses in freedom of expression” this week, Spain’s government was under pressure today as the deadline loomed for a convicted rapper’s sentence. The case hit the headlines this week when hundreds of artists threw their support behind Pablo Hasel who convicted for glorifying terrorism, slander and libel against the Crown and State institutions. (Photo by Pau BARRENA / AFP) / The erroneous mention[s] appearing in the metadata of this photo by Pau BARRENA has been modified in AFP systems in the following manner: [on February 12, 2021] instead of [on February 12, 2020]. Please immediately remove the erroneous mention[s] from all your online services and delete it (them) from your servers. If you have been authorized by AFP to distribute it (them) to third parties, please ensure that the same actions are carried out by them. Failure to promptly comply with these instructions will entail liability on your part for any continued or post notification usage. Therefore we thank you very much for all your attention and prompt action. We are sorry for the inconvenience this notification may cause and remain at your disposal for any further information you may require. (Photo by PAU BARRENA/AFP via Getty Images)

Spanish rapper Pablo Hasel in Lleida on February 12, 2021.PAU BARRENA/AFP/Getty Images

Juan Carlos the idiot, mafia boss plundering the Spanish kingdom, Hasel raps in Spanish on the chorus.

On TV they say hes useful of course, to his dealer and the brothel owner.

Juan Carlos the idiot, the revolution will overtake his palace.

A German-Danish business consultant, with whom Juan Carlos was having an affair, joined him on the trip.

Two months later, Juan Carlos sent65 millionto her private bank account.

(This year, for context, the Spanish royal family is slated to receive8,431,150from the countrys budget.)

It wassuspended as long as Hasel didnt commit a second offense.

But he kept rapping, so on Jan. 28, 2021, they gave him10 daysto turn himself in.

He refused, and the walls began to close around him.

The demonstratorsemptied fire extinguishers, filling the air with haze.

This fascist government wont stop us, Hasel told press cameras as they took him away.

They wont defeat us with their repression!

You cant take all the Pablos!shoutedthe supporters.

At 10, he learned about rap from a TV movie, went out and bought an N.W.A.

record, brought it straight home to the mini hi-fi, and fell in love.

By 16, he had recorded his first song, and soon he was uploading them online.

When Hasel was arrested, there were riots, fires, Molotov cocktails, and clashes with the police.

Now, four years into a six-year-two-month prison sentence, the news cycle has ended.

)Related ContentSaiko Is Making a Concept Album About a Galaxy.

Advocates support his right to freedom of expression but may not always agree with all of his politics.

If you believe in human rights and freedom of speech, you have to defend him.

Hasel has become a lightning rod that has rallied people across Spain.

This isaccordingto FreeMuse, an independent, international NGO thatconsultswith the UN and UNESCO.

(In 2021, the artistC.

Tanganapartneredwith Amnesty International Spain to encourage people to venture to reform the penal code.)

The reaction has been mixed.

Freedom of expression is fundamental, and is linked to other rights and freedoms.

There is not even minimal democracy here if they imprison us for denouncing even proven facts.

The conditions forSpains climate of repression began brewing in the 2000s.

At one point, thousands of demonstratorssurroundedthe Spanish Parliament in Madrid.

Fernando Paniagua de Paz volunteers at No Callarem alongside Tapia, which theyve both done since early 2017.

They asked if he might be able to do something similar with Hasel.

Im not guilty of those things.

I simply explain them, just like a lot of the media has.

And these are objective facts, regardless of whether youre a Republican or a Royalist.

The purpose of this music is to go too far.

That doesnt make any sense.

Its what you say and how you say it.

And there will always be an art form that is insulting towards whatever status quo is established.

As it evolved, though, it became a medium through which artists could discuss the world around them.

One day, I was biking in the country and I saw a bunch of shacks in awful conditions.

I remember that setting a before and after.

Omare pointed out that recently hip-hop in the U.S. has been under a microscope.

Unfortunately, Marques says, prisons excel at making the public forget about people.