After the “Doo Wop” singer’s recent performance at London’s 02 Arena, Lisa Bascoe-Smith, the mother of James Basco-Smith, revealed that her son felt “so welcome” backstage.
In 2021, James was stabbed many times while riding a bicycle in Brixton, south London.
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He suffered brain damage as a result of his heart stopping and the brain not getting enough blood or oxygen.
Speaking after their encounter, Lauryn Hill expressed her support for James’ family’s efforts to combat knife violence.
She expressed, “I think we try to do that with the music, we try to deconstruct some of the negative messages and let the (younger) generation know that you can be happy, you can be peaceful.”
The multi-grammy winner continued, “They can’t be attacking each other and hurting each other.”
“If they respect their own lives more then they will respect their neighbors’ lives more.”
According to Ms. Bascoe-Smith, her son is “all about” music. “He felt like he was someone up there, and special. It really made his evening.” She remarked, “We had a really, really good time.”
Ms. Bascoe-Smith continued, “We have these amazing moments but then we come home and reality kicks in.”
Apart from his pre-existing requirements, James was undergoing chemotherapy after receiving a cancer diagnosis.
Since taking up her son’s full-time care, she is unable to work.
Ms. Bascoe-Smith stated that she was fighting to get them out of the ground-floor apartment they were placed in after James was discharged from the hospital, but she did not want to disclose where in London they were residing out of concern for their safety.
She shared, “The house where we are living is really dark and depressing. There are no windows at the front because it’s a car park and there are train tracks at the back.”
“For James, this is his worst nightmare. We’ve had mold and we’ve had cockroaches,” the concerned parent remarked.
When Taiquane Lewis, then 19 years old, and Leon Rashid, then 20 years old, attacked James, he was just sixteen. They were both found guilty of plotting to kill and sentenced to life in prison.
