Police have used language experts to investigate whether several popular reggae artists have incited violence against gay people.

The gay rights group ‘Outrage!’ complained to police about the lyrics of several artists, several of whom were nominated for Mobo awards, in September.

“The Racial and Violent Crime Task Force is investigating a complaint, alleging the songs of a number of reggae artists incite homophobic assaults and murder due to the lyrics,” a police statement said.

Police bought CDs from some of these artists and used experts to translate from patois to Standard English.

The police file has now been passed to the Crown Prosecution Service, who will advise police on whether an offence has been committed.