A Welsh spoof of the Jay-Z and Alicia Keys hit Empire State of Mindthat clocked up more than two million YouTube hits in a matter of weeks has been removed from the site.
Newport(Ymerodraeth State of Mind) features lyrics written by 24-year-old Londoner MJ Delaney to fit around the hip-hop tune, and an accompanying video that is a parody of the original. The revised lyrics swap references to Brooklyn and the Yankees for ruminations on Swansea and TV presenter and Newport native Josie D'Arby. The song has even spawned a riposte by Welsh comedy- rap group Goldie Lookin Chain.
The parodied version of the song was performed by rapper Alex Warren and singer Terema Wainwright, but EMI Music Publishing – who own the copyright to the original – have had it removed.
All is not lost, however – it can still be viewed on numerous other sites, for the time being, at least.
