An aspiring rapper shot dead over the weekend had recorded a rap video uploaded to YouTube challenging a rival group a month before his death, it emerged today.

Rhyhiem Ainsworth Barton, 17, who was shot and killed in Kennington, south London, on Saturday, was said to have been a member of Moscow17 - a group which often had rap competitions, known as 'drills', with a rival Peckham crew called Zone 2.

In the track titled City Of God, Rhyhiem - who rapped under the name GB - is believed to have challenged Zone 2 by asking 'how you gonna make it even'.

Shooting victim Rhyhiem Ainsworth Barton, 17, is said to be the man on the left of this rap video, which was removed from YouTube by Moscow17 but uploaded again after his death

Pretana Morgan (centre), the mother of Rhyhiem, is comforted as she hugs a well-wisher ahead of a community meeting this afternoon in South London

The video, which was removed from YouTube by Moscow17 but uploaded again by another user following Rhyhiem's death, was the most recent in several 'drill' battles between the two groups.

Their violent rivalry is evident in another track where Moscow17 - who occasionally used the nickname 'the Russians' - told their rivals to 'check the scoreboard'.

Zone 2 responded with a video telling their opposition they will 'roll up and burst them'.

Rhyhiem's death was one of five shootings in London over the Bank Holiday weekend.

Since he was killed, a montage video of him rapping alongside fellow Moscow17 members has been uploaded to YouTube and viewed more than 29,000 times.

Comments below the video say Rhyhiem 'jinxed himself' by challenging the rival crew in the City Of God rap just four weeks before he was killed.

It comes as the Jamaican-born mother of the young rapper blamed police for his murder and said: 'They can take back their British passport'.

Moscow17 and Zone 2's violent rivalry Rhyhiem Ainsworth Barton – who was fatally gunned down in south London - was reportedly a member of the Moscow17 crew. The group, from Kennington, are said to be involved in a violent feud with rivals Zone 2 from nearby Peckham, south London. Moscow17 also had frequent rap competitions - known as 'drills' - with Zone 2, usually including lyrics aimed at antagonising their rivals. Violence is another theme of the 'drill' music the groups are known for. In 'Moscow March' – released at the end of 2016 – members rap: 'We're known for the stabbings.' In the track titled City Of God, Rhyhiem - who rapped under the name GB - is believed to have challenged Zone 2 by asking 'how you gonna make it even' Zone 2 filmed their response to that track – called 'Zone 2 Step' on Moscow17's turf, according to an article in Fact magazine last year. Their violent rivalry is evident in another track where Moscow17 - who occasionally used the nickname 'the Russians' - told their rivals to 'check the scoreboard'. Zone 2 responded with a video telling their opposition they will 'roll up and burst them'. In the track 'City Of God', Rhyhiem - who rapped under the name GB - is believed to have challenged Zone 2 by asking 'how you gonna make it even'. The track also includes the line: 'We are at war with the f****** cops.' The video, which was removed from YouTube by Moscow17 but uploaded again by another user following Rhyhiem's death, was the most recent in several 'drill' battles between the two groups. Advertisement

Pretana Morgan, whose 17-year-old son Rhyhiem Ainsworth Barton was shot dead in south London on Saturday, returned to the scene yesterday to scrub his blood from the pavement and blames police for his death

Rhyhiem Ainsworth Barton (right) was a member of the masked Moscow17 crew from Kennington promoted by former BBC DJ Tim Westwood

Pretana Morgan scrubbed her son Rhyhiem Ainsworth Barton's blood from the Southwark street where he was shot in the chest on Saturday as she said the Met had failed to 'protect' him.

The 17-year-old was the first murder victim in an extraordinarily violent 48 hours that saw 11 gun, knife and acid attacks in London and across the UK.

His mother said: 'We're not being protected because of the police. The police are the ones putting us in danger. I want my son's body so I can go home [to Jamaica], they can take back their British passport. I do not want nothing from them.'

Today, it was revealed her son Rhyhiem was a rapper on London's drill scene enthusiastically promoted by former BBC DJ Tim Westwood.

He was a member of the masked Moscow17 crew from Kennington who are involved in a violent feud with rivals the Zone 2 gang from nearby Peckham.

The 17-year-old, circled, who was shot dead in the street on Saturday, appeared in a mask alongside Westwood last year in a rap video viewed on YouTube more than 170,000 times

A weekend of violence in the capital kicked off when Rhyhiem (pictured) was fatally gunned down in Southwark on Saturday

Violent incidents were recorded across the UK through the Bank Holiday weekend

He appeared in a mask alongside Westwood last year in a rap video viewed on YouTube more than 170,000 times.

THE 'DRILL' RAP MUSIC FUELLING GANG VIOLENCE IN LONDON 'Drill' music, a hip-hop subgenre, is driving the feuding gang war in London, community leaders have warned. Hundreds of videos on YouTube feature UK rappers threatening and provoking people from rival areas. To 'drill' means to fight or scrap and the violent lyrics focus on gang life, drugs, guns and killing. In one video viewed nearly three million times, rapper Digga D boasts about having to bleach his knife after using it to attack someone. In another, entitled 'Mummy's Kitchen', rappers Loski and Mayski, who are thought to be Londoners, boast about taking a blade from the family home. In the videos, which are filmed across the city, performers take care to ensure their faces are covered. The link with fatal attacks committed against young Londoners is made clear under the videos on YouTube, where commentators speculate about which groups were responsible. Advertisement

Westwood called Moscow17 'legendary' before they rapped about 'splashing' rivals - slang for stabbing someone repeatedly until they pour with blood - and bragged the gang is 'known for capping' its enemies - street language for shooting someone.

Rhyhiem, who used the name GB, was also on a leaked list of rappers Scotland Yard believed was promoting violence and goading rivals in online videos, according to The Times.

His murder was one of five shootings in London over the Bank Holiday weekend including a botched drive-by where a 13-year-old was blasted in the face as he walked along the high street in Harrow with his parents.

There were also three fatal stabbings in Liverpool, Luton and Macclesfield, Cheshire.

Rhyhiem's murder emerged after paramedics and police were called to reports of gunshots on Cooks Road in Kennington, south London, on Saturday at just after 6pm.

Rhyhiem was found on nearby Warham Street with a gunshot injury.

The 17-year-old rapper had 'so much potential', his mother said as she tearfully told of her 'handsome boy.' Ms Morgan called for a stop to the violence.

Speaking at the scene of the crime on Sunday, she said: 'Let my son be the last and be an example to everyone. Just let it stop. What must be, must be.'

Ms Morgan said her son was not in a gang and he had been 'trying to make a difference' by learning to work with children.

Fatah Warsame died after being stabbed in Liverpool city centre early on Sunday morning

Fatah, from Cardiff, was knifed in the chest in Hanover Street at around 4am on a bloody Bank Holiday weekend in the UK

Waryam Hussein, 20, was stabbed to death in Bishopscote Road in Luton on Sunday afternoon

A 13-year-old boy who survived being accidentally shot in the head is the youngest person caught in a wave of attacks across Britain over a bloody Bank Holiday weekend

A 13-year-old boy who survived being accidentally shot in the head is the youngest person caught in a wave of attacks across Britain over a bloody Bank Holiday weekend. Pictured, officers at the scene in Harrow

The following day, an innocent boy of 13 was accidentally shot in the head as he walked through Wealdstone, northwest London, with his parents.

The boy was the youngest victim of the wave of gun, knife and acid attacks across Britain over a bloody Bank Holiday weekend.

BANK HOLIDAY BLOODBATH: A TIMELINE OF THE VIOLENCE Saturday 6.05pm - Rhyhiem Ainsworth Barton is found shot dead in Warham Street in Southwark, south London Sunday 4am - Fatah Warsame, 20, from Cardiff, was fatally attacked on Hanover Street in Liverpool city centre 5.20am - Three men, 17, 22, and 27, are injured after a 'noxious substance' thrown over them in Dalston, east London 1.15pm - Two boys, aged 13 and 15, shot in Harrow, north west London. It is thought a third person sustained an arm injury, but he left prior to the arrival of the emergency services 4.40pm - Waryam Hussein, 20, was stabbed to death in Bishopscote Road in Luton 6.30pm - A 22-year-old was found with gunshot wounds in New Cross Road in south east London 8.50pm - A 37-year-old man was stabbed to death in Macclesfield, Cheshire 9pm - A 43-year-old man was stabbed in the neck on Buckingham Avenue, Perivale, west London Monday 2.45pm - A man was taken to hospital after being shot in Clayton, Manchester. His condition was not known 4.40pm - A 30-year-old is shot in New Cross, south east London. His condition is not believed to be life-threatening 4.50pm - A victim, who is thought to be 17, is stabbed in Leystonstone Road in east London. His condition was initially deemed critical, but is now thought to be not life-threatening Advertisement

The teenager was an innocent bystander who had been walking down the street with his parents in Harrow, north west London, when he was hit by shotgun pellets.

He was caught in the crossfire when a 15-year-old was attacked at around 1.15pm on Sunday in High Street, Wealdstone.

Scotland Yard said the older boy was found to have suffered head injuries, caused by a number of shotgun pellets.

Police were alerted to the second boy injured nearby minutes after the 13-year-old boy.

Detective Chief Superintendent Simon Rose, Harrow borough commander, said: 'It would appear that the first victim was approached by two male suspects, one in possession of a shotgun - and shots were fired, injuring him and an entirely innocent member of the public.

'This was a callous, reckless and brazen act, without any thought by those responsible for the fact that there were families with children and people in the High Street enjoying their weekend. This was quite simply appalling.'

Both teenagers suffered non-life threatening injuries, and the younger one has been released from hospital.

Officers have also been made aware of a possible third victim who may have been at the scene with the 15-year-old boy.

It is thought he sustained an arm injury, but he left prior to the arrival of the emergency services.

A 39-year-old man arrested on the evening of May 6 in connection with the incident has been released under investigation.

Extra police officers, supported by armed units, are patrolling the streets of London in a bid to combat the violence.

Police have said extra patrols worked on Bank Holiday Monday to keep the capital's streets safe.

Detective Chief Superintendent Simon Messinger said: 'The violence used has rightly caused concern and we are doing all we can to address this.

'Over the bank holiday weekend, additional officers are on the streets across the capital, working hard to keep London safe.

'They are using highly visible local patrols supported by armed response, traffic motorcycles, dog units and air support, alongside plain clothes intelligence-led operations.

'Violence has no place on our streets.'

Rhyhiem's death was the latest in a spate of violent crimes in the capital, as police investigate more than 60 alleged murders so far this year.

Official statistics released in April showed the number of homicides in London had surged by 44% in the last year.

Mr Messinger said officers were using search powers to seize knives and to stop weapons being carried in cars.

Rhyhiem's mother, Pretana Morgan (pictured), has called for a stop to the violence

Rhyhiem was the 62nd victim to be killed in the capital this year after London's murder rate overtook New York's in February and March

Rhyhiem Ainsworth Barton was found with fatal gunshot wounds in Warham Street Southwark at 6.05pm on Saturday

Three men, aged 17, 22, and 27, were injured in a suspected acid attack as they left a gay bar in Dalston, east London.

Police are investigating if the victims suffered life-changing injuries after a 'noxious substance' was hurled at them in Shacklewell Lane in Hackney in the early hours of Sunday morning.

The assault followed an altercation between two groups in east London at around 5.20am.

The violence continued in the capital when a 43-year-old was stabbed in Perivale, north-west London, on Sunday night after a dispute about driving.

Police said the man was attacked on Buckingham Avenue at around 9pm after a number of residents questioned a man in a blue car about the nature of his driving in the small residential street.

Then, just before 6.30pm on Sunday, police were flagged down by a member of the public in New Cross Road, south east London, where a 22-year-old man was suffering from gunshot wounds.

The injured man was taken by ambulance to a central London hospital where his condition is not life-threatening, Scotland Yard said.

Elsewhere, three men died in stabbings in Liverpool, Luton and Macclesfield during the bank holiday weekend.

A 22-year-old man was shot in New Cross in south London (pictured) on Monday evening

Officers responded to reports of a stabbing in Leystonstone Road in east London at around 4.40pm on Monday. Pictured, the scene after the stabbing

The victim, who is believed to be 17, was taken to an east London hospital. His condition was initially deemed critical, but is now thought to be not life-threatening

Fatah Warsame, 20, from Cardiff, died after being stabbed in Liverpool city centre early on Sunday morning.

Waryam Hussein, also aged 20, was killed in Bishopscote Road in Luton that evening.

Also on Sunday night, a 37-year-old man was stabbed to death in Macclesfield. A 15-year-old boy and a 29-year-old man have been arrested.

On Monday, armed police were locked in a standoff with a gunman in Oxford following a dramatic shootout.

Shots were fired from a residential property in Paradise Square and armed response officers returned fire.

Armed officers descended on a residential property in Oxford city centre after witnesses reported hearing up to five gunshots

On Monday, armed police were locked in a standoff with a gunman in Oxford following a dramatic shootout

Armed officers descended on the property at around 1.15pm after witnesses reported hearing up to five gunshots.

More than eight hours later, a siege remained underway with officers continuing to negotiate with the gunman.

Meanwhile, in Clayton, East Manchester, a teenager was taken to hospital after being shot in front of friends at a Bank Holiday street barbecue.

He was rushed to hospital after being blasted in the leg at 2.45pm.

Police said he was being treated for a 'serious' injury but his condition is not thought to be life-threatening.

It is understood the victim, who is in his late teens, was with a group of friends drinking and eating on a patch of grass outside a house on Vale Street when a gunman opened fire.

Police said it was unclear whether the shooter was on foot or in a car at the time.

In Clayton, East Manchester (pictured), police said a man was taken to hospital after being shot at 2.45pm on Monday. His condition was not known

Also on Monday, officers responded to reports of a stabbing in Leystonstone Road in east London at around 4.40pm.

The victim, who is believed to be 17, was taken to an east London hospital.

His condition was initially deemed critical, but is now thought to be not life-threatening.

Detectives from Newham CID are investigating. No arrests have been made.

Just ten minutes after that incident, police were called to a shooting in John Williams Close in New Cross, south London.

A 30-year-old man was treated at the scene before being taken to a south London hospital.

His condition is not believed to be life-threatening. No arrests have been made.

A Metropolitan Police spokesman told MailOnline it is believed the victim may have been working as a food delivery driver when the incident occurred.

Home Secretary Sajid Javid said he was determined to tackle the spate of violence that was 'robbing too many young people of their futures'.

Tragic death toll: The rising number of lives taken on the streets of London in 2018

JANUARY - 12 deaths, including one late on December 31

31 December, Kyall Parnell, 17: Stabbed to death in Lambeth

1 January, Steve Frank Narvaez-Arias, 20: Stabbed in the chest on New Year's Day at a flat party in a council estate off Old Street in Islington, north London. After moving to the UK from Ecuador, the 20-year-old was reading physics and aerospace at Hertfordshire University and hoped to become a pilot

3 January, Elizabeta Lacatusu, 44: Found bleeding to death on Norfolk Road, in Ilford, after she had her throat slashed. She worked at a restaurant in the east London town and was returning home when she was stabbed to death

6 January, Vijay Patel, 49: Mr Patel was beaten to death in Barnet

Yaya Mbye, 26, was stabbed in Hackney on January 28 (left). Right, Daniel Frederick, 34, was killed metres from his home in Hackney after attending a hospital appointment for his pregnant partner on January 8

8 January, Daniel Frederick, 34: Daniel was killed metres from his home in Hackney after attending a hospital appointment for his pregnant partner

9 January, Dami Odeyingbo, 18: Stabbed in Bromley

11 January, Harry Uzoka, 25: Harry, who was on the books of Premier Model Management and had modelled for brands including Mercedes and Zara - was stabbed in Shepherd's Bush. Neighbours reported a shout of 'hand it over' in the melee which involved several men

24 January, Seyed Azim Khan, age unknown: Died from a head injury in Redbridge

Khader Saleh, 25, (left) was stabbed in the Hammersmith and Fulham area on January 31. Right, Dami Odeyingbo, 18, was stabbed in Bromley on January 9

28 January, Yaya Mbye, 26: Stabbed in Hackney

29 January, Juan Olmos Saca, 39: Died six days after being found stabbed at an address in Peckham

31 January, Lily-Mai Saint George, one: One-year-old Lily-Mai was found dead in Haringey. The Met Police say her cause of death remains unknown

31 January, Khader Saleh, 25: The 25-year-old was stabbed in the Hammersmith and Fulham area

FEBRUARY - 14 deaths

3 February, Kwabena Nelson, 22: Ambushed in Tottenham in the early hours where he was fatally stabbed

3 February, Hasan Ozkan, 19: Stabbed to death in Abbey Road, Barking

5 February, Juan Olmos Saca: Died in hospital after being stabbed in Peckham

8 February, Hannah Leonard, 55: Fatally stabbed in Brays Tower, Primrose Hill

11 February, Sabri Chibani, 19: Stabbed in Streatham Common

12 February, Bulent Kabala, 41: The taxi driver was shot dead in a 'targeted hit' on a roundabout in Barnet

13 February, Saeeda Hussain, 54: Found with critical injuries at an address in Ilford and pronounced dead at the scene

14 February, Promise Nkenda, 17: Fatally stabbed in Newham, east London

15 February, Mark Smith, 48: Mr Smith was found injured in Chingford, and died shortly afterwards

17 February, Lewis Blackman, 19: Lewis, who grew up on the Peckwater estate in Kentish Town, was killed in Kensington. Witnesses told how a gang of about eight youths, some armed with sticks, shouted 'let's chase him down', before he was stabbed

17 February, Josef Boci, 30: Jozef was beaten up in the street in Greenwich and died in hospital

Hannah Leonard, who was 55, was found dead on February 9 in a flat in Camden, North London

19 February, Rotimi Oshibanjo, 26: Rotimi was fatally stabbed inside a property in the Halliday Square housing estate

20 February, Sadiq Mohamed, 20: The aspiring accountant was found with serious stab wounds in Malden Road, in Belsize Park

20 February, Abdikarim Hassan, 17: Abdikarim died in the street after being attacked in Camden

20 February, name unknown, 24: Shot in Westminster

25 February, Michael Boyle, 44: Stabbed in Southwark. Mr Boyle, from Galashiels, Scotland died of multiple organ failure after being stabbed at a property in Southwark. He was found on February 25 but died on March 10

MARCH - 23 deaths

1 March, Christopher Beaumont, 42: Stabbed in Hammersmith and Fulham

5 March, Kelva Smith, 20: Found stabbed in South Norwood, Croydon and pronounced dead at the scene

5 March, Laura Cecilia Navarrete De Figueira, 47: Police launched a murder investigation after Laura Cecilia Navarrete De Figueira was found with stab wounds at her home in Twickenham. An hour earlier the body of her husband Figueira de Faria and the bodies of Claudio, 10, and Joaquin, seven, were discovered on the beach at Birling Gap, in Eastbourne, East Sussex

8 March, Kelvin Odunuyi, 19: Shot in Haringey

12 March, Julian Joseph, 36: Murdered in Lewisham, cause of death as yet unknown

13 March, Nikolay Glushkov, 68: Russian businessman was found dead in his home in New Malden. He died from compression to the neck

14 March, Lyndon Davis, 18: The youngest to have been killed in March, was found suffering from a single stab wound in Chadwell Heath, east London

14 March, Joseph Williams-Torres, 20: Killed as he sat in a stationary car in Essex Close, Walthamstow

16 March, Naomi Hersi, 36: Stabbed in Hounslow. Hersi, who lived as a trans woman called Naomi, was pronounced dead at the scene after being found with knife injuries in Hounslow

17 March, Russell Jones, 23: Ambushed outside shops near Ponders End station, in Enfield and stabbed and shot to death

18 March, Tyrone Silcott, 42: The father-of-two died from knife wounds after a St Patrick's Day party. It is alleged the car mechanic got into a row over two girls at a party in Homerton and was attacked

19 March, Balbir Johal, 48: Died after being stabbed in Southall

Hersi Hersi (left), who lived as a trans woman called Naomi, was pronounced dead at the scene after being found with knife injuries at Heathrow Palace in Hounslow. Russell Jones, 23, became the eighth person in a week to be killed in London when he was ambushed outside shops near Ponders End station, Enfield Read

19 March, Jermaine Johnson, 41: Found with stab injuries and pronounced dead at the scene in Walthamstow

20 March, Beniamin Pieknyi, 20: Believed to have jumped in to the fight in a bid to save his friend during the altercation at the Stratford Centre in east London. The 20-year-old, who only arrived in Britain two months ago from Romania, died in his best friend's arms after being chased and stabbed by a gang in the busy shopping centre

25 March, Abraham Badru, 26: Gunned down in Hackney. The university graduate, who was murdered in Dalston, east London, was awarded the National Police Bravery Award in July 2009

25 March, awaiting formal ID, 59: Person found dead in Barking & Dagenham

26 March, David Potter, 50: Found stabbed to death in a property on Tooting High Street

29 March, Reece Tshoma, 23: Reece, from Barking in east London, was stabbed in the neck in Greenwich before being rushed to hospital by his friend where he died

30 March, Leyla Mtumwa, 36: Leyla was found dead with stab wounds to the neck and chest at an address in Haringey

APRIL - At least 11 deaths

1 April, Devoy Stapleton: Stabbed at as he made his way home from a night out in Wandsworth. Police found him in a pool of his own blood after being called to the middle-class suburb of Earlsfield, south west London

2 April, Tanesha Melbourne, 17: Tanesha was gunned down near her home in Tottenham, north London in front of horrified friends and family. It is thought she was caught in the crossfire of a ruthless gang war

2 April, Amaan Shakoor, 16: The teenager was shot in the face in Walthamstow, north London, and police have now confirmed he died from his injuries in hospital

4 April, Henry Vincent, 37: Burglary who died from stab wound after raiding pensioner's house

4 April, Babatunde Akintayo Awofeso dies after row on Upper Clapton Road, east London.

4 April, Israel Ogunsola, 18, dies in Hackney after being stabbed. The victim approached police who performed first aid but he died at the scene after 25 minutes.

12 April, John Maclean, 35, stabbed at a flat in the Isle of Dogs. A 25-year-old has been charged with his murder.

15 April, Raul Nicolaie, 26: Found at with stab injuries in Colindale, north London. A 34- year-old woman was arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder

15 April, an unnamed woman in her 30s was stabbed to death in Sudbourne Road, Brixton, south London. A man in his 20s has been arrested on suspicion of murder.

16 April - Sami Sidhom, 18, is stabbed to death in the street in Forest Gate.

21 April - Man, 20, named locally as Kwesi, was stabbed to death about a hundred yards from Jeremy Corbyn's home in North London

23 April - Aaron Springett, 32, died after a street fight outside Paddy Power bookies in Morden

May

May 1 - A man in his thirties is shot dead outside Queensbury Tube station.

May 5 - Rhyhiem Ainsworth Barton was murdered on Warham Street, Southwark