I’m A Celebrity star Aitch’s close bond with sister Gracie and being a ‘stereotypical Manchester kid’
“I’ve made songs with most people I grew up listening to, now I’m going on the show I grew up watching”
Aitch is set to appear on ITV I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here(Image: PA)
Manchester rapper Aitch is set to appear on the 2025 series of I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here alongside fellow contestants Kelly Brook, Martin Kemp, Angry Ginge and Jack Osbourne.
Aitch has seen massive success during his career so far, including winning a Brit Award for Best Hip-Hop/Grime act in 2023 and two Mobo Awards in 2022 – Best Song for hit track Baby with Ashanti in 2022 and Best Album for Close To Home. Before that, he won the Best Newcomer Mobo Award in 2020.
He shot to fame in 2018 with hit “Straight Rhymez”, and his debut studio album Close to Home reached number two on the UK Albums Chart when it was released in 2022.
Aitch, real name Harrison Armstrong, was born in Moston, in north Manchester, and has previously described himself as a “stereotypical Manchester kid”.
Aitch, Harrison Armstrong, grew up in Moston, Greater Manchester(Image: Mike Marsland/WireImage)
The now 25-year-old told the BBC in an interview in 2022: “I’d spend most of my time trying to climb trees or something stupid, and come home with dirt all over my face, food all over my T-shirt.”
During his recent appearance on Made in Chelsea star Jamie Laing’s podcast, Great Company, he discussed his upbringing in the northern city further.
Speaking about his childhood in Manchester, he said: “It was mega, a stereotypical north Manchester upbringing. I was outside, on my pedal bike 17 hours a day all over the place.”
When Jamie made fun of the way Aitch says “fluffeh”, the rapper joked: “I feel like no one ever mimicked the Manc accent until I came about. So I’ve ruined it for us all.”
Aitch has a close bond with his two twin sisters, Gracie and Hattie, who are ten years younger than him. Gracie has Down Syndrome, which is something that Aitch has spoken about publicly.
Speaking to Jamie about his bond with Gracie, who was the inspiration for his hit ‘My G’, Aitch admitted: “I wouldn’t even be half the person I am if she wasn’t here.
“And she actually teaches you lessons that you don’t even realise till after. She always used to grab my face before I used to go to bed and just go, ‘Harrison, don’t be afraid'”.
Aitch climbed Kilimanjaro to raise money for Down’s Syndrome Association in honour of his little sister Gracie(Image: WireImage)
Explaining the impact Gracie has had on him, Aitch explained: “It’s taught me, and this sounds bad, but it taught me more to treat everyone the same. And to understand that everyone is a human.”
The star recently climbed Mount Kilimanjaro to raise money for charity the Down’s Syndrome Association (DSA), which he said has taught him to “never be ungrateful”.
He explained: “When we got to the end of that trip, there was a man who has been carrying all our water, and we all got advised to drink three litres of water a day.
“There were around 16 of us, so he was filling 16 three litre cups a day, carrying this big thing of water on his head, and then he fills up the water at the camp, we all start ascending, then he runs down, goes and gets more water, comes back up, meets us at the camp.
“At the end of the trip, he got paid $40. And do you know what happened? He got paid and I’ve never seen a bigger smile in my life. That teaches you something.”
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The Manchester rapper broke the news about appearing on I’m A Celebrity with a post on Instagram which said: “I’ve made songs with most people I grew up listening to, now I’m going on the show I grew up watching.”
And he dedicated his appearance on the show to his mum as he added: “Mam this one’s for you. ‘Bout to go f*** up the jungle the Manchester way. Cinnabit.”
I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here will begin airing on Sunday, November 16.
