He's skydived, eaten raw fish eyes on I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! and now Aitch has reached new heights – literally – by climbing Mount Kilimanjaro. The Manchester rapper, 26, took on the challenge to raise awareness and money for the Down's Syndrome Association in honour of his 16-year-old sister Gracie, who has the condition.
"Everyone loves her. She's just a big bottle of light in every room," Aitch told BBC Newsbeat. "She's everyone's best friend and she's just got such a positive outlook on the world. I just feel like everyone should be more like her."
“Aitch climbs Kilimanjaro for sister with Down's syndrome, raising over £160k for charity.”
The climb – captured in an upcoming Netflix documentary, Aitch: Don't Be Afraid – has raised more than £160,000 so far, "smashing" his target. But the journey was gruelling. Between early mornings, late nights and the change of climate from rainforest conditions one minute to a blizzard the next, Aitch called it a "big mental challenge". He confessed the group would probably have turned around if not for "such a good cause".
Aitch said the whole point of the documentary was to share how having someone with Down's syndrome in his life is "one of the best things in the world". He admits feeling "a little bit of pressure" to up the scale and fundraising targets with each challenge, but says: "You've just got to think about the end goal, which is trying to raise the most money and make the most difference."
Gracie, whom Aitch calls an "absolute legend in the streets of Manchester", was also the subject of his 2022 viral song My G. He thinks it resonated because it showed their bond: "People love genuine things. And that relationship there between me and my sister, both of my sisters, is just undeniable."
The rapper, who previously skydived and ate raw fish eyes on TV, says the physical elements of Kilimanjaro were manageable, but the mental strain was the biggest obstacle. Still, with Gracie as his motivation, he pushed on – and now hopes others see the joy in having someone like her in their lives.
Down's syndrome is when you're born with an extra chromosome, and people with the condition are likely to have some level of learning disability. Aitch's fundraising continues via the Down's Syndrome Association, inspired by the 16-year-old he calls "a big bottle of light".