An impressive seventeen thousand guns are reckoned to have been handed in so far during the government's amnesty on illegally held guns

The amnesty was sparked by the murder of two young women in Birmingham at the new year: in London alone, there have been three fatal shootings in the course of the last week.

Theirs is to be a series of anti-gun music events to try to encourage more surrenders. There's an irony in this: one government minister has blamed "idiot rappers" for glamorising gun culture.

So, can music be part of the solution? Rajesh Mirchandani reported.

DJ SNIPES, RAW TALENT:
I was standing at the bus stop to see a friend and someone pulled up next to me, jumped out of a car and held a gun to my throat at the bus stop. It was "Yo, next time I see you, you're dead!"

MILLENNIUM KID, RAW TALENT:
Most of them bring the guns just for style, some of them� some bring it for protection. Some gangs, just like have Magnum guns just to see who is the bad man. It's more like a fashion thing, I think.

DUANE WATSON, RAW TALENT:
Some of the kids a few years ago it was like fighting fist to fist. Then fighting with baseball bats and stuff. Now it's escalated into knives and guns. Knives and guns kill people.

RAJESH MIRCHANDANI:
St Ann's in Nottingham, here wages are low, crime is high and drugs are easy to get hold of. Guns are a growing problem, as they are in Nottingham and across the country. The issue was brought into focus when on this street 16-year-old Brendan Laurence was shot dead. His killing brought national attention to a problem local people had known needed to be addressed.

Duane Watson grew up in Nottingham. Since a family friend was killed nearly ten years ago he has witnessed first-hand how lack of opportunity, coupled with the ready viability of weapons have raised danger levels on the streets. Two years along he set up Raw Talent to divert the energy of the city's kids away from eye violence into music.

DUANE WATSON:
You've got to remember nobody is born violent. Nobody is born a drug dealer. It's a matter of tapping into what it is they want to do and giving them the opportunity to do that. Some of them knew some of the people who have died and been caught up in these violent situations. They would go out there and want to get retribution. I'm trying to show them how to make a living through what they want to do.

RAJESH MIRCHANDANI:
Raw Talent also made this film. The first part is a tale about how violence can spiral out of control. The second's a video for their single, Stop The Violence, money from it goes into community projects. It's to raise awareness of the gun crime problem.

The small group from Nottingham has been invited on to a ten night nation-wide anti-gun tour organised by Blues and Soul Magazine. Performers include Top Ten artists. Like Lisa Mafia from So Solid Crew, Big Brovaz and Ms Dynamite. More than 20 artist agreed to take part in a day in gigs around London on the 24th of this month. The Home Office is footing part of the bill with money being channelled back to projects on the ground. Gun crime is not just a black problem but the Government is hoping black music artist will help to get its message to people it normally wouldn't reach.

ASHER D, SO SOLID CREW:
We are getting through to the ethnic minority and the black people as well, who need to put down the guns get together, make money and live good.

RAJESH MIRCHANDANI:
The Government must be glad of the pop star support, as some of them are the people junior minister, Kim Howell, slammed in January when he blamed those "idiot rappers" for glamourising violence. Back then artists protested music isn't the problem, if that's true how can music be the solution? No-one is suggesting music alone can make a difference.

In St Ann's �20 million is being spent to tackle the serious problems of deprivation and urban decay. For the kids who come here music gives them something in common and something to do. Raw Talent has its critics. Some say they are using the anti-gun campaign as a launch pad for their music careers but the police say it's having a positive impact.

SUPERINTENDENT ALAN BUTLER:
In terms of the investment that is being made with the youth of Raw Talent their message can go on and on. Certainly I would urge them to continue to do its excellent work which they are doing.

RAJESH MIRCHANDANI:
For the lucky ones taking part in the Raw Talent project a future in music is a realistic possibility. They will get to perform with some of their musical heroes. What if you are just watching? Can seeing their role models up on stage persuade kids to turn away from guns?

Of the 40 plus acts performing at anti-gun shows in the next month the name that captured kids attention was So Solid Crew, not least because of videos like this. They have experienced gun crime from both sides. In 2001 their UK tour was pulled after a shooting at a London gig. Last year, one of their members, Asher D was jailed for possession of a handgun. Now he's out he wants to put his track record to good use.

ASHER D:
Just by having a first-hand experience of being caught with a gun and going to jail, and going through the whole court thing and everything to do with it basically, it makes people relate to me more. Rather than Tony Blair who they know has never picked up a gun. You get what I'm saying? He's never lived in an area they've lived in.

RAJESH MIRCHANDANI:
Others are not so sure. Last summer in London, 22-year-old Damien Cope was shot and killed. His mother, Lucy, believes it was because of an argument in Burgess Park, Peckham an area known as Murder Triangle. She's set up a campaign group, Mothers Against Guns but has distanced herself from the concerts because she believes the only people to benefit will be the artists.

LUCY COPE:
My opinion, it's not just my opinion that So Solid is doing this concert to get their status back in the music industry. It's the wrong way to do it, using our misery, mother's misery to get their status back in music and that is totally unacceptable.

RAJESH MIRCHANDANI:
Whatever you think about So Solid's motives of being involved, they are high profile and young people do listen to them and follow them, it can only be a good thing?

LUCY COPE:
If it's a good thing for So Solid to be involved, they should be involved at a ground level, like us campaigners, working on the streets with the lads and talking with the youths out there and So Solid should come and live my lifestyle for 24 hours, have the phone calls I take, the way I speak to the youths out there, I'm just a mother and I can speak to them as a mother.

ASHER D:
We are not doing it so we can tour. It will only get better if people embrace us and accept that we changed and want to help, rather than putting us down and being negative about it. We are here to help. We don't want to mess anything up or doing anything wrong. We are here to help and push the situation forward.

RAJESH MIRCHANDANI:
The Government hopes young people will be put off guns for life by hearing their role models speak out against them. What about that hard core group of people who are already involved in gun crime? Are concerts by high-profile artists persuade them to give up their weapons?

This is Onley Young Offenders Institute near Rugby where Asher D did time. What do current inmates here make of pop stars preaching peace?

Jordan is doing time for armed robbery. Music means a lot to him. He thinks the concerts will only work if their message reaches people before they get involved.

JORDAN:
Once you have been shot, you're running for life sort of thing. It's harder to change. I'm not saying you can't change, you can change. But once you have ties in certain obligations to uphold, it's harder. That is why the youths are the most important thing, because they are always going to be coming up, you have to teach to them. A man that has been busting guns for 20 years won't change because Ms Dynamite or Asher D told them not to. You have to get to the youth. That is the main important one.

RAJESH MIRCHANDANI:
Ben's inside for burglary. But he has first-hand experience of gun crime. His father was shot and injured and he has been held at gun point.

BEN:
Probably on the day it might change people's hearts when they are there. But after a while, it will drift over their heads. When you see all of this in London and you see what's going on, it's not nothing to do with the music, it's the way of living now.

RAJESH MIRCHANDANI:
Back at St Anne's their reservations are shared. DJ Snipes is not involved in gun crime but he says if he was a record would not persuade him to change.

DJ SNIPES:
I'm not going to think, I'm going to stop that because listening to that song gives me pure inspiration. It don't work like that, not with that subject any way.

RAJESH MIRCHANDANI:
But most of the kids here firmly believe that anti-gun gigs by urban music stars can have a positive impact on gun crime.

RIAN B, RAW TALENT:
If people are looking at me like a role model because I'm what I'm saying or doing, they are going to look at somebody bigger than me, Ms Dynamite is the biggest star, that is because I haven't blown up yet!

MILLENNIUM KID:
People in poverty think I want to sell drugs and have a gun and be a man but that is not it. Music teaches a different way of living. Stop the violence, it's better than having a gun, man.

RAJESH MIRCHANDANI:
Music is only one small part of the fight against gun crime. There's no definite way of measuring its success. As worries grow about the numbers of weapons on the streets, organisers of the forthcoming concerts must be hoping when the musicians get up on stage, their lyrics reach open minds as well as open ears.

This transcript was produced from the teletext subtitles that are generated live for Newsnight. It has been checked against the programme as broadcast, however Newsnight can accept no responsibility for any factual inaccuracies. We will be happy to correct serious errors.