Infamous OneFour rapper Pio Misa who glorified ‘postcode wars’ gave up his past life after being shocked by something he saw on TV – and now he’s heading in a surprising new direction

A rapper formerly known for promoting Sydney’s so-called ‘Postcode Wars’ has tearfully apologized for the way his violent lifestyle and lyrics affected impressionable youth.

Pio Misa, better known as ‘YP’, the name under which he performed as part of the drill rap OneFour group based in the western Sydney suburb of Mt Druitt, came to a stark realization of how far he had fallen in his life while sitting in a prison cell.

Misa, 24, told Channel Nine he was locked up in the infamous NSW maximum security prison near Goulburn, southwest of Sydney, when he saw a news report about police foiling a plot to kill him.

“I wasn’t surprised, I guess,” he said, calling it a “big wake-up call.”

‘I knew people wanted my life, rightly so. I have wronged certain people and I hope they can forgive me in due time.”

As he neared the end of a two-year prison sentence for assault, Misa reconsidered the direction his life had taken and began returning to the Christian faith in which he was raised.

“When I found this new journey, I felt like my life had just begun,” he said.

‘Finding this peace and happiness with God and with my savior Jesus Christ is something I want to share with as many people as possible.’

Miso now wants to become a priest, but is haunted by his past life.

“There’s that guilt, knowing that I influenced some of the younger generation to do things like that,” he said through tears.

‘I’m not proud of the music I’ve made in the past.

‘If you believe in something, you have to stand up for your beliefs. You have to stand up for your family.

‘Protect those you care about. In the right way.

“If there is a way to solve problems without violence, we should certainly take that approach.”

Miso (pictured, center right) has started mentoring young people at a gym in Sydney’s western suburbs

To escape his previous life, Miso studies to become a priest in his family’s church and also mentors young people in a gym in Western Sydney with his uncle, Lawrence Tauasa.

“He trains with me five days a week,” Mr Tausas said.

“I only give him Sunday off… and Thursday for Bible study.”

Misa and OneFour suddenly became famous in 2019 with their hit The Message.

It generated millions of views on YouTube, but police said the lyrics encouraged violence by talking about the Postcode Wars, where gangs targeted people from neighboring suburbs.

The post referenced the death of Tino Henry during a ‘Postcode War’ brawl in 2018.

The song stated, “Retribution is a must, there’s no ifs or buts / I got friends watching 10 / You watched yours get put in a box (put in a box).”

Misa has been convicted twice for assault.

In 2023, he was sentenced to seven months in prison, with four months non-parole, for being involved in a street fight in which he defeated Troy Camplin in the northwestern Sydney suburb of South Windsor.

Members of OneFour are pictured at the premiere of their Netflix documentary. Spenny, left, Celly, center and J Emz, right. Misa was not at the launch as he was in custody following the wild brawl in Sydney’s northwestern suburb of South Windsor in September

Mr Camplin was knocked to the ground and hit on the head. He suffered a 2cm cut to the back of his skull, causing blood to flow down his neck and clothing.

Misa and fellow OneFour members Salec ‘Lekks’ Sua and Dahcell ‘Celly’ Ramos were all jailed following a violent attack on two men at an arcade in Rooty Hill in July 2018.

During that attack, Misa pulled a chair leg from under his clothing and hit one of the men three times, including twice in the head.

He received a prison sentence of four years.

CCTV footage of the brawl from the Netflix documentary OneFour: Against All Odds, which captured the group’s rise and battle to perform live shows.

In the documentary, OneFour received a glowing treatment and was praised by hip-hop stars Skepta and The Kid Laroi, among others.