Itch and Adam Lazzara stand up for the abused in "Homeless Romantic."

We're not ones to judge a book by its cover, but with a name like "Itch," it's not that surprising to find a hotheaded activist-rapper with zero intentions of sitting still. Jonny "Itch" Fox is a total livewire MC who used to shout tales of London's dispossessed with the U.K. punk band The King Blues, but has since turned to hip-hop to express his vision of empowering the downtrodden. And his new single, "Homeless Romantic" featuring Taking Back Sunday's Adam Lazzara, proves that the dude knows a thing or two about combining spitfire verses with raw punk ethos.

Listen to Itch's "Homeless Romantic" after the jump.

The first single off of Itch's forthcoming album on Red Bull Records, "Homeless Romantic" sounds like a plea to escape a toxic relationship: "He ain't worth the dirt stuck between your toes / He ain't worth the hurt that I know you've known." Itch drops some nasty lyrics about no-good boyfriends, but when we caught up with with him to elaborate, he made it clear the message runs even deeper: "The idea of the 'Homeless Romantic' is really about defiance, about finding beauty in the gutter. It's a story without a traditional happy ending, but I do want people to feel uplifted by the end."

Itch has a knack for punctuating his lightning-fast rap verses with a totally singable hook, and the idea of finding hope in despair becomes especially clear with Lazzara's call-to-arms chorus: "May we know that all we know is / We know nothing at all / And when we fall may we dust ourselves off / And sneak in through the back door." Even in the depths of rat-infested London, there's light at the end of the (proverbial and literal) tunnel.

Itch is headlining the Spotify stage all summer long on Vans Warped Tour, and be sure to check out the rest of his tour dates here!

+ Listen to Itch featuring Adam Lazzara's "Homeless Romantic."

Photo credit: Pamela Littky