Failed Conservative leadership candidate Michael Gove has criticised Stormzy as a “far better rapper than he is a political analyst”.

Stormzy is a longtime supporter of Jeremy Corbyn and has accused Boris Johnson of being a “sinister man with a long record of lying”.

In an Instagram post encouraging people to register to vote by Tuesday’s deadline, Stormzy told his fans their vote could “quite literally tip the scale for what will be the most important election of our generation”.

At the Brit Awards ceremony in 2018 Stormzy said: “Theresa May, where’s the money for Grenfell?” and at the Glastonbury music festival this year he led chants of: “F*** Boris.”

Speaking to Talk Radio on Tuesday morning, Gove dismissed the criticism. “I think we again know that Stormzy, when he took to the stage at Glastonbury wearing a stab vest, he made clear what his political views were then,” he said. 

Gove added: “He is a far, far better rapper than he is a political analyst.”

Former Tory MP Nick Boles said that “what should really worry us is that the same is true of Michael Gove”.

Gove once infamously performed a section of the Wham Rap! – which is about life on the dole and was a hit for George Michael’s band in 1982 – to a group of schoolchildren.

Stormzy tops the list of musicians, artists, rappers and grime MCs who are backing Corbyn and Labour at the general election.

Rappers Akala, Kano and Professor Green and singers Katy B and Peter Hooton of Liverpool group The Farm are among the 39 artists who signed the letter, alongside the Grime 4 Corbyn campaign group.

Grime MC Wiley also tweeted his support for Corbyn earlier in the month where he said: “Big up @jeremycorbyn,” to which the Labour leader replied: “Thank you Wiley.”

The letter to The Guardian read: “We’re not voting Labour in the naive hope that they will solve all the problems our communities face.

“We vote because they offer an urgent alternative to the destructive policies of the Conservatives.”