Cyko Logic & Strata G - Valleys to the Alleys

‘As a collective we're just trying to express who we are and what we do’ said Cyko Logic and Strata G, the duo behind the DOWN WID IT Empire which consists of both fashion and music. Both Strats and Cyko have worked with a variety of underground and mainstream artists and have featured on ITV’s Tough Gig alongside Roll Deep. The duo from Kensal Green, Northwest London have teamed up to collaborate on the fourth coming EP 'Valleys to the Alleys' which is set for release 15/06/2011.  

I thought I’d catch with them to find out what we can expect from the E.P.

‘We've always worked well together and often spoke about doing this collaboration’ says Cyko who is well known for his graphic and fashion designing. ‘The name Valleys to the Alleys was actually what Strats' was going call his own CD, but we thought about it and it just made sense to use it for this collaboration . It was a sort of 'there meets here. This EP is just something we want out there, individually we are as sick. Together, it’s madness! So overall it’s about recognition.'

Cyko has been working hard in the scene for a while always trying to get the team more involved. He initially gave Strats' is debut when they featured together on his remix of Down Wid It alongside HoodStars and Slix from Ruff Squad. The collaboration  'is something people have expected from us, it just took a while’ said Strata G.'I'm also a producer currently working with my team and a few UK artists and genres of music’. 

‘Having the time to actually get it done’ was there only obstacle, Cyko says ’this could have been created ages ago but we all have a life outside music so making it happen has been a bit of an obstacle in that sense’ They are influenced by ‘Good music and life's lessons and experiences’ as well as seeing other UK artists doing well which they say ‘is always a good influence'.

When asked how they differ as musicians ‘Strats' is more of a straight to the point, tell you how it is kind of MC, he brings his ‘I'm from Wales no-one can chat to me' vibe, his style is very versatile but on Grime its 100% straight forward’ where as ‘Cyko is the same but adds the fast flows at times and gets clever with the wordplay. We have something we call a 'TELL-A-MAN' flow many MC's have this 'I'M TALKING TO YOU' style Cyko just thinks he's the best so you can hear his confidence every time’, both feel they ‘stay in this lane when it comes to grime’.

‘Buying music is something we haven't done in a while, maybe because we spend so much time making our own and always hearing the latest being in the industry ourselves. Cyko would have bought '6FOOT TO 6FIGZ' which was the last mixtape he heard, but it was given to him for free. 'There are a few artists we know and have met and we appreciate their music, such as Ed Sheeran, Dot Rotten, Amplify Dot and a few more'. We like the way 'they express their sound, we can relate and like to listen, real simple. ’

‘You’ll be hearing my stuff on mixtapes and in music videos, I’m also currently working on a producers CD so look out for that!' says Strats' when asked what we can expect from him in the future. Cyko says’ I've been putting in the work and will be leaking a few singles before I release two more CD projects which I’m currently working on, it’s a grime vs. Hip-Hop situation, I'm also featuring on a few albums as well as working with some top producers so expect more music and videos from me. We're also thinking about a 'Valleys to the Alleys 2' but we'll see.

You can now preview a few track from the EP, via Soundcloud, contact them via, DownWidIt  and add them both on Twitter via Strata G and Cyko Logic