You can’t mention the budding London music scene without giving a shout out to El Londo. The rapper and producer, though most of his time is now dedicated to producing, has become the go-to person to hit up for names like Ashbeck, who’s actually a childhood friend, AntsLive and Bawo. His style of production is as intricate as it is addictive. Today, we caught up with the artist yet again to talk about his latest album THANKSLONDO, his come up alongside his friends and his career highlights.

Hey Londo ! How have you been since that Lacoste shoot?

I’ve been good, been busy.

Tell me about your latest album THANKSLONDO. How did you come up with the name?

I chose the name THANKSLONDO because there are many people to thank for making this possible, including myself. The project took 2 years to make, collecting tracks from all my different sessions and shortlisting them to create this.

What struck me about this album was all the stories lived and told throughout, going from themes of gratitude to self-discovery. Who or what is someone/something that inspired you when making this album?

All the people involved are the ones who inspired the project. There was no intended theme, I just wanted people to say what they feel.

If your listeners had to take one thing away from this album, what would you want it to be and why?

The listener can interpret it however they want.

You brought on a lot of familiar names like Ashbeck, Bawo, AntsLive and Arz (and more) to the album. What do you look for when picking someone to collaborate with?

If I like they’re music and we get along, I’ll work with them. It just makes sense.

You were actually introduced to the whole Soundcloud rap scene back in the day by Ashbeck, who’s now also part of the next gen of UK rappers that are blowing up right now. How does it feel to see yourself and those who you’re close to coming up like that?

I knew Ash was gonna do big things from day dot. It’s amazing to see everyone getting the recognition they deserve. 

You’ve come a long way since the Soundcloud days. What has been a career highlight for you?

Definitely being able to see other parts of the world has been a highlight for me.

You both produce and make your own music. How do you approach the two? Do you always have a specific artist in mind when making beats or do you make a beat and think “yeah I want that one” or “this would fit for X artist”?

I rarely make my own music. I don’t think there are even 10 songs out with me featured as a rapper. I way prefer hearing other people on my beats. I do have a specific artist in mind, but generally the beats don’t go to who I expect them to go to.

With an album already out, your year’s been pretty packed and hectic. Are you taking the rest of the year to chill or are you already cooking up something for us in the studio?

I’ve been taking it pretty easy this past month, but it’s time to get back to work.

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