ICYKOF is carving out his own lane within contemporary electronic music. Drawing from Detroit techno, Chicago house, and London’s underground pulse, the London-based DJ and producer has quickly emerged as one of the most distinctive new voices shaping the next wave of club culture.
Photo credit: Ryan James Beau
Rooted in raw groove, emotional tension, and heavy low-end pressure, his productions channel influences from Robert Hood, Carl Craig, Moodymann, and Cajmere while remaining unmistakably personal.
Before fully stepping into music, ICYKOF built a massive audience through The Unknown Vlogs, documenting the streetwear and youth culture explosion of the 2010s. That instinct for storytelling and community building now carries into his musical world through RAVE NUIT, his independent platform focused on nightlife, identity, and underground culture.
Now, ICYKOF makes his debut on Radio Slave’s Rekids offshoot RSPX with the ‘Space Talk’ EP. Across three cuts, he explores tension, isolation, movement, and release through hypnotic house and techno grooves shaped by London’s winter atmosphere.
In this conversation, ICYKOF reflects on the emotional core of ‘Space Talk’, the importance of independence, building community through RAVE NUIT, and why underground culture still matters more than virality.
EG: Hi, welcome to EG. Great to have you here. How have you been, and where are you speaking to us from today?
ICYKOF: I’ve been great. Just landed in London. Was in Tokyo for a couple of weeks, enjoying the culture and playing some shows.
EG: Now, let’s get this one started. Congratulations on your ‘Space Talk’ EP, out via RSPX. What was driving you when you started working on these tracks?
ICYKOF: I was in my head. It was a typical London winter, grey, wet, and dull, figuring out how to get out of my head from this gloom.
EG: Is there a concept or thread running across these three new cuts?
ICYKOF: It’s raw and honest. I spent this time sharing the details of my own experience during this winter. Locked in my head, feeling negative, and felt a lot of people wanting something hypnotic to relate to.
EG: There’s a strong sense of movement and pressure across the EP, but also moments where things pull back and breathe. How do you know when to push a track forward and when to let it open up?
ICYKOF: When it starts driving too much, I need it to breathe, and finding those moments comes naturally. I was producing on my own tempo. That initial build-up and then release of tension plays on my breathing when listening. I would go on a run to feel the pressure, and those long runs help me arrange the tracks.
“I want to become more myself in my music. More brutal. More energetic and louder”
EG: The EP feels very rooted in a London perspective while still speaking a more global language. What is it about the city that continues to shape your sound?
ICYKOF: The weather. The greyscale sky blending into the streets. Those cold early mornings running around London bleed into my tracks. It’s peaceful but harsh. The later into my run, the city becomes alive, and I run home to escape that. I guess that’s the identity of my sound. Playing with the city’s tension throughout the day during the seasons.
EG: There’s a raw, direct quality to your tracks that feels very much built for the club. What does a track need to have for you to feel like it’s ready to face a dancefloor?
ICYKOF: When the percussion and synths become a vessel to the low end. I know it’s ready. Those elements have to play around each other on their own journey until it’s almost hypnotic. And then the low end disturbs that peace.
EG: You’ve built your own platform with RAVE NUIT. What pushed you to create your own space rather than rely solely on existing ones?
ICYKOF: RAVE NUIT is a community driven by the emotions around nightlife. Coming from the early streetwear era of 2015 and have been documenting that culture for almost 10 years. I knew the importance of building something independent. It allows you to never compromise and have a voice amongst the noise. I knew its importance to have a platform early on. Giving me the freedom to create and grow in my own world.
EG: You have a fantastic media presence. Looking at the current landscape, what do you think artists sometimes overlook when they’re trying to build something lasting?
ICYKOF: Surviving on trends or virality is easy, but I built my presence on being raw and honest from the ground up. You can’t overlook the underground. Everyone wants to be massive, and algorithms play into it for the fast-track approach. But where would you stand if there were no platforms? Don’t overlook the community you play to and create for them in mind. They don’t care about your engagement. They found you for your taste. So be a tastemaker. That’s cooler than being another trend surfer.
“I built my presence on being raw and honest from the ground up”
EG: Looking ahead, where do you want to take your sound next? Is there something you feel you haven’t explored yet? Where can your fans catch you next?
ICYKOF: I want to become more myself in my music. More brutal. More energetic and louder. So catch me at my RAVE NUIT parties I’m throwing around Europe and Asia. My next ones in Tokyo end of May, and i can’t wait to deliver that Underground Resistance energy LIVE.
EG: Thank you so much for your time. We wish you all the best with ‘Space Talk’ and everything that’s to come. Take care!
ICYKOF: Until next time!
ICYKOF’s ‘Space Talk’ is out now via RSPX. Stream and download here.
Follow ICYKOF: Spotify | Soundcloud | Instagram
