TWO HOT TO HANDLE

HIP-HOP SENSATIONS ALYPH AND FARIZ JABBA ARE NO STRANGERS TO TAKING THE MICROPHONE. HERE, THEY VOLLEY AT EACH OTHER QUESTIONS THAT TOUCH ON MUSIC, FEARS AND THEIR BIGGEST, VICES,

- JEFFREY YAN

Alyph has been part of the music industry since 2005, first as one-half of hip-hop duo SleeQ and later, after the pair disbanded in 2015, as an in-demand producer and collaborator for some of the region's biggest names, such as Malaysia's Joe Flizzow and SonaOne. This year, the 32-year-old rapper and singer made a solo return to the spotlight with the release of his EP III/III in September-its lead single "Adakah Kau Mendengar" has since surpassed 1 million streams on Spotify. Fariz Jabba, meanwhile, came onto the scene relatively recently, breaking out in 2017 after his freestyle raps and witty Malay remixes of rap hits such as "Gucci Gang" went viral on social media. Since then, the momentum has only built-the 24-year-old's singles "Masa" and "Ape Sia" have been streamed more than 3 million and 1 million times respectively. Both artistes are now signed to Def Jam Southeast Asia. Here, they grill each other on their journey thus far, the highs, the lows, the ways they've grown and how the culture can move forward.

Fariz Jabba (FJ): Alyph, what's your most memorable performance?

Alyph (A): It's got to be the time I performed in Tawau, Sabah, in 2013 or 2014. I had never been there before and the crowd was so loud, the stage was rumbling. For the first time, I realised that you never really know who listens to your music. What's yours?