Kraftykid x Samon Kawamura - 14 Karat Smile (Single)

Picture Credit: Raw Fiile

London-born, Tokyo-based rapper Kraftykid, and Tokyo-born, Berlin-based producer Samon Kawamura (Ray Lozano, Max Herre) first met in 2019, introduced in Tokyo through Samon’s daughter. They’d kept the connection alive with a few tracks over the years, but it wasn’t until one night in fall 2024, with Samon back in Japan, that their sound had clicked.

No studio. No pen. No pad. Just Samon flipping beats live while Kraftykid let it all spill, pure stream of consciousness. The session flowed effortlessly, tapping into something deeper. For Samon, who’d never been drawn to UK rap, Kraftykid’s character, cadence, and raw, unfiltered delivery hit in a new way.

The upcoming EP, We Must Laugh At Some Point (July 25th), captures the spirit of that night. Not overproduced. Not overthought. Just under nine minutes of something real: loose, lyrical, and full of small truths.

'14 Karat Smile' is the first glimpse. “The song is a reflection on the softness I used to have" Kraftykid explains. "There’s a purity in it — remembering the version of myself that felt most at home, most unbothered. I repeat the hook so many times because that image just wouldn’t leave me: that smile, that safety, that feeling of being wanted without condition. I haven’t felt it in a while.”