Kraftykid & Vangs Music’s “i don’t even mind” is Great Gatsby vs The American Dream in A Nutshell

Verse 1

First, let’s talk about how melodic the beat sounds. Props to Vangs Music. It just compelled Kraftykid to sing away whether he was hitting the note or not. “They’re like, K she was bad why’d you let her get away?” he raps. One might call it self-sabotage, but there are many types of people out there. Some prefer to be single, some can’t do without a partner, some are poly, and some are even asexual.

“Guilty.” — Varys, 129 AC

Verse 2

Kraftykid half-jokingly credits his luck with women to his barber. But wait. To a black man, a barber is so important that we stay with the same one our whole life if we can help it. So important that Big Tobz & Blittz had to make an anthem about it. So important that Krafty had to pay homage to that song. “Gotta thank my barber for the puss that I’ve been getting.” Then in the same breath he shamelessly talk about his mum’s life lessons. You know the one. “If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all”, and I hear he’s quiet in person…

Artwork

Others perceive single people to be lonely, and some are, but Krafty claims to be happier alone. So for the artwork I wanted to capture that desolate feeling and I referenced the Blade Runner 2049 poster but added the man turning into sand.

I’m convinced Ryan Gosling can do no wrong. What’s his best movie?

Moral

Kraftykid self-reflects on his perception of happiness as the Great Gatsby type versus the American Dream type which has permeated cultures all across the world. You know, starting a family, getting a dog, picket fence, etc. The moral of the story is don’t yuck someone’s yum, especially if you don’t understand it. Give the song a listen below and tell me what you think.

Kraftykid & Vangs Music Say It’s A Virtue to Know “Your Place”

Verse 1

As usual, Kraftykid squeezes many concepts into one song. This can be a lot to take in, so multiple listens are usually recommended. However, in today’s microwave music era that’s a big ask. Verse 1 covers topics from incels and the Black Lives Matter movement, to the importance of conserving time and energy. “Can’t politic with a racist, that’d take too much time”, he raps. Vangs Music delivers on the dark beat with a melody fit for the grim reaper himself.

Verse 2

Verse 2 sees Krafty address the close call his friend had when meeting a stranger from Craigslist which turned out to be a honey trap. He’s lucky he only got robbed. He also discusses violent acts by boys not even old enough to vote. It seems like going to jail is a rollout for some rappers. Then some that go mainstream do it out of pressure online by people with no avatars, in my opinion. Others do things out of necessity. I wish more youth clubs were available. “Ain’t even lived life, he a lifer.”, Kraftykid raps.

Artwork

Finally, let’s talk about the artwork. That is a picture I took in 2015 in Higashi-Nakano with my Airbnb host, I believe. Back when Airbnb was still a thing in Japan. I recall this was round Christmas time. I wonder where the decorations are? Maybe I should’ve Photoshopped some in. I wanted to use a simple picture that looks busy to portray that sense of many people being the main characters of their own stories but an NPC in yours.

Moral

The core message of the song, as heard in the chorus, is to know yourself and draw a line in the sand somewhere. “The streets, huh? You know that’s not your place.” Take a listen for yourself below and see if you can catch all these references.

Kraftykid & Vangs Music Want You to Take Notes on “Homework Edit”

Verse 1

The first verse sees Kraftykid discuss everything from gang culture, to braggadocio, to politics, to fears of losing loved ones in a slew of one-liners. With only two 8-bar verses this song went over well with its listeners, clocking in at over 14,000 streams. People want short and sweet these days.

Verse 2

Verse 2 sees Krafty switch up the flow to talk more braggadocio before leaving people with a confidence boost. “How you know your league if you just stay dribbling?” We also hear an interesting reverse melody in the last third of the song. Listen out for when the reverse 808s kick in.

Artwork

In summer 2018 I took a solo trip to Hiroshima. On that trip I also took the liberty of visiting Rabbit Island and Miyajima. I like solo trips. This picture was taken in Miyajima after most of the tourists had gone home or back to their hotels. But on its own it was missing something, so I added my special touch, iridescence. I chose this vibe because it reminded me of art associated with Chillhop, and Chillhop music usually have “homework edits” which are hour-long versions of the songs for students to study to. Well played, Krafty.

Moral

If there’s one takeaway from this song, it’s simple. People always talk about dating leagues but in my opinion if you’re funny, well-presented and honest you’d be surprised what you can achieve.

DJ ReddRokk & Kraftykid Look for The Silver Lining in “Oh Stress”

DJ ReddRokk

DJ ReddRokk and Kraftykid have been releasing music together since 2018 with songs like The Twix and Cold Hard. However, this song marks their best work yet, which wouldn’t be complete without Erica Bergado’s soulful background vocals. DJ ReddRokk never fails on the beats and his range is incredible.

Kraftykid

Kraftykid is a family man who found success away from home, plagued by survivor’s guilt about leaving his loved ones behind. Now he’s finally becoming comfortable in his own skin. “I don’t care for your set. I don’t know what you rep.”

Artwork

So for the artwork I decided on a purple brain with a warped glitchy background to express the confusion and sombre in the lyrics. “All I wanna do is leave my legacy to stand”, Kraftykid says.

Moral

Rappers are lucky because they can make money off their stress. Pain makes for the best songs unfortunately, and here’s a prime example below.

Study of Sound & Kraftykid’s “Mars Remix” is The Indie/Rap Crossover You Never Knew You Needed

How the collab came about

What started as a rapper-mixer relationship evolved into a true collaboration of sounds. Indie Rock and Rap. Kraftykid was tapped to do a remix for Study of Sound's Mars off his Musica Mundana album. The music on said album is ambient in nature so it was a challenge to turn it into indie rap, but how did he do?

How the song went

Kraftykid is known for touching many kinds of genres which can’t help the algorithm but at least the element of curiosity is still present in him. Also check out Study of Sound’s beautiful guitar solo and background vocals in the latter half of the song below. A standout from this song is the idea of a broken home. “A house divided will certainly destroy.”

Artwork

The cover art, by yours truly, features a lonely robot donning the Next Ting logo, gazing at the horizon on Mars. I wanted to express the longing for something more than what one already has, like kids often do.

Moral

“The mice were like pets, we ain’t had a dog. Every night, dancing through the walls like.” This sums up the experience of many kids who had their imagination and music as entertainment when money failed them.