Business tycoons, media hotshots, family men and musical pioneers: Krept & Konan know how to keep busy. As they share their new album, Young Kingz II, wrap up series six of Rap Game UK, and open their inclusivity-fronted Croydon supermarket Saveways, they meet Ben Tibbits to reflect on their legacy and explain why their appetite for success only continues to grow.
The bitter cold of late January wanes any mid-week enthusiasm for exploring the streets of Soho, and the eventual warmth of multi-faceted high-end hub Neon 194 is a welcome relief. The establishment is empty but for a team of workers setting up chairs in the basement venue for an intimate folk gig tonight. But Neon’s closed doors are open for Krept & Konan. The legendary UK rap duo, whose impact outweighs almost any in the London movement, are here to entertain a journalist and pose for a few pictures.
Both men are quiet throughout the shoot. They are professional and potent in front of the lens but the pair’s minds seem elsewhere. And it’s understandable—given they are opening a supermarket, Saveways in Croydon, which is the first large-scale supermarket with an array of products specifically tailored to Black, Asian and ethnic communities, and also release their latest full-length album. Young Kingz II, a body of work years in the making that was shared on February 7th, is set to catapult them back to the cutting-edge of UK rap’s sonic consensus.
As we settle down for a candid conversation, Krept & Konan focus sharpens. They’re animated and ardent, full of humour, the succinctness of their creative, cultural and entrepreneurial vision evident, bouncing off each other’s perspective, adding to and shifting through topics seamlessly.
“We know the value of partnerships; we’ve been in one since we started,” Krept grins. The pair have been making music together for two decades at this point, delivering their debut mixtape “Redrum” in 2009, before their third project “Young Kingz” made them Guinness World Record holders for the highest-charting UK album by an unsigned act, and gained them a Best Newcomer Award at 2013’s MOBOs. Their 2015 major label debut Long Way Home reached number two in the UK charts, and they’ve shared multiple projects since. But they haven’t released an album in six years, prioritising endeavours away from the mic. Now though, they unleash the sequel to 2013’s record breaking tape with a full circle moment; their new album as newly independent artists once again, Young Kingz II.
“It’s a full circle moment,” Krept says. “When we did “Young Kingz”, that changed our whole life. We were independent and it felt like everything was counting on us doing it. And coming out of the label deal now feels like it’s a full 360 moment; we’re here again, independent, haven’t released in years. Even the growth in the songs, the music, the subjects we are touching on. The story is personal. There was so much that was related to both projects that felt like this had to be number two, a whole new growth of “Young Kingz”. It felt like it aligned.”
What the pair have achieved, very few had done before them, and very few have done a better job in doing since. They are forefathers, trailblazers and pacesetters in the UK rap scene, instrumental in it reaching the mainstream and have paved the way for the younger generation to flourish. “I don’t even wanna be shy on it, we pioneered a lot of stuff,” Konan offers heartily. “There wasn’t a blueprint until we, Skepta, Dizzie Rascal, Tinchy Stryder, Chip and others figured out how to make one. A lot of rappers were just winging it, because there was no one that was all the way yet. So we kind of structured the way of the steps basically. Now as we’ve gotten bigger, we’re here to make a blueprint of how you stay here.”
UK rap has come a long way from the beleaguered “trenches” that Krept & Konan experienced when they were first finding prosperity. Road rap, trap, grime and especially drill stampeded into popular music conversations in the backend of the 2010s, and since has resulted in various rappers becoming global stars. More recently though, there’s been a drop off in large scale commercial success, in stylistic progression and in quantity of quality. Newcomers sound like a pastiche of the past, and tiring veterans have reached a crossroads in their creativity.
For Krept & Konan, the burden lies on them and their contemporaries to breathe new life into the movement. “If you were there when we were coming up, you’d be grateful for anything, because that was crazy,” Krept reflects. “There was hardly anything in there for man to try and survive. But now we all have a responsibility to keep the rap ting going. Rap had its hype, now it’s plateaued a little bit, but it’s up to everybody to keep it here.”
Krept & Konan have long played a significant role in keeping the scene healthy. They’ve been judges, alongside DJ Target, for all six series’ of BBC Three’s The Rap Game UK, which sees wannabe MCs battling it out for a cash prize and a mentorship opportunity. Away from the silver screen, the duo are one of the UK’s weightiest co-signs, augmenting the careers of scores of emerging rappers by featuring them on remixes of prominent singles—the likes of SL and Morrisson on “I Spy” and Backroad Gee and Clavish on “Dat Way”. They’ve always promoted collectivity, whether through their collaborations, their live shows or their messaging. But they feel that the core essence of what once made the movement so thrilling is wavering.
“Maybe the reason why [the UK rap scene] is not as exciting is because the unity is not there as much,” Konan muses. “Everybody’s not together, they’re trying to do their separate stuff. When we came in, we united a lot of people. There’s people coming on stage with us, you’d go to a show for one artist and see six rappers. It just felt like everyone was everywhere together, it was lit, it looked fun, everyone wanted to be a part of it. But the money has got to people’s heads and there’s egos now.”
Having solidified their position at the cusp of culture and made major headway in the world of business (not least with Nala’s Baby, the number one UK baby skincare, named after and fronted by Krept’s daughter), the boys are back behind the musical steering wheel. And Young Kingz II is worth the wait—assured and adept in its mission. Its full-frontal posturing meets emotional potency. A concentration on the core of their characters with personal effigies that sprawl across family, growth and reflection. An inward gaze with a widened perspective.
“The album wasn’t called that originally,” Konan reveals. “It was going to be the last album with the label and we were going to call it The Last Card, and that was the theme behind it. We shot the whole album cover, had everything all based around cards. Then we left the label and thought we can’t call it that anymore because people are gonna think it’s the last album, which it’s not now we’re back independent. We were going through names, and thought, ‘Let’s start our new independent journey again on the same hunger that we had the last time.’ The kings are back basically. Obviously we’re not as young as we were before…but we’re still young [laughs].”
Spread across multifarious styles—from drill to real rap, afroswing to dancehall—the album flaunts the many sided clock-face of the duo’s timeless sound. It boasts a mouthwatering feature list that includes Jamaican heavyweight Popcaan, UK street spitter Potter Payper, grime aficionados Ghetts and Chip, and an outro from Top Boy favourite Michael Ward. It sees the two men step further into their individual voices, with several solo cuts—such as Krept’s ode to his daughter “Nala’s Song” and Konan’s letter to his late father “Delroy’s Son”—across the track list that offer insight and introspection into their personal experiences.
In other words, it’s their best work yet. So what do they want to achieve with it?
“Man wants to be awarded, I’ll be honest,” Konan laughs when asked if the mirage of accomplishments has worn off. “Obviously you find deeper meaning, and we just love music so that’s always going to be the foundation of it. But at the same time we’re always trying to be the best at what we do. No artist can be up front and say, ‘I don’t care about awards,’ man. It’s cap. You want at least one in your cabinet.”
“I’ve always wanted…you know when people have houses that just stay in the family for generations?” Krept asks.
“Yeah, the mad mansion and it’s not even got the number, it’s just the name,” his counterpart agrees.
“I’ve always wanted a family accomplishment room in that house,” the former continues. “Like, ‘This is what I have done, now it’s your turn to take up this space, grandchildren.’ Some heritage shit. So yeah, give man an award for this.”
You heard them—bouquets at the ready.
Listen to Young Kingz II…
Words – Ben Tibbits
Photography – Bluebell Ross