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Though Sara Kawai’s work as a producer and classically-trained harpist usually has her busy behind-the-scenes, it’s likely that she’s rubbed shoulders with some of your favorite artists. Whether or not you’ve seen her performing alongside Blxst in their infamous Sparky Sunset Session performance of “Hurt” or with Sabrina Claudio in the angelic KingRexx visual for “Don’t Make Me Wait,” it’s hard to deny that Kawai is a force to be reckoned with. With a resumé spanning collaborations with artists from Guapdad 4000 to Amaria, her work represents sacred camaraderie — an artistic spirit fostered through mutual respect and reverence for music and its contributors.

Synthesizing her affinity for bringing people together with her knack for live performance, last month Kawai put on the event 'Kawai & Friends,’ a night celebrating music, culture, and the friends made along the way. Set in Los Angeles’ iconic The Echo, Kawai assembled The Avengers with a lineup including her close friends Jay Wile, Amaria, Alemeda, Gogo, Olea, and ~secret~ special guest Amindi. The result was just as you’d expect, a night filled with good vibes, friendly people, and performances from some of music’s most talented up-and-coming acts. 

For the uninitiated, it’s worth noting that the 'Kawai & Friends’ roster is so much more than a showcasing of local talent. Combining the dulcet R&B sounds of Cautious Clay with a dose of Choker-type experimentation, Jay Wile is a versatile San Antonio alt-R&B artist whose music isn’t afraid to take risks. Kawai notes “I met Jay at an Afropunk Workshop I was performing for at the end of 2021. He moved out to LA soon after and we started making music together here and there. [We] quickly became friends.” Wile’s tracks like “Numb” and “Who’s Lovin’ U?’ are must-listens, especially as summer transitions to fall. 

Turning towards Amaria, she likely needs no introduction (yet here I am typing). Her music is distinctly marked with a signature dreamlike and hypnotic energy, with tracks like “Lose Control” and the Mick Jenkins-assisted “Got Me Like” serving as perfect examples of why she might be R&B’s next big star. “I met Amaria through Instagram,” Kawai recounts. “We followed each other earlier this year and it just so happened that Amaria moved to LA a month or two after we connected. I met her out at a DJ event through our mutual friend Alex. We clicked instantly and started hanging out more and more.”

While Jay and Amaria occupy R&B’s more downtempo register, Alemeda is much more difficult to pin down. Her 2021 single “Gonna Bleach My Eyebrows” is an eclectic and ambient house-infused pop banger that is just as futuristic as it is infectious. Fast forward nine months to her most recent single “UR SO FULL OF IT (ILY NYC),” and you’re treated to a cathartic alt-rock bop that highlights Alemeda’s genreless style - all held together with a special talent for clever songwriting. “I connected with Alemeda through a friend that told me about her before she started releasing music. When she moved to LA, we started to run into each other in studios.” 

The show’s secret guest was none other than Amindi, whose dominance over the past year has been inescapable from the release of her debut EP nice to her collaborations with Your Grandparents and Isaiah Rashad. While her style is marked by her own careful precision and attention to detail, tracks like “great again” and “haircut” are sure to win over even the most hard-headed music skeptics due to the spectacular level of soul that Amindi can generate over a three-minute runtime. Kawai recalls their fated encounter by revealing, “I met Amindi actually through Amaria funny enough. They were friends prior so I would always say hi to Amindi in passing when me and Amaria would see her while we’re out shopping or hanging out around LA. Amindi was always so sweet and friendly so it was always a pleasant experience when I would see her. I’ve always admired Amindi’s work and music too so I’m grateful that she was down to do my show."

Though the world of rising artists can be competitive, isolating, and wrought with artifice, ‘Kawai & Friends’ is a testament to keeping good company, loving music, and simply being friendly.