Kid Sister – Ultraviolet

Kid Sister isn’t going to be around long. She recently told MOG.com that she has no intention of still rhyming in 10 years, and her foray into music is something she initially fell into because trying to work more stable nine-to-fives wasn’t working for her in the first place. It’s probably safe to say, then, that she intends to go all out as early as possible and make the most of her career right away. In other words, her debut album Ultraviolet is meant to blow people away.

After some delay, Kid Sister’s album finally gives listeners a more complete picture of who Melisa Young aims to be. Thanks to similar acts like Nicki Minaj and Amanda Blank, hip female emcees are becoming a hot commodity at the end of the decade. Chicago-born Kid Sister is helping lead the pack thanks to catchy singles like “Beeper” and “Pro Nails,” which even managed to catch the attention of mainstream hip-hop giant and fellow windy city-dweller Kanye West. It’s difficult to listen to Ultraviolet without higher expectations knowing how much early interest she managed to garner, which almost puts her at a disadvantage, because it’s almost guaranteed that most artists can’t live up to an overabundance of hype, no matter how strong.

And as it turns out, Ultraviolet isn’t a first-listen album. The latest single, “Right Hand Hi,” has a beat infectious enough to carry listeners through the few opening minutes, but the rest of the album begins blurs together. But here’s a tip: play the record again. It would be a mistake to write off what Kid Sister has to offer too hastily. The second time through Ultraviolet allows the details of her style really shine.

The selling point for Kid Sister is that she’s got attitude and raps over danceable beats, but she doesn’t quite align herself with sassy pop music, instead carving out a niche for herself by exploring more house and breakbeat instrumentation than Autotune-heavy electronics. She doesn’t ignore the importance of levels either, slowing down the tempo and changing the mood of the album in the middle. Hip-hop/soul veteran Cee-Lo joins in on “Daydreaming” to create a moodier, entrancing song about the way infatuation preoccupies the mind. “Switchboard” then picks up the pace again, officially throwing Kid Sister into the pile of people trying to create a new dance move the nation to adopt.

Overall, the album is high-spirited and fun, so much so that it’s almost surprising that Ultraviolet is a fall release instead of something poised to pop out a handful of funky summer anthems. If Kid Sister’s aim is to get listeners to make the most of the hip-hop industry in only a few years, then she’s already off discovered a method that work: be off-the-wall enough to stay fresh but danceable enough to make club kids move.

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