Yesterday, DXnext alum Kid Sister released her long-awaited debut Ultraviolet. The album, released on Fool’s Gold/Downtown Records, boasts the career jump-starting appearance from Kanye West on “Pro Nails,” as well as veteran emcee and label-mate Cee-Lo. Speaking with HipHopDX last week, the New York-by-Chicago talent explained how this work is breaking new ground in genre. “Basically, let me see…all we wanted to do was put together an album that was cohesively up-tempo and really was genre-defining work.”
Bold words, but since “Pro Nails” debuted several years ago, Kid Sister has been a difficult artist to classify. As she told it, “It’s a new movement that’s come out in Hip Hop in the last year or so. I think I’m probably at the pinnacle at that, being that I’m the first artist to put forth a work that is Electronic music that’s Hip Hop-fused, and that’s all it is. That’s the whole reason we took back the album, because it wasn’t that.” Taking the album back explains the repeated delays, title change and label adjustments made to this almost three-year endeavor. While others in tow, Kid Sis holds herself accountable for this presentation. “If I’m thee flagship artist for this new movement, then my album had better be a pretty clear reflection of this new movement.“
Looking at yesterday’s release, Kid Sister characterized the disc in a Pam Grier-like tone as “full of surprises. And it’s a nasty, nasty barn-burner, so I hope you’re ready.“
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Electronic and Hip Hop’s marriage dates back to Afrika Bambaataa‘s sampling of Kraftwerk for 1982 hit “Planet Rock.” At only 29 years old, Kid Sister however, referenced the mid-’90s as her period of time to bridge the gap. “My connections are both on the side of Hip Hop and Electronic music. I grew up listening to Capone-N-Noreaga and a little bit of Gangsta Rap from ther west.” She then looked at figures of the Electronic movement that gave her equal inspiration. “On the Dance side, DJ Principle, Green Velvet, Felix Da Housecat – I grew up listening to all these dudes, and to now be able to work with them is a dream come true. It’s unreal. It feels good to marry these genres that otherwise may not have crossed paths.“
On a very personal level, Kid Sister compared the genre fusions to her own life and experiences. “Being bi-racial and being from such a varied background, it’s feels like a duty more than anything. But I’m happy to do it.“
Ultraviolet is in stores now.
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