Melissa Lauren Young (born July 3, 1980), known professionally as Kid Sister, is an American rapper and singer based in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. She is known for her single " Pro Nails", which features

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer. Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...

, and for her covert work as a member of the British music collective Sault.

Biography

Kid Sister was born Melissa Lauren Young on July 3, 1980, in

Markham, Illinois Markham is a city and a south suburb of Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 11,661 at the 2020 census. Geography Markham is located at (41.597467, -87.691570). According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Markh ...

. She started to rap in October 2006, becoming an MC at monthly dance parties hosted by DJ duo

Flosstradamus Flosstradamus is the stage name of American DJ and musician Curt Cameruci. From 2007 until 2016, Flosstradamus consisted of Cameruci and Josh Young from Chicago. The duo announced they would both be pursuing solo careers, with Cameruci to continu ...

(Josh Young, of Flosstradamus, is Melisa's brother), who were featured in MTV's ''My Block'' that same year. She made '' URBs "The Next 1000" cover in April 2007, and was signed to DJ

A-Trak Alain Macklovitch (born March 30, 1982), known by his stage name A-Trak, is a Canadian DJ, record producer, and record executive. He came to prominence in the late 2000s as an international club DJ and remix artist, known for incorporating highly ...

's label, Fool's Gold, who released her first single " Pro Nails", which features Kanye West. Kid Sister later signed with

Downtown Records Downtown Records is an American record label based in New York City with offices in Los Angeles. Owned and operated by Josh Deutsch and Terence Lam, the label is distributed by Geffen Records (formerly Interscope Records and The Orchard) in the ...

, who re-released "Pro Nails" to critical acclaim. Kid Sister also appears on Tittsworth's "WTF", from his debut album ''12 Steps'', with Pase Rock. She had also finished a mixtape with

. In Fall 2009, Kid Sister finished recording her debut studio album. The title was changed from ''Dream Date'' to ''

Ultraviolet Ultraviolet (UV) is a form of electromagnetic radiation with wavelength from 10 nm (with a corresponding frequency around 30 PHz) to 400 nm (750 THz), shorter than that of visible light, but longer than X-rays. UV radiation ...

''. The album was produced by the likes of

Rusko Rusko () is a municipality of Finland. It is located in Western Finland and is part of the Southwest Finland region. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is . The municipali ...

The Count & Sinden "Beeper" is the debut single by British music duo the Count & Sinden, featuring vocals from American hip hop artist Kid Sister. The song was released via Domino Records in April 2008. Background and release "Beeper" was released on Switch and S ...

XXXChange Alex Brady Epton, known professionally as XXXChange (formerly known as XXXCBIOSCCC), is an American, New York-based record producer, mixer and film composer. In 2014, he joined XL Recordings in New York, and as their in-house producer/engineer wor ...

, and Brian Kennedy, and includes a collaboration with English singer Estelle titled "First Ladies", which is a remake of

Queen Latifah Dana Elaine Owens (born March 18, 1970), known professionally as Queen Latifah, is an American rapper, actress, and singer. Born in Newark, New Jersey, she signed with Tommy Boy Records in 1989 and released her debut album '' All Hail the Qu ...

's 1989 acclaimed track "Ladies First" from her debut album ''

All Hail the Queen ''All Hail the Queen'' is the debut album by hip-hop artist Queen Latifah. The album was released on November 7, 1989, through Tommy Boy Records. The feminist anthem, "Ladies First" featuring Monie Love remains one of Latifah's signature songs. ...

''. Her single "

Control Control may refer to: Basic meanings Economics and business * Control (management), an element of management * Control, an element of management accounting * Comptroller (or controller), a senior financial officer in an organization * Controllin ...

" is featured in the 2009 music video game ''

DJ Hero ''DJ Hero'' is a music video game, developed by FreeStyleGames and published by Activision as a rhythm game spin-off of the '' Guitar Hero'' franchise. It was released on October 27, 2009 in North America and on October 29, 2009 in Europe. The g ...

'', combined with Rihanna's " Disturbia". The album's lead single was " Right Hand Hi", produced by

Steve Angello Steven Patrik Josefsson Fragogiannis ( el, Στέφεν Πάτρικ Γιόζεφσον Φραγκόγιαννης; born 22 November 1982), better known by his stage name Steve Angello, is a Greek-Swedish DJ, record producer, remixer and record ...

and Sebastian Ingrosso of house DJ group

Swedish House Mafia Swedish House Mafia (SHM) is a Swedish house music supergroup consisting of Axwell, Steve Angello and Sebastian Ingrosso. The group officially formed in late 2008, were placed at number ten on the '' DJ Mag'' Top 100 DJ Poll 2011, and have ...

. "I think a lot of people are going to be surprised with the fact that there's a bunch of raw hip-hop records on there," said A-Trak. "It's not all up tempo clubby stuff. I think a lot of people are going to be impressed with her growth also because when she made a lot of the records that people have heard by now, she was just starting to rap." In late 2010, Kid Sister released a mixtape titled ''Kiss Kiss Kiss'' and in 2014 she released a second mixtape, ''Dusk2Dawn: The Diary of Jane Jupiter'' in which she tackled more serious, personal subjects. In 2016, she began working on her second album with British producer

Inflo Dean Josiah Cover, professionally known as Inflo, is an English record producer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. He helms the R&B music collective project Sault, which foregrounds black-centric issues. Career In 2014, British rock band ...

. Kid Sister is a member of the British music collective Sault, along with Inflo and British singer-songwriter

Cleo Sol Cleopatra Zvezdana Nikolic (born 24 March 1991), better known by her stage name Cleo Sol, is a British singer-songwriter. Working closely with the producer Inflo, she has released two solo studio albums, ''Rose in the Dark'' (2020) and ''Mother'' ...

Personal life

Kid Sister's ethnic background includes African American, Native American, and Caucasian. In numerous interviews and magazine articles, she has revealed that she has struggled financially for years before becoming West's protégé. She has also admitted to being 215 pounds at one point in her life. She continued in the same interview to state that she has been "thick" her whole life, but explained that this has had no bearing on her self-esteem, because at her core she is not a passive person. Kid Sister has a degree in film from Columbia College Chicago and worked on two independent feature films during her studies: 9/11 drama ''The Guys'' (2002) starring

Sigourney Weaver Susan Alexandra "Sigourney" Weaver (; born October 8, 1949) is an American actress. A figure in science fiction and popular culture, she has received various accolades, including a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and a Gramm ...

and

Anthony LaPaglia Anthony LaPaglia (, ; born 31 January 1959) is an Australian actor. He is best known for his role as Jack Malone in the television drama ''Without a Trace'' (2002–2009), for which he received a Golden Globe Award in 2004. LaPaglia won a Pr ...

; and ''Best Thief in the World'' (2003) starring

Mary-Louise Parker Mary-Louise Parker (born August 2, 1964) is an American actress. After making her Broadway debut as Rita in Craig Lucas' '' Prelude to a Kiss'' in 1990 (for which she received a Tony Award nomination), Parker came to prominence for film roles i ...

and

Audra McDonald Audra Ann McDonald (born July 3, 1970) is an American actress and singer. Primarily known for her work on the Broadway stage, she has won six Tony Awards, more performance wins than any other actor, and is the only person to win in all four act ...

. Kid Sister for a time concurrently worked for the retail chain Bath & Body Works, Little Threads, a children's clothing store, and Wild Hare, a reggae bar in Wrigleyville.

Discography

Albums

* ''

'' (2009)

Mixtapes

* ''Kiss Kiss Kiss'' (2011) * ''DUSK2DAWN: The Diary of Jane Jupiter'' (2014)

EPs

* ''Kiss & Tell'' (2011)

Singles

Solo

As featured performer

Awards and nominations

BET Awards The BET Awards is an American award show that was established in 2001 by the Black Entertainment Television network to celebrate black entertainers and other minorities in music, film, sports and philanthropy. The awards, which are presented annua ...

**2008: Best Female Hip-Hop Artist (nominated)

References

External links

*
Review
by '' Spin''
Interview with Kid Sister at The Music Fix prior to the UK release of ''Ultraviolet''

Venus Zine Presents: Kid Sister
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sister, Kid 1980 births American women rappers African-American women rappers Living people Midwest hip hop musicians People from Markham, Illinois Rappers from Chicago Universal Music Group artists Songwriters from Illinois African-American songwriters 21st-century American rappers 21st-century American women musicians American women in electronic music Downtown Records artists 21st-century African-American women 21st-century African-American musicians 20th-century African-American people 20th-century African-American women 21st-century women rappers