By James Dinh

Even though it has been 20 years since the release of Queen Latifah's All Hail the Queen, female rappers are still a relatively endangered species. Kanye West protégé Kid Sister hopes to change all that. On Wednesday evening (November 19), the rapper held an album release party in support of the release of her debut album Ultraviolet (which hits stores this Tuesday, November 17) to a group of friends, family and fans.

The event was hosted at the Griffin Lounge on Manhattan's Lower East Side, which was quite a grand setting for party, with its the enormous golden chandelier. The scene might have been perfect for a time of celebration, but for Kid Sister, things haven't always been so glamorous. Before launching a career in rap, she and her parents suffered through a financial disaster that took up most of her adolescence. It must have only motivated her more, as she went on to graduate from Columbia College in Chicago with a degree in film. In 2005, she decided to get involved in the rap game and caught the attention of Kanye. He signed the then 27-year-old to DJ A-Trak's label Fool's Gold, and she later landed another deal with Downtown Records. Ever since then, the Chicago-based rapper has been hard at work creating her debut album, which includes the track the buzzworthy track "Pro Nails" (featuring mentor West). The first single off Kid Sister's debut album is the house-infused track "Right Hand Hi" and is wrapping up a national tour with DJ Flosstradamus.

One thing the grandiose room was missing for most of the night? Kid Sister herself, who was delayed because of her visit to the 2009 mtvU Woodie Awards, which were taping uptown. Still, it was a great night that felt like an appropriate celebration for an artist who stuck to her guns and ended up on top.

Lollapalooza may be a massive festival that draws people from all over the country, but in a lot of ways it belongs to the city that hosts it. What was once a traveling rock caravan has become a fixture here, occupying the entirety of Grant Park and then some, right on the shores of Lake Michigan, and surrounded by the city skyline including the iconic John Hancock building.

Hometown pride is in evidence all around, from the Cubs gear everywhere you turn (first place, is this the year?) to the t-shirts representing for a hometown hero who has captured the attention of the world and may soon capture the White House. And of course, to the Chicago musicians - Kanye, Lupe, Cool Kids, Wilco and a certain irresistible young woman named Kid Sister. With a debut album out, having just finished an energetic midday set, and looking great in a bright purple dress, she made her way with us to the middle of the park, to a landmark, Buckingham Fountain, where she bonded with some fans and we got a first hand taste of Windy City pride.

It's been a long, long time since I danced in public. But if there was ever a time to bust out some of my solid gold moves, the final afternoon of Lollapalooza was it. The day dawned hot and steamy, and not just because of the sizzling heat. Chicago's own Kid Sister continued what appears to be a growing tradition on the South Stage (despite their sponsorship of the stage, AT&T's service has gotten half a bar from just about everyone I've spoken to, so I'm ignoring their naming rights), following in the heels of fellow Chi-town MC Lupe Fiasco, who killed on those boards on Saturday. (Sunday’s closer will feature the King of Chicago, Kanye West, taking what will now be known as the Home Stage.)

Sister, accompanied by three female dancers in futuristic football gear and face paint, sashayed across the stage in a flirty summer dress and got the crowd bouncing to summer jams like "Pro Nails," at one point bringing out a seven-piece crew of female backup dancers who were painted gold head-to-toe.

(Check out Kid Sister and her dancers after jump!)
Read more...

· Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks, Broken Social Scene, and Times New Viking are set to headline this summer’s Siren Festival in NY.

· Vampire Weekend, Kid Sister, and Santogold are among the acts playing for free at Central Park SummerStage in NY this summer.

· Perry Farrell’s Kidzapalooza, the kid-friendly companion fest to Chicago’s Lollapalooza, will debut at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles this summer. Farrell and others will perform.

· When not inspiring mediocre covers of classic songs on “American Idol,” Neil Diamond has apparently been planning a "secret" show of his latest tunes for his MySpace “friends” at NY’s The Bitter End. It’s tonight.

The MTV love affair with Kid Sister continues today, with both the aforelinked news piece and a video piece on tv later today.

In the meantime, this nugget was too good to wait 'til later. Kid Sister on her dad, Graceland and Illmatic (actually, Chromeo's take on Graceland and Illmatic but that's neither here nor there). All these references to marching bands and Talking Heads and Vampire Weekend is making our head spin, and it's like, you know, tailor-made for blogs just like this:

Kid Sister: "My dad was in a Talking Heads cover band. Black man, wow! A black man in a Talking Heads cover band! [To her brother, Josh, from Flosstradamus] Remember when mom used to play John Philip Sousa marches in the car? Paul Simon - we used to listen to Graceland. Paul Simon! Like you could be the hardest dude and be like into Graceland. Oh yeah. Our friend Dave, A-Trak's brother (from Chromeo), he was like yeah… Paul Simon's Graceland is the Illmatic of dad rock. Think about it. Whoa."

Whoa, indeed!

So how about it readers? What would that make Vampire Weekend?

Big moment in the halls of the Newsroom earlier this week. Kid Sister, the Chicago club rapper who is quickly becoming the hot thing in the music world, was in the building for her TRL debut.

That's a big deal, yo! A lot of artists traffic in that world of underground cool and don't get a chance to break out. And Kid Sister is getting her shot to become the face/sound of a long-bubbling movement of hipster hip-hop. Now, it helps that Kanye gave her the homie discount and showed up on her first single, "Pro Nails," but even without the hi-pro cameo, we think Kid Sister would be making moves.

More on Kid Sister's visit, a look at her first interview ever and a sneak peek at her next video after the jump.

Read more...