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Review by Chris C @thedjslice

I'm so glad to be doing my first review for a female MC out of New York City. Big shoutout to the head honcho at UpcomingHipHop.net Matt O for consistently finding great up and coming talent. Brooklyn native Chelsea Reject dropped her mixtape "CMPLX" earlier in May so it's time to open your ears and your mind.

The first track, "Bam Bam", samples the reggae classic from Sister Nancy. Chelsea comes out swinging with the fast flow. We only get a handful of bars, but it's an awesome introduction.

The second track starts off with a cool jazzy vibe. She spits about struggle, childhood, pain, and perseverance. "Show you just what I'm made of // Make my family proud of me." She's definitely spitting knowledge on this one. Flows are tight, and the lyrics are very dope. A cool hook ties it all together.

"47" is yet another jazzy vibe. More fast flows, and more bars. This time, we get a bit of singing from Chelsea. I really like her approach. She can spit crazy and within seconds, she's harmonizing. Dope. Kirk Knight is on this one and gives us a cool verse.

The fourth track "Closer" is borderline R&B. She's still spitting and hitting you in the face with lyrics, but this time the meaning of this song is a bit more relatable. "If loving you is a crime, then I don't wanna be right". She speaks about meditation and emotion (love) while showing vulnerability. I was waiting for her to sing on this one. The cool piano at the end was almost begging for some harmonies on it.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5klyKC7ZDI]

Track after track, this MC delivers. Chelsea Reject has definitely found her sound and she's honing it. The production on this project is very ill as well. "Go", which features CJ Fly, is another cool track. She sings at points, which is dope. The song "Simple" is a little shy of two minutes long. She talks about love, greatness, and confidence. To be honest, I could listen to this track all day. The beat is funky and Chelsea catches a great flow. I guess she wanted to keep it short and sweet on this one.

"Make You A Fan" has a very loud synth and funky drums. Chelsea is right at home. Fast flows, dope rhymes, and a fly chorus. Nyck Caution provides a verse on this one as well. On "Viiibes", featuring Dyemond Lewis, Chelsea talks about how most people are clones and how the industry just wants to use the culture. "They say they just want a percentage when they want your whole soul. Is you loco? Mister Instagram with ya photos". I'm feeling the vibe on this one (no pun intended).

"Tree" is another track that's under two minutes. But it packs a lot of real raps. "Everybody wanna be famous, and start complaining when shit don't their way. I know, I get it. Cus I do the same shit. Didn't you know that we was equal? I when people think that they're better than other people." Awesome lyrics.

The song to end it all is "Burning Bridges". It starts with some piano and mellow strings. The drums smack you in the back of the head as Chelsea is preaching. Rapping about struggle, college loans, the economy, mass media, and a commitment to the music. A great ending.

It's obvious that Chelsea put a lot of work and thought into this project. "CMPLX" is a great listen front to back because she wants every song to have an effect on the listener. Each song has the bars, the flows, the hard hitting lyrics, and the cool vibes. The production is very clean and she rides each beat with ease. Personally, I would love to hear more of Chelsea's R&B side. Just because I have a love for R&B and female rappers can get away with a slow jam way faster than any male rapper can. Here at UHH, we're keeping an eye on Chelsea. You should too. Make sure you download the project and let us know your thoughts.

Connect with Chelsea Reject
Facebook.com/ChelseaReject | Twitter.com/ChelseaReject
Youtube.com/ChelseaRejectVEVO | Instagram.com/chelseareject