Chy Cartier – ‘No Bring Ins’ review: a fearless debut from the future of UK drill

4 April, 2025

Chy Cartier

Chy Cartier, north London’s newest rap princess, isn’t waiting for permission to make her mark. From the first seconds of her debut mixtape, ‘No Bring Ins’, she makes her position clear – she didn’t come to play. She came to conquer.

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UK rap’s self-proclaimed “prettiest problem” has already made big moves before this release. She scored a spot on the NME 100 for 2025 with her raw energy and attention-grabbing way with words. The Tottenham native has earned co-signs from local heroes and British rap heavyweights Skepta and Headie One, and has absorbed the legacy of her area and made it her own by fusing grace and grit. She’s not just taking steps into the UK drill scene; she’s quickly making her way to the top.

‘No Brings Ins’ should only take Cartier higher. She laces every track with cutthroat lyricism and riot-starting energy, not just rapping but attacking the beat, slicing through bass-heavy production with a flow so slick it’s disrespectful. On viral singles ‘Yo’ and ‘Different Kettle’, she unleashes grimy, chest-thumping anthems that practically dare you to test her and maintains that attitude on the likes of ‘Real Boss Chick’ and ‘Weakest Link’. The latter shows the star at her most unshakeable. “Bitches know I’m big boss, rich forever, stuck up,” she proclaims. “Oh, you don’t like me, why not shut the fuck up!”

When the 20-year-old first broke through with her 2023 single ‘Bossed Up’, she was mocked online for her unorthodox flow. But ‘No Bring Ins’ doesn’t just embrace her idiosyncratic delivery; it takes centre stage alongside her poetic edge. On ‘Locked In’, her intentionally rambling flow becomes a skillful use of enjambment as she raps: “Statue of Liberty, gonna walk before me, the way I’m standing on this business / Before I beg for a seat, at your table, I’m able, I bought mine”. But it’s ‘SN’ where Cartier marries her poetic ways with pop-drill most expertly. Her hunger over the low-end, bass-driven pop-grime instrumental feels like a spoken word poem about her transition from the streets to a life of luxury.

Debut projects are all about establishing who you are and what your sound is. On this cohesive and fun mixtape, Cartier sets about proving that she can’t be boxed in – pop, grime, drill, and now R&B are all in her domain. The latter is evident on the sultry ‘Crazy’, on which she flexes her storytelling abilities with a romantic tale and shows off her singing chops with unexpectedly lush vocals that deliver an instantly infectious hook: “I know you’re the one, that’s not a maybe / Bitch, don’t make me sin and go crazy”.

‘No Bring Ins’ is raw, cocky, and unapologetic statement piece from an artist who’s already moving like she owns the place. And, if Chy Cartier continues in this form, soon, she just might.