Purrr!

**Purrr!** is owned by **Euglena**. Do NOT edit, vandalize, or add/remove ANYTHING from this project without **EXPLICIT PERMISSION** from them. Tysm for cooperating!! <33

## Extended play by Ilya

### Release Date

18 April 2014
5 August 2014 (Deluxe)

### Producer(s)

Ilya • Iman Omari • Mndsgn • Evil Needle • Dream Koala • Yeti Beats

## Singles

1. "So High"
Released: March 13, 2014
2. "No Police"
Released: June 22, 2014

***Purrr!*** is the debut extended play by American singer-songwriter and rapper Ilya. It was released independently on April 18, 2014 through MAU and Kemosabe Records and was made available for CD, vinyl, digital download, and streaming. Many of the songs were recorded by Ilya in a DIY-style using a variety of instrumentals which she found online from producers such as Mndsgn, Evil Needle, and Dream Koala among others. A deluxe edition of the extended play was released on August 5, 2014 and contains two bonus tracks.

Upon it's release, *Purrr!* received critical acclaim from music critics who praised it's lyricism and production. Ilya embarked on the Purrr! Tour in support of the extended play from June 2014 to February 2015.

## Background

In 2011, Ilya began to teach herself how to sing, rap, dance, and produce music. She revealed that being a singer and a rapper was never her intention; however she needed a job after she dropped out of high school at the age of 16. Ilya would spend a lot of time browsing YouTube for beats and instrumentals which she would add vocals to using the built-in microphone on her MacBook, all while sitting on the mattress on her own bedroom floor.

She began to self-produce her music and by November of 2011, she had completed her first song and had uploaded her first song to SoundCloud. Throughout 2012 and 2013, Ilya continued to upload self-produced tracks onto her SoundCloud account, although the songs only received moderate popularity. In early February of 2014, Ilya uploaded "So High" onto SoundCloud. The song immediately went viral in online circles all across the internet and eventually caught the attention of Kemosabe Records, who signed Ilya to the label. An official music video for the song was released a few days later, and helped gain the song larger public attention online.

## Release

Ilya officially announced the release of *Purrr!* on March 26, 2014 in a Twitter post. She revealed the extended play's tracklist the following day on March 27 and announced that she would be hosting a listening party for the extended play on April 12 and 13 with multinational lifestyle retail corporation Urban Outfitters at specific store locations. The extended play was then released on April 18, 2014 through MAU and Kemosabe Records and was made available for physical and digital purchase, digital download, and streaming.

## Critical reception

Upon its release, *Purrr!* received critical acclaim from music critics, music publications, and fans alike. On Metacritic which assigns weighted scores based out of 100, the EP received a score of 85, indicating "universal acclaim". Music critics compared the extended play's content to the musical styles of artists such as SZA, ABRA, Kelela, Kilo Kish, and Jhené Aiko.

David Turner of *The Fader* highlighted the song "Control" as "a breezy seaside joyride built on slow builds and wavy echoes" and also praised Ilya's "spacey singing style" throughout the record. Briana Cheng of *Dazed* wrote that on "No Police", she "fiercely meows" and "sassily" raps and sings over a "mild" guitar riff as part of the "mollifying" beat, notably humming from the police sirens from Lil Wayne's 2008 single "Mrs. Officer". Petar Kujundzic of *Hypebeast* described *Purrr!* as "a fine list of bass-heavy, alternative R&B tracks" and highlighted the song "No Police" for "offering the best of her vocal and lyrical abilities". Writing for *Illsociety*, Kelly Hawkins praised Ilya's "brazen raps and airy vocals".

## Singles

1. **So High**: Released as the lead single from the extended play on March 13, 2014, with a music video.
2. **No Police**: Released as the second and final single form the extended play on June 22, 2014, with a music video.

So HighNo Police
## Track listing

* "\*" indicates a song that contains explicit lyrics or themes.

## Outtakes

**Bold** typing indicates that the song, snippets of the song, or lyrics have been leaked/posted/performed at some point.

Underlined typing indicates that the song's full studio version has been leaked or released.

* **Naughty**
* **Diggin' You**
* **Lonely**