''Purrr!'' is the debut

extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.

(EP) by American singer and rapper

Doja Cat Amala Ratna Zandile Dlamini (born October 21, 1995), known professionally as Doja Cat ( ), is an American rapper and singer. Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, she began making and releasing music on SoundCloud as a teenager. Her song ...

. It was released independently on August 5, 2014 by MAU Records and distributed by Kemosabe and

RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also A ...

. Many of the songs were recorded by Doja Cat in a

DIY "Do it yourself" ("DIY") is the method of building, modifying, or repairing things by oneself without the direct aid of professionals or certified experts. Academic research has described DIY as behaviors where "individuals use raw and semi ...

-style using a variety of

instrumentals A backing track is an audio recording on audiotape, CD or a digital recording medium or a MIDI recording of synthesized instruments, sometimes of purely rhythmic accompaniment, often of a rhythm section or other accompaniment parts that live music ...

which she found online from producers such as

Mndsgn Ringgo Ancheta, better known by his stage name Mndsgn (pronounced "mind design"), is an American record producer and singer-songwriter based in Los Angeles, California. Biography Mndsgn was born Ringgo Ancheta in San Diego, California and was rais ...

, Evil Needle, and Dream Koala.

Background

On March 13, 2014, the EP's only single and third track " So High" was officially released on streaming services. This was a repackaged version of the song, as Doja had independently published it on November 8, 2012 via

SoundCloud SoundCloud is an online audio distribution platform and music sharing website that enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is one of the largest music streaming se ...

. At the time of ''Purrr!'''s release, "So High" had amassed over 712 thousand streams on

and over 240 thousand views on the official music video.

Critical reception

David Turner of ''

The Fader ''The Fader'' (stylized as ''FADER'') is a magazine based in New York City that was launched in 1999 by Rob Stone and Jon Cohen. The magazine covers music, style and culture. It was the first print publication to be released on iTunes. It is o ...

'' highlighted the song "Control" as "a breezy seaside joyride built on slow builds and wavy echoes" and also praised Doja Cat's "spacey singing style" throughout the record. Briana Cheng of ''

Dazed ''Dazed'' (''Dazed & Confused'' until February 2014) is a bi-monthly British style magazine founded in 1991. It covers music, fashion, film, art, and literature. Dazed is published by Dazed Media, an independent media group known for producing ...

'' 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 Siren or sirens may refer to: Common meanings * Siren (alarm), a loud acoustic alarm used to alert people to emergencies * Siren (mythology), an enchanting but dangerous monster in Greek mythology Places * Siren (town), Wisconsin * Siren, Wisco ...

from

Lil Wayne Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (born September 27, 1982), known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. His career began in 1995, at the age of 12, when he was signed by rapper Birdman (rapper), ...

's 2008 single " Mrs. Officer". Petar Kujundzic of ''Hypebeast'' described ''Purrr!'' as "a fine list of bass-heavy,

alternative R&B Alternative R&B (also referred to as alt-R&B, indie R&B, hipster R&B, dark R&B, emo R&B and left-field R&B) is a term used by music journalists to describe a stylistic alternative to contemporary R&B that began in the mid 2000s and came to pro ...

tracks" and highlighted the song "No Police" for "offering the best of her vocal and lyrical abilities". Writing for ''Illsociety'', Kelly Hawkins praised Doja Cat's "brazen raps and airy vocals".

Track listing

Samples * "Nunchucks" is built around the musical base of "Legwarmrs", performed by

. * "So High" is built around the musical base of "Falling Leaves", performed by Evil Needle. * "No Police" is built around the musical base of "We Can't Be Friends", performed by Dream Koala.

References

{{Authority control RCA Records EPs 2014 debut EPs