''Wicked Lips'' is the fifth

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.

by Australian rapper

Iggy Azalea Amethyst Amelia Kelly (born 7 June 1990), known professionally as Iggy Azalea (), is an Australian rapper. At the age of 16, Azalea moved from Australia to the United States in order to pursue a career in music. Azalea earned public recognitio ...

, released on 2 December 2019 through Bad Dreams Records and

Empire An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...

. Although it was initially announced to be a reissue of Azalea's second studio album '' In My Defense'', it was revealed through the rapper's

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

that her next musical project would be an extended play. The extended play is supported by the

lead single A lead single (also known as a debut single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. Release s ...

, "

Lola Lola may refer to: Places * Lolá, a or subdistrict of Panama * Lola Township, Cherokee County, Kansas, United States * Lola Prefecture, Guinea * Lola, Guinea, a town in Lola Prefecture * Lola Island, in the Solomon Islands People * Lola ...

", with British singer Alice Chater. Many delays happened within the EP's release with it being scheduled for release on 15 November, then on 22 November, but then it got delayed again until its eventual release on 2 December.

Background and release

After releasing her second studio album ''In My Defense'' on 19 July 2019 which peaked at number 50 on the US ''Billboard'' 200, Azalea stated that she would not be touring for the album and instead would be working on new music. She then announced the release of the extended play along with the release of the lead single "Lola" released on 8 November 2019. The extended play was set for release on 15 November 2019 but would be delayed two times for unknown reasons, before being officially released on 2 December 2019.

Singles

"Lola" featuring Alice Chater was released on 8 November 2019 and was sent to rhythmic and contemporary hit radio as the lead single on 3 December 2019. The single peaked at number 9 on the US Rap Digital Songs Sales Chart and number 84 on the

UK Download Chart The UK Singles Downloads Chart is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC) on behalf of the music industry. Since July 2015, the chart week runs from Friday to Thursday, with the chart date given as the following Thursday. The main chart co ...

Critical reception

Mike Nied of ''

Idolator An idolator is a practitioner of idolatry. Idolater or Idolator may also refer to: Books *''Os Idólatras'', 1968 Portuguese novel by Maria Judite de Carvalho Music * Idolator (website), an American music blog * ''Idolator'' (album), third album ...

'' points out that, "from start to finish, ''Wicked Lips'' is more proof that Iggy is doing things her own way. And that’s a very good thing. While 'Lola' is clearly the standout, every other track is a testament to her confidence and ability to craft bops." Daniel Spielberger of ''

HipHopDX ''HipHopDX'' is an online magazine of hip hop music criticism and news. The website's current president and publisher is Sharath Cherian and the Head Of Content is Jerry L. Barrow. ''HipHopDX'' is the flagship publication of Cheri Media Group. ...

'' notices that "Azalea goes for a new approach: instead of getting bogged down by her past controversies, she dips her toes into various genres to see if she can regain her commercial mojo. But ultimately, the songs on ''Wicked Lips'' sound like skeletal homages to other artists' more interesting work" and concludes that, "though it's a slight improvement from her second album, ''Wicked Lips'' still shows that Azalea can't find her own lane. This EP has her settling for mediocrity and resting comfortably in the discount bin."

Track listing

Adapted from

Apple Music Apple Music is a music, audio and video streaming service developed by Apple Inc. Users select music to stream to their device on-demand, or they can listen to existing playlists. The service also includes the Internet radio stations Apple M ...

. Samples *"Lola" contains elements of " Mambo Italiano", Written by

Bob Merrill Henry Robert Merrill Levan (May 17, 1921 – February 17, 1998) was an American songwriter, theatrical composer, lyricist, and screenwriter. He was one of the most successful songwriters of the 1950s on the US and UK single charts. He wrote ...

, Frankie Laine, William S. Fischer.

Personnel

– lead vocals * Alice Chater – co-lead vocals (track 1) *

Pabllo Vittar Phabullo Rodrigues da Silva (born 1 November 1993), known professionally as Pabllo Vittar (), is a Brazilian drag queen and singer. Life and career 1993–2016: Early life Born in São Luís, Phabullo is a dizygotic twin and has an older sis ...

– co-lead vocals (track 3)

Release history

References

{{Authority control 2019 EPs Albums produced by J. White Did It Empire Distribution EPs EPs by Australian artists Iggy Azalea albums