Minor (EP)

Last updated

Minor
Gracie Abrams minorEP.jpeg
EP by
ReleasedJuly 14, 2020
Genre
Length20:09
Label Interscope
Gracie Abrams chronology
Minor
(2020)
This Is What It Feels Like
(2021)
Singles from Minor
  1. "21"
    Released: February 20, 2020
  2. "I Miss You, I'm Sorry"
    Released: April 8, 2020
  3. "Long Sleeves"
    Released: May 20, 2020

Minor is the debut extended play (EP) by the American singer-songwriter Gracie Abrams, released on July 14, 2020, by Interscope Records. [1] Abrams co-wrote all the tracks. Production was mainly handled by Blake Slatkin.

Contents

Background

Gracie Abrams became interested in playing the piano and songwriting at age eight. [2] [3] She started her career by posting recordings of covers and original songs to Instagram and SoundCloud. [4] On Instagram, she premiered a song titled "Minor" in August 2017, and uploaded a produced version of the song in March 2018. The song gained attention from the New Zealand singer and songwriter Lorde, who told Abrams to send her the MP3 for "Minor". [5] In 2019, Abrams signed with Interscope Records and released her debut single, "Mean It". [4] She also released a full version of "Minor" alongside a lo-fi video on YouTube in 2019. [6] The single was followed by "Stay" in January 2020. [7] Since Abrams began posting music online, she has also attracted the attention of the American singer-songwriter Phoebe Bridgers. [8]

Writing and production

Abrams wrote Minor while in college and experiencing her first breakup, which she felt was something she needed to write about at the time. [9] [10] [11] She described this time as a "very transitional year" for herself. [11] She also said the EP was "very much in response" to the breakup. [10] She wrote the title track at age 17 and it was the first song she wrote where she "immediately recognized that it was just incredibly [her]". [12] [13] The rest of the EP was recorded in one week, which Abrams said was "unintentional but the best week ever". The majority of the EP was completed before the COVID-19 lockdowns. [14] Abrams worked on the EP with her then-boyfriend, Blake Slatkin, who served as its executive producer. [11] [15] Throughout its creation, the two would burn incense and go on walks; Abrams expressed her emotional distress through writing. [11] When titling the song "Tehe", Abrams felt she "overused [the] phrase" when speaking regularly, which led to its title, despite the phrase not appearing in the song; she said it "felt like the obvious choice". [16]

Composition

Minor is a bedroom pop, [11] electropop, [8] and indie folk [12] EP with themes of love, life, and strained friendships. [14] The EP's central focus is on the conclusion of a relationship. [11] NME 's Jenessa Williams compared the lyrical themes to the work of Lorde and the darker moments of Selena Gomez's discography. [14] Charlotte Krol of the same website called the EP "seven emotional diary entries transposed to song form from the confines of [Abrams's] bedroom". [17] Pitchfork's Jane Bua identified that the EP was characterized by "diaristic tracks with ashen vocals". [18]

The opening track of Minor is "Friend", which lyrically reflects on emotional disconnect. [16] "21" contains lo-fi thumps reminiscent of a house party, according to Williams. [14] The lyrics of "Tehe" reflect on the aftermath of a broken relationship ("Now I know I wasn't right"). The track also reflects on optimism, using the line, "Should've called it / But we never gave it up." [16] "I Miss You, I'm Sorry" displays Abrams longing over a lost relationship to the point of missing its turbulent parts. Atop a simple piano motif that expands with expressive strings, she sings "I miss fighting in your old apartment / Breaking dishes when you're disappointed." [17] "Long Sleeves" is a ballad that sees Abrams acknowledge she is not ready to love somebody while working on herself. [16] Abrams described as "closure". [14] The final track of Minor is its title track, which shares the frustration of feeling stuck at home. She nearly whispers the lines "I would drive all night to get to you / But my curfew is early and dad's at the door," which Williams felt depicted the transitional period of teenage angst marked by a mix of "know-it-all autonomy and tentative fear". [14]

Promotion and release

The lead single of Minor, "21", was released on February 20, 2020. [19] Minor was announced on May 20, 2020. It was originally meant to be released on June 16, 2020, but was delayed to July 14, 2020 so as not to detract from the Black Lives Matter movement. [20] She was scheduled to perform live for the first time, although it was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. [14] In September 2020, Abrams performed "Friend" live in her home for Vevo. [21] Abrams first teased "Tehe" in an interview with Coup de Main in early 2020. [16]

Critical reception

Minor was well received. [10] Multiple critics described Minor as Abrams's breakout release. [10] Retrospectively writing about the EP for Pitchfork, Bua criticized it for being "underdeveloped"; she called its production "simple" and its songwriting "promising (but sometimes cliché)". [18] The EP expanded Abrams's fanbase. [10] Williams deemed "21" and "Long Sleeves" standout tracks and felt the EP reflected the conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic well, despite it being completed before the pandemic. [14] Rose Ridell for Coup de Main deemed "Tehe" a highlight. [16] Kroll described "I Miss You, I'm Sorry" as "the most pointed of Abrams['s] heartbreak songs". [17]

Tour

In support of Minor, Abrams scheduled the I've Missed You, I'm Sorry tour. [22] It covered North America and the United Kingdom with 12 selective dates. It started on September 1, 2021, in Santa Ana, California, and concluded on October 21, 2021, in London, England. The tour also supported her singles "Mess It Up" and "Unlearn" with Benny Blanco.

Aftermath

Minor inspired the American singer-songwriter Olivia Rodrigo to write her debut single, "Drivers License". Following the song's release, Rodrigo's record label felt the two should meet, in which Rodrigo replied: "I literally don't think I can meet her. I think I would just evaporate. I'm her biggest fan." [23] "Drivers License" went on to become a widespread commercial success worldwide. [24] Abrams later supported Rodrigo on the Sour Tour throughout 2022. [25]

Track listing

Minor track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Friend"
  • Slatkin
  • Stack
2:56
2."21"Joel Little3:05
3."Under / Over"
  • Abrams
  • Jack Karaszewski
  • Henry Kwapis
  • Carol Ades
  • Slatkin
  • Kwapis
  • Karaszewski
  • Slatkin
2:21
4."Tehe"
  • Abrams
  • Slatkin
  • Stack
  • Eli Teplin
  • Slatkin
  • Stack
2:42
5."I Miss You, I'm Sorry"
  • Abrams
  • Aarons
Slatkin2:47
6."Long Sleeves"
  • Abrams
  • Slatkin
Slatkin3:38
7."Minor"
  • Slatkin
  • Blanco
2:40
Total length:20:09

Personnel

Charts

Chart performance for Minor
Chart (2020–2025)Peak
position
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria) [26] 74
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders) [27] 3
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia) [28] 32
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [29] 6
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [30] 14
Portuguese Albums (AFP) [31] 77
Scottish Albums (OCC) [32] 5
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [33] 39
UK Albums (OCC) [34] 51
US Top Album Sales (Billboard) [35] 23

Certifications

Certifications for Minor
RegionCertification Certified units/sales
New Zealand (RMNZ) [36] Gold7,500

Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Release history and formats for Minor
RegionDateFormat(s)Label
VariousJuly 14, 2020 Interscope
October 16, 2020
July 14, 2025

References

  1. Graves, Shahlin (July 15, 2020). "Must-listen: Gracie Abrams releases debut minor EP + 'Friend' music video". Coup de Main. Retrieved November 11, 2022.
  2. Nordstrom, Leigh (February 23, 2023). "Gracie Abrams Readies for Her Spotlight". Women's Wear Daily . Archived from the original on February 23, 2023. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
  3. Aramesh, Waiss (February 8, 2023). "How Gracie Abrams Turned 'Owning Her Sh*t' Into One of 2023's Best Debuts" . Rolling Stone . Archived from the original on February 8, 2023. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
  4. 1 2 Zhang, Sophia (June 22, 2024). "6 Things To Know About Gracie Abrams" . Vogue Hong Kong . Retrieved April 22, 2025.
  5. Sundberg, Emily (April 6, 2018). "Lorde-Approved Gracie Abrams Is Instagram's Favorite Songwriter". The Cut . Retrieved April 22, 2025.
  6. Graves, Shahlin (October 9, 2019). "Gracie Abrams debuts her song 'Minor'". Coup de Main. Retrieved April 22, 2025.
  7. Renshaw, David (January 21, 2020). "Gracie Abrams's 'Stay' video is a perfect Hollywood hang". The Fader . Retrieved April 22, 2025.
  8. 1 2 Wood, Mikael (July 29, 2020). "Her famous dad's a fan. So is Phoebe Bridgers. But Gracie Abrams has a voice all her own" . Los Angeles Times . Retrieved April 22, 2025.
  9. Daly, Rhian (November 15, 2021). "Five things we learned from our In Conversation video chat with Gracie Abrams". NME . Retrieved April 22, 2025.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 Blanchet, Brenton (November 12, 2021). "Gracie Abrams on Taylor Swift, Strength, and New Project This Is What It Feels Like". Teen Vogue . Retrieved April 22, 2025.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Rihter, Ivana (December 10, 2020). "Gracie Abrams Wrote The Breakup EP Of The Year — With Her New Boyfriend". Bustle . Retrieved April 22, 2025.
  12. 1 2 Fuamoli, Sose (July 20, 2020). "Gracie Abrams talks recording Minor and advice from dad, J.J." Triple J . Australian Broadcasting Corporation . Retrieved April 22, 2025.
  13. Graves, Shahlin (January 24, 2020). "Interview: 2020 Must-Know - Gracie Abrams". Coup de Main. Retrieved April 22, 2025.
  14. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Williams, Jenessa (July 8, 2020). "Gracie Abrams: LA singer-songwriter baring her soul to the internet". NME . Retrieved April 22, 2025.
  15. Glicksman, Josh (July 13, 2021). "How Blake Slatkin Went From Benny Blanco's Former Intern To A-List Producer". Billboard . Retrieved April 22, 2025.
  16. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Riddell, Rose (July 17, 2020). "Interview: Gracie Abrams on her debut Minor EP". Coup de Main. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
  17. 1 2 3 Krol, Charlotte (July 15, 2020). "Gracie Abrams - 'Minor' EP review". NME . Retrieved November 11, 2022.
  18. 1 2 Bua, Jane (February 28, 2023). "Gracie Abrams: Good Riddance Album Review". Pitchfork . Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  19. Murray, Robin (February 20, 2020). "Gracie Abrams Finds Some Sense Of Release With '21'". Clash . Retrieved May 16, 2025.
  20. Graves, Shahlin (July 1, 2020). "Gracie Abrams to release 'Minor' on July 14". Coup De Main Magazine. Retrieved November 7, 2022.
  21. Riddell, Rose (September 4, 2020). "Watch: Gracie Abrams perform 'Friend' live at home". Coup de Main. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
  22. Abrams, Gracie (July 20, 2021). "I'VE MISSED YOU, I'M SORRY!!!!! can't wait to hug wtf …………".
  23. Newstead, Al (December 13, 2021). "Gracie Abrams brings the authentic sad girl feels you've been craving". Triple J . Australian Broadcasting Corporation . Retrieved April 27, 2025.
  24. Tanzer, Myles (January 21, 2021). "Olivia Rodrigo's 'Drivers License' Became the World's Biggest Song Via TikTok". Wall Street Journal . ISSN   0099-9660. Archived from the original on January 25, 2021. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
  25. Dailey, Hannah (April 17, 2025). "Gracie Abrams Says She Wants to Headline Her Own Stadium Shows After Touring With Taylor Swift". Billboard . Retrieved May 12, 2025.
  26. "Ö3 Austria Top40: Longplay-Charts". Ö3 Austria Top 40 . Retrieved August 19, 2025.
  27. "Ultratop.be – Gracie Abrams – Minor" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved August 17, 2025.
  28. "Ultratop.be – Gracie Abrams – Minor" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved August 17, 2025.
  29. "Dutchcharts.nl – Gracie Abrams – Minor" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved August 15, 2025.
  30. "Offiziellecharts.de – Gracie Abrams – Minor" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved August 15, 2025.
  31. "Portuguesecharts.com – Gracie Abrams – Minor". Hung Medien. Retrieved August 15, 2025.
  32. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  33. "Swisscharts.com – Gracie Abrams – Minor". Hung Medien. Retrieved August 18, 2025.
  34. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 16, 2025.
  35. "Gracie Abrams Chart History (Top Album Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved August 19, 2025.
  36. "New Zealand album certifications – Gracie Abrams – Minor". Radioscope. Retrieved July 22, 2025.Type Minor in the "Search:" field.