''After School'' is the fourth extended play (EP) by American singer-songwriter

Melanie Martinez Melanie Adele Martinez (born April 28, 1995) is an American Puerto Rican-Dominican singer and songwriter. Born in Astoria, Queens, and raised in Baldwin, Nassau County, New York, Baldwin, New York, Martinez rose to fame in 2012 after appearing ...

. It was released on September 25, 2020, through

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over the course of its first two decades, starting from the release of its first recor ...

. " The Bakery" was released as the lead single the same day. The EP was also released as the deluxe edition to Martinez's second studio album, ''

K–12 K–12, from kindergarten to 12th grade, is an English language expression that indicates the range of years of publicly supported primary and secondary education found in the United States and Canada, which is similar to publicly supported sch ...

''. Martinez says this EP is "much more personal and steps outside of the Cry Baby character box for a moment".

Background

In an interview with '' V'' magazine in September 2019, Martinez stated that she would release songs that were in-line with her previous album, ''

'', but that the songs would be "more personal and more vulnerable". On January 8, 2020, Martinez announced through her Instagram stories that she would release an EP titled ''After School'' that would be attached to the ''K–12'' era. The EP was originally scheduled to be released sometime in the spring of 2020. Martinez also previously announced that she had planned two more films, both of which would be accompanied by albums. On February 9, 2020, Martinez confirmed through her Instagram story that the EP would be out in spring, but it was pushed back to September 25, and that a song featuring "one of erfav artists" would be coming out "sooner than you think". The next day, February 10, she released the standalone single "Copy Cat", with American rapper and songwriter

Tierra Whack Tierra Helena Whack (born August 11, 1995) is an American rapper and singer. She originally performed as "Dizzle Dizz" as a teenager but reverted to her birth name in 2017. Her debut mixtape, '' Whack World'', was released in May 2018 and recei ...

. The song was originally intended to be the

lead single A lead single (or first 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. A similar term, "debut ...

from the EP, but was cut from the final track listing. On September 15, 2020, Martinez posted a surrealist photo on Instagram of her in a nest with two eggs, with a caption reading; "Holdin' onto these eggs till they're ready to be hatched next week", teasing that the EP would be released the next week. In an interview with ''

Idolator An idolator is a practitioner of idolatry. Idolator or Idolater may also refer to: * Idolator (website), an American music blog * ''Idolator'' (album), a 2005 album by Blood Stain Child * ''Idolator'', a 1986 album by Ole Evenrud * "Idolater", a ...

'', Martinez expressed interest in making a music video for "Test Me", saying that she wrote a video treatment and that "it all depends on how much people connect with it".

Track listing

Notes * "Brain & Heart" contains an interpolation of "

If You Had My Love "If You Had My Love" is the debut single by American actress and singer Jennifer Lopez from her first studio album, '' On the 6'' (1999). The song was written by Lopez, LaShawn Daniels, Cory Rooney, Fred Jerkins III, and its producer Rodney Jer ...

" by

Jennifer Lopez Jennifer Lynn Lopez (born July 24, 1969), also known by her nickname J.Lo, is an American singer, songwriter, actress, dancer and businesswoman. Lopez is regarded as one of the most influential entertainers of her time, credited with breaking ...

, which itself contains an interpolation of " If I Gave Love" by

Chanté Moore Chanté Torrane Moore (born February 17, 1967) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, television personality, and author. The first signee with record executive Louis Silas, Jr.'s Silas Records, she rose to prominence with her debu ...

Personnel

Musicians *

– lead vocals, songwriter * Michael Keenan – songwriter, producer * Blake Slatkin – songwriter, producer *

Rodney Jerkins Rodney Roy Jerkins (born July 29, 1977), better known by his stage name Darkchild, is an American record producer, rapper, and songwriter. He has collaborated with a broad range of popular artists. Jerkins has won two Grammy Awards from 19 nomi ...

– songwriter *

Fred Jerkins III Fred Jerkins III, also known as Uncle Freddie, is an American songwriter and record producer. Career Jerkins is best known for his work with his brother Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins. Jerkins has co-written several hit songs with Rodney Jerkins a ...

– songwriter *

LaShawn Daniels LaShawn Ameen Daniels (December 28, 1977 – September 3, 2019) was an American songwriter, vocal producer and arranger. Often in tandem with producer Rodney Jerkins, he is known for his songwriting work for R&B singers such as Brandy, Beyoncé, ...

– songwriter *

Cory Rooney Mark Cory Rooney (born 1968) is an American record producer. He has been credited on releases for high-profile music industry artists including Mariah Carey, Mary J. Blige, Jessica Simpson, Jennifer Lopez, Marc Anthony, Thalia, Michael Jackson ...

– songwriter *

– songwriter Technical * Randy Merrill – mastering engineer * Mitch McCarthy – mixing engineer

Charts

Release history

Notes

References

{{Authority control 2020 EPs Melanie Martinez EPs Albums produced by Blake Slatkin