Shelailai has made an immediate impact this summer. Her debut single, “GOODTIME”, only arrived in June, a club-adjacent hip hop cut that is sonically bright, and charisma-laden in its tone. From there the Vancouver-raised, LA-based rising rapper, singer and songwriter has only raised her reputation, dropping another few teasers before now arriving at her impressive debut EP, “Butterfly Effect”.

With production from Oscar Scheller (Shygirl, PinkPantheress) and Slush Puppy (Nessa Barrett, Dorian Electra), the EP is stylistically diverse, full of forward-thinking beat eccentricities, whilst Shelailai’s performance throughout is bursting with life and vibrancy, as comfortable delivering snappy, cutting rap flows as sultry, anthemic sung melody.

With a big future ahead, Wonderland have caught on early and connect with Shelailai below, discussing her inspirations, her self-defined “bubblegum trap” sound, and the eclectic new EP.

Listen to “Butterfly Effect”…

Read the interview…

Hey Shelailai! How are you? How has your summer been?
Hello, I’m great, thank you! This summer has been pretty amazing. I’m blessed enough to try pursuing my passion and I’ve finally released my first EP. I’ve been working on this project for a minute so it feels so good to finally release it into the world. 

Take us back to your musical origins. What sounds were you around growing up?  
I grew up listening to a lot of different music from Michael Jackson to Erykah Badu, Tribe Called Quest, Kanye West and more.

Both your parents are DJs, how has that impacted your path and musical outlook? 
My parents both had impeccable taste in music and so I grew up listening to all the good stuff in hip hop, RnB, soul and Motown. I think the wide range of music being played around me growing up just gave me an ear for good music, and I draw inspiration from a lot of things. 

You’ve recently announced yourself to the industry, how have you found the releasing aspect of artistry so far? 
It feels amazing being able to have my music out in the world finally. I’m super proud of how this first EP turned out, it feels like a great introduction to Shelailai. It also feels like the beginning of a really awesome journey in my life as corny as that sounds. 

How would you define the essence of your sound? What key influences do you pluck from to concoct such?
This question is tricky for some reason just because I’ve drawn inspiration from so many different places, and my sound is always changing and evolving. But I usually describe my sound as bubblegum trap, because I use a lot of different melodies and colourful beats but at the same time I like to contrast it with crazy flows and fun lyrics

Congratulations on your debut EP! How are you feeling about the release? 
I feel great so far! At this point there’s still a couple fire songs to come out that I am so excited to share, but I’m so proud of how it’s going so far, though I’d be proud regardless of the response. I put my heart into it and made music that makes me feel good, all I can hope is that it does the same for whoever finds it.

What has inspired the project in terms of theme and deeper meaning?
I started making this project during a pretty transitional time in my life. I was just out of a relationship and was out partying a ton with friends and not really focusing on a career or any goals, but as a couple years of doing that had gone by I realised I wasn’t really proud of what I was doing with my life, and wanted to pursue something more meaningful. I used songwriting as a means to express whatever it was going through and a way to better understand myself. Ironically it was writing that became the answer. It really helped lift me through some things and laying my thoughts down on paper gave me a more positive outlook on my life and where I was going. This is where the butterfly comes in, because they represent metamorphosis and change. And every small decision can completely change your trajectory, even if it’s just a change in attitude or perspective.

What do you hope to achieve with the EP? 
Like I said before, if I can make someone feel as good as I did making these songs then I’ve definitely won. Each track is pretty colorful and upbeat so I hope that when someone listens they feel uplifted and motivated to get through whatever, whether it be a funky mood, a rough day or a workout. I wanna start building a family that enjoys cute, fun melodic rap bops. So far I’m calling the squad my little caterpillar gang, cause it’s still early days but I know we’ll continue to grow and blossom.

Do you have a favourite track from the project? If so, why?
Each song has been a favoirite at some point but, now that everything’s finalised, my favourite track would have to be “HGLBH” which stands for “ Hope God Lets Bad Girls Into Heaven”. I just think it’s such a fun song and almost intoxicatingly catchy like you just can’t help but to sing along. I was having a really good writing day when I wrote this, every lyric just flowed out of me, and when you have fun making a song it really translates and you can just feel the good energy in the track. That’s why I love it so much.

Who’s your dream collaborator? 
Tough questions again, cause there are just simply so many people that I dream about working with, but someone I would be so truly honoured to make a song with right now is Doechii. She is one of greatest inspirations when it comes to style and skill. She’s indirectly pushed me to work harder and be better solely through the inspiration I get through her music.

What’s next for Shelailai? 
I’m always working on music and discovering new ways to express myself through art so it’s safe to say there will be more music in the near future. I’d love to do more live shows soon as well so I can really connect with fans in person and grow the caterpillar family.