Juliet Ivy Shrinks Down Our Greatest Fears in Polished Sophomore EP 'tiny but scary'
Photo: Lauren Harris
Juliet Ivy is part of season two of the Mastercard x OnesToWatch Artist Accelerator program. To learn more about the Mastercard x OnesToWatch Artist Accelerator program, visit here.
Juliet Ivy is an artist whoâs kept me curious about what sheâll do next since her surface-smashing 2023 release playpen. She makes music like sheâs making a quilt, stitching together unexpected textiles of folk and indie pop into one seamless story. Ivy was born and bred in New York, perhaps contributing to why her music is so sure of itself for her age. Her freshly released sophomore EP tiny but scary bares new levels of soul as Ivy navigates intimate vignettes of insecurity, femininity, and childlike curiosity through it all.
tiny but scary is a coming-of-age collection that captures the phenomenon of feeling like a kid against the wild expanse of adult reality. It takes us inside Ivyâs relationship with her parents and how growing up has made her see them as human too. Itâs a side we donât donât often see expressed in songwriting, but a universal truth just the same; no matter how old you get, sometimes you just need to call your mom.
Especially present on her visceral third track âkid,â Ivy writes about how every parent was once a child too. Over saccharine acoustics and subtle percussion, Ivy paints a picture of a nurturing, explorative childhood that lingers through the years. She croons, âI love being your kid / You know youâre my favorite / Youâve given me the gift of getting to exist.â tiny but scary has a rare capability to meet existentialism with tenderness, propelling us deeper inside Ivyâs intellectual yet optimistic psyche.
tiny but scary is tiny (five tracks) and scary because of the complexities Ivy is able to pack into such a fleeting collection. One of the biggest themes of the project is girlhood. In âsweet dreams,â she captures the impounding weight of the present that comes with being a young woman. Whether itâs the intense heartbreak of a fight with your best friend or the toxic thought patterns that can make a single moment feel like the world is falling apart, Ivy doesnât shy away from any of it.
Her closing track âgirl talkâ sees far beyond the scope of âsweet dreamsâ and looks at femininity from a generational, collective standpoint. Ivy melts down the impossible standards and crushing insecurities of girlhood into a simple, âThatâs just girl talk.â Her listeners have come to expect this level of clever irony on all her records because thatâs the impressively high bar Ivy has set for herself. Donât be fooled by the title, tiny but scary is a monumental cornerstone in Juliet Ivyâs ever-evolving career as an artist.
Listen to tiny but scary below: