Wikked Lil' Grrrls

Background

Esthero was dropped from Sony Music Entertainment in late 1999 due to poor sales of her first album Breath from Another, eventually signing with Reprise Records. Orlando Puerta, marketing director at Reprise Records noted: "Somehow she persevered, and she is special enough for us not to let go of her." Esthero began writing material for her second studio album before her departure from SME. It took over 4 years and in late 2003 she started recording sessions.
In November 2004 a six-song promotional EP entitled We R in Need of a Musical Revolution was released. It features 3 tracks not included on the album: "The Lull-a-Bye", "I Drive Alone" and "Amber & Tiger's Eye".

Critical reception

The album received generally mixed reviews from most music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 57, based on 8 reviews, which indicates "mixed or average reviews". Johnny Loftus of Allmusic felt that Wikked Lil' Grrrls is a "personal statement, if not a labor of love", however considers that the album "occasionally gets lost between songwriting, thematics, and stylistic flow". He gave the album 2.5 stars out of 4 and noted "We R in Need of a Musical Revolution", "Everyday Is a Holiday (With You)" and "If Tha Mood" as album's highlights. In extremely negative review from Splendid magazine, Mike Meginnis said: "A towering monument to Esthero's overpowering sense of self satisfaction, this mess overstays its welcome and abuses whatever attention you're willing to spend on it. In short, it's not a career highlight".

Some critics were more favorable in their assessments of the album. Sal Cinquemani, of Slant Magazine, was highly positive in his review of the album, awarding it four out of five stars and commenting that album "establishes her as the progenitor of what could be called electro-ethno-pop". Billboard magazine also was positive, calling the album "another eclectic musical trip". Rolling Stone gave the album three stars out of five and called the album "lyrically feisty and stylistically expanded".

Singles

"We R in Need of a Musical Revolution" was released in October 2004 as six-track EP. An accompanying music video was filmed and released to promote the song, but the single failed to chart. "Fastlane" was released in July 2005 as second single from album. It reached number 5 on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs, becoming her second Top 5 on the chart (her first being the non-album single "O.G. Bitch").

Uses in media

The title track appeared on the soundtracks to Miss Congeniality 2 and John Tucker Must Die, and was used in an early promotion for the TV shows Desperate Housewives, and Las Vegas. "Everyday Is a Holiday (With You)" was featured in the 2005 movie Monster-in-Law, and was used in a Season 2 episode of Grey's Anatomy.