Rochdale, Greater Manchester, is where Sophie McBurnie grew up before studying chemistry at Lancaster University. Performing as piri, she became known as the vocalist in the Manchester dance duo piri & tommy, alongside producer Tommy Villiers. The pair met after McBurnie messaged Villiers on social media, and began making music together during lockdown. McBurnie had long enjoyed songwriting but felt restricted by her guitar playing; working with Villiers’ beats gave her another way to make music. Their early collaboration produced It’s a Match, followed by Soft Spot in 2021. The latter became a viral hit, and McBurnie signed with EMI after its success. Piri and Villiers began making music together in 2020, and Villiers produced both of her first two singles.
Piri & Tommy released their mixtape froge.mp3 in 2022 and put out the EP About Dancing in 2024. Their music appeared on Polydor, and the single On & On reached number 99 on the UK Singles Chart. The duo’s sound has been described as drum and bass, with McBurnie on vocals and Villiers producing. Piri was also an original member of Loud LDN, a collective for female and genderqueer musicians. Beyond her work with Villiers, McBurnie co-wrote Illit’s song Magnetic.
McBurnie’s work spans songwriting and performance, as well as production with Villiers. She has spoken about the financial barriers to pursuing music and balancing it with her work on OnlyFans. For an album, Piri wrote, recorded, produced, mixed, and mastered every track herself. In 2025, she released Love Bug (feat. piri & Tommy Villers) on Song Vault with Tommy Villiers and Will Sass. In 2026, piri released the single food 4 thought with Alex Bone and Higgo on Ultra Records, LLC, and the single Me! (Remixes) on WUGD, featuring Frey and scruz. That year also brought the single mash potato with Loveday, released on Loveday, and She's a Witch (Kill Her!) with Tapwaterlucy, released on Tapwaterlucy. Piri played Sala Siroco on 25 April 2026.