DirectLyrics Interviews Meghan Trainor: On Chart Success, L.A Reid, Future Plans
20-year-old Massachusetts-native Meghan Trainor is a star in the making. The throw-back and catchy sound of her debut single "All About That Bass" is America's latest obsession. And that obsession is more than evident in Meghan’s single’s rising positions on every chart; radio, iTunes and Billboard Hot 100. And the same love is being given to the music video of "All About That Bass" which in only one and half month has racked up over 20 million views on YouTube. Huge, right? It has all happened overnight for Meghan Trainor. The Kevin Kadish-produced "All About That Bass" was only released in June – with very little buzz - and look at where it is right now. I don’t think anyone expected this fast success for Meghan, but it’s definitely more than deserving because she's super talented, has a very unique voice, AND she writes her own music!
But Meghan Trainor isn’t actually a rookie in this. She has been waiting for a few years for her opportunity in the spotlight to arise. She started in the music business as a songwriter - under a publishing deal with a Nashville company. In no time, Meghan's talent was the talk of the town. She managed to score songs for albums of; Rascal Flatts, Hunter Hayes and Hot Chelle Rae. And only this year, very early in 2014, L.A Reid was informed of Meghan Trainor, heard a demo of "All About That Bass", watch her perform live in a private setting, and without thinking it much, he signed her to Epic Records. The rest... it's all history in the making.
Meghan will release her first EP "Title" on September 9th (taking advantage of the "All About That Bass" momentum), while a full-length album is confirmed for later this year. DirectLyrics caught up with Meghan Trainor last week – before the EP announcement was made public - to discuss her overnight success with "All About That Bass", her upcoming projects, or signing with Epic Records.
The Interview
Your new single “All About That Bass” is really exploding on the charts! It recently cracked the Top 40 on Pop radio and it's now Top 5 on iTunes. Congratulations! It’s all happening very fast for you. You only released the song and the video last June. Did you expect this fast success? And, what are your feelings when you see it rise positions every week?
It is pretty unbelievable. It is such an honor to see my name on the same charts as people I idolize like Ariana Grande, Jesse J, Nicky Minaj, Maroon 5.
It is literally a dream come true. I am SO grateful.
How exactly was “All About That Bass” chosen as your first single release with Epic Records? Was it a decision of all parties? Did your label bosses heard the song one day and said, ‘hey, that’s your first single’, or did you have other songs that you would have liked to release first?
That is the song I auditioned for L.A Reid with, when he signed me to Epic. He also had me perform it in NY for him and Sylvia Rhone and the whole office and they all loved it, so it was a natural first single for all of us.
We loved the pink-pastel “All About That Bass” music video. We read Fatima Robinson directed and choreographed the video. Did you have fun showing off your dance skills in the clip? And, were there any memorable anecdotes in the shooting?
Fatima is amazing and it has been such a thrill working with her. This video was her vision and she went through it step by step with me to make sure I loved it. I never thought I could dance and after 3 days of rehearsals with choreographer, Charm LaDonna, She is amazing and made me feel so comfortable, I wish I could work with her everyday!
The actual shooting day was such a cool experience. It was overwhelming to see how many people work behind the scenes and how much work goes into the details: when it was over I was so tired and emotional I was crying hugging my mom saying "I can't believe somebody made cupcakes just for my video!" It is amazing to see how much work goes into something like that.
You recently signed your deal with Epic. How happy are you in your new home? Are they treating you good?
The whole team at Epic has been great to me. They really get to know you. L.A Reid and Sylvia Rhone are so easy to talk to and take the time to listen to my ideas. They both came to my first live TV performance on "LIVE with Kelly and Michael". That made me so happy. It is also nice to see the support that I get from the International Sony family on Twitter and Facebook.
As I said, “All About That Bass” is your first official single. Are we going to have a Meghan Trainor EP/full-length album coming up soon?
We just picked the 4 songs for the EP and the album is so close to being finished. The EP should be released soon and the album will be definitely be before the end of the year.
Are other new songs you’ve recorded aside “All About That Bass” similar in sound? Or are we in for a big surprise soon?
There are definitely some other songs with the throw-back sound because I love that era. But I give each one a different flair with my other loves, like Soca, Rap and Pop. I have a few power-ballads too. I think people will be surprised at the different combinations of genres.
What producers are helping you in your new musical journey with Epic?
Kevin Kadish is helping my write and produce most of the songs for the record. Also, another Nashville writer/ producer Chris Gelbuda is producing a couple songs and I wrote one song with Jesse Frasure. He is actually one of the writers on my Rascal Flatts cuts!
You are terrific songwriter. In fact, you started in the business as a songwriter only. You signed a publishing deal with a Nashville company and you’ve written songs for the likes of; Rascal Flatts, Hunter Hayes or Hot Chelle Rae. Is it a bit tough giving up your songs to other people? And, what are your feelings when you find out pretty important singers/bands, likes the ones I just mentioned, have loved your songs and have agreed to record them?
It is such a thrill to find out a song that you wrote has been chosen by a major artist or group like Rascal Flatts. The first time I heard their recording was amazing! With Hunter Hayes, I actually wrote one song with him. It is a duet, and I hope the world will get to hear it someday. He is such a great musician and singer. Ryan Folesse of Hot Chelle Rae recorded a duet with Emmy Palmer that I wrote with Maggie Chapman we were both so excited. I still want to write for other artists. There are so many that I look up to, to have them sing my songs would be amazing!
What is the song-writing process like for Meghan Trainor? Do you go straight for the lyrics? Or come up with a melody first?
MELODIES are always first for me. Sometimes I'll sing a melody and mumble words until something flows and makes sense.
“All About That Bass” is a really playful song that blends country, pop and throwback rock ‘n’ roll music. We love it, and we get the message of the song. However, there are a few people that have apparently gotten the wrong interpretation and are sending a few hateful messages your way. I saw a few comments on your YouTube page and they were not pretty.
They're all about the 'skinny b*tches' lyric in your song and that supposedly you are bashing skinny people. But I don’t think they have truly understood the message BEHIND the WHOLE song. Is there anything you want to clarify or say about this matter?
I would never shame skinny people, I wrote the song for myself and my insecurities and it seems to have helped many other people in world too. I'm so happy others can relate to it and understand what I'm singing about.
More TV performances, mini US tour soon?
I just performed on "Kelly and Michael". That was so cool and scary! I'm pretty sure I'm playing on 'X Factor' in Australia in September! I can't wait! I haven't heard of any tours yet but I want to go on tour so bad!
What are Meghan Trainor’s Top 5 songs of the moment?
1.'Hallelujah, I Love Her So' - Ray Charles
2. 'Break Free' - Ariana Grande
3. 'Fashion Killer' - A$AP Rocky
4. 'Gravity is a B*tch' - Miranda Lambert
5. 'Don't Stop' - 5 Seconds of Summer
What are a few artists that have influenced your career?
Bruno Mars because he can do any genre. Beyoncé puts on an amazing show and I hope I can make my fans proud like she does with her fans.
If“All About That Bass” reaches #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, what do you think you'll do that day? Cry? Party hard? All of the above?
I'll cry for at least an hour and call every family member and thank them and talk about how easy life is while balling my eyes out.
Thanks for sharing your time with us, Meghan! Best of luck with everything. Any last thing you would like to say to our readers at Direct Lyrics?
Love yourself!!