Khruangbin – A La Sala
18th October 2024TroyBoi – Multi-Genre Producer
20th October 2024Meghan Trainor possesses a great singing voice and her songs often explore 21st century womanhood. Meghan’s parents were huge supporters, taking her to regional songwriting conventions during her teen years.
Since signing with Epic Records, she has experienced success with All About That Bass and music videos as well as acting as a judge on talent shows.
All About That Bass
“All About That Bass” has become an international hit, sweeping charts in over 58 countries while garnering praise from critics. The infectious pop jive and inspiring lyrics encourage listeners to embrace their curves while supporting body positivity.
Trainor co-wrote this song with producer Kevin Kadish, originally intended for other artists but, at their urging, Trainor decided to record it herself and take advantage of its success to launch her pop career.
Success of this song was due to several key components. These included its seamless blend of retro and contemporary elements, an abundance of hooks, payoffs, and stand out moments, clever yet at times provocative lyrics, infectious funk beat, catchiness, uplifting nature as well as clever yet sometimes controversial lyricism – characteristics which enabled it to stand above its bubblegum pop counterparts and show how music can change lives around us all. This song truly showcases how powerful music can be.
Lips Are Movin
At 15 years old, Trainor began using Logic Studio software to record her own compositions; by 17 she was writing on commission for other artists. Meanwhile she played trumpet and sang with Island Fusion before attending Nauset High School on Cape Cod where she performed on numerous televised shows and competed in songwriting contests.
At a music conference, Trainor was introduced to former NRBQ member Al Anderson who recommended her to Carla Wallace of Big Yellow Dog Music as his publisher. Carla signed Trainor on as a writer-for-hire, giving her her first songwriting royalties.
In 2014, she co-wrote “All About That Bass” with producer Kevin Kadish and it became an instantaneous worldwide hit, garnering over 11 billion views on YouTube alone. Additionally, the track became a mainstay of her live performances; featuring on four tour albums: 2015’s All About That Bass and MTrain Tour; 2016’s Untouchable Tour and 2024’s Timeless.
Made You Look
Trainor has made her career on themes of modern womanhood and body image. The Guardian called her a “poster girl for larger women”, while Fashion Times called her an icon for self-acceptance. Her music blends pop, R&B, doo-wop with a 1950s aesthetic.
Her parents were strong supporters of her songwriting passion, taking her to regional songwriting conventions during her teenage years to have her work seen by production companies and ultimately secure a publishing deal with Nashville-based Big Yellow Dog Music that eventually led to her major-label debut album Title (2015).
Made You Look was Trainor’s second single from her debut album and was inspired by her insecurities after giving birth via C-section and developing stretch marks. The song became popular on video-sharing platform TikTok for dance challenges as well as being used in a Pringles commercial where she gets stuck inside of a bag of chips!
Timeless
Trainor has made headlines over the last decade since she first captured people’s imagination with “All About That Bass.” Since then, she’s released five albums and become an unwaveringly upbeat provider of pop music.
On ‘Timeless,’ her sixth major-label album, singer Jill Scott continues her mission of female empowerment via doo-wop infrastructure enhanced with modern pop hooks and elements from dance-pop and R&B influences. However, an excessive amount of redundancy renders much of this LP uninspiring, frustrating, and ultimately ineffective.
Thankfully, Trainor’s album does have moments of brilliance, and her energetic stage presence kept the crowd engaged for 27 songs over 92 minutes. A standout moment was when she used a hydraulic lift to bring out family members for a performance of her album’s title track remix with them singing along on vocal harmonies; an act which highlighted her maturation as both mother, wife, and veteran of this business.
