Meghan Trainor and her music have been a total hit to fans since she gained popularity eight years ago with her crowd favorite “All About That Bass” and debut album, Title, a feel-good record that created an update to classic song stylings with a modern gist.
Now, she’s settling into a sound that fits her well – but this time, though, she’s made it more mature and personal.
“The concepts are way more intense,” Trainor said in an interview with EW of her forthcoming full-length, Takin’ It Back.
“In previous albums, there would be a simple love song or an ‘I’m going to be confident today’ song. These songs are like, ‘Y’all, I’m struggling. This is real, but we’re all in this together. Who’s with me?’ It’s just more real and raw.”
Takin’ It Back is not merely music about her growth as an artist – there’s a different texture update on her voice – but also the first album she’s dropped since she gave birth to her son in February 2021.
The first song she wrote for it was the ballad “Remind Me,” which, according to her, brought her through a challenging time in her life.
“I started writing it after I had a C-section and was covered in stretch marks with a scar crossing them,” she recounts.
“I’ve been open about my struggles with my body, and this was just a whole new layer. I didn’t go in thinking, ‘I’m going to write a sad song or a song about how I’m feeling.’ It just kind of happened, and it was a great therapy session.”
Trainor teamed up with another mother of a young son to write the song and collaborated with a showrunner who had two baby boys.
“We were all in that room tired, and I was just talking about how I was feeling at the time,” she said. “I am the only one out of all my friends who’s married and has a baby, so I was very lonely during the pregnancy and felt like no one could really understand what I was feeling.”
Since then, she found a “mom group,” in which she shares her fresh joys and woes. However, that first feeling of isolation pushed her to feel her emotions more and get a closer touch, which subsequently enhanced her songwriting.
“I used to go in with just the melody and be like, We’ll figure out the words later,’” Trainor revealed.
“And now I go in with a concept of like, ‘Remind me because I forgot any positive things about myself. Show me love like my husband does.’ Or I’ll go in with, ‘Don’t I make it look easy? Because this s— is not easy, but I make it look good, right?’”
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Trainor Realizations
Creating her fourth studio album made her realize a lot, too, such as how horrible it is not to have paid family leave in the US.
“I’ve been bitching and complaining when I can’t see my kid, but I get weekends off and some extra days off and I’m like, ‘Oh, no. Like, regular jobs are every single day, maybe even Saturday, and you don’t get to see your kid at all.’
“It’s very eye-opening and heartbreaking, especially in America, how you only get a few weeks with your baby then it’s back to work! Other countries get a whole year for both parents.”
Furthermore, motherhood has also taught her how “precious” life is.
“You know how the cliches say, ‘You don’t know what love is until you have your own child?’ It’s just more chances of your heart being destroyed because you love something so much,” Trainor figured.
“Like when he was a week old, I cried every time I thought anything bad could happen. I had all these racing, horrifying thoughts, and it was just because of how much I loved this nugget, this new person. Everything is just extra important. It’s a wake-up call.”
Although Trainor will have to focus on work to promote Takin’ It Back this fall, touring isn’t an option. Takin’ It Back drops October 21.
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Photo: Goss
