''Title'' is the debut

extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.

(EP) by American singer-songwriter

Meghan Trainor Meghan Elizabeth Trainor (born December 22, 1993) is an American singer-songwriter and television personality. She rose to prominence after signing with Epic Records in 2014 and releasing her debut single " All About That Bass", which reach ...

Kevin Kadish Kevin Kadish (born 1971) is an American songwriter and record producer. He co-wrote, produced, and mixed the 2014 Diamond certified (10x platinum) single "All About That Bass" by Meghan Trainor which spent eight weeks at No. 1 on the ''Billboar ...

produced all of its songs and wrote them with Trainor. The two conceived the EP shortly after Trainor signed with Epic Records in 2014. The label released it on September 9, 2014, and replaced it with a pre-order for Trainor's 2015 debut major-label studio album of the same name the following month. Musically, ''Title'' comprises songs inspired by

1950s The 1950s (pronounced nineteen-fifties; commonly abbreviated as the "Fifties" or the " '50s") (among other variants) was a decade that began on January 1, 1950, and ended on December 31, 1959. Throughout the decade, the world continued its re ...

doo wop Doo-wop (also spelled doowop and doo wop) is a genre of rhythm and blues music that originated in African-American communities during the 1940s, mainly in the large cities of the United States, including New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chica ...

that lie between

modern R&B Contemporary R&B (or simply R&B) is a popular music genre that combines rhythm and blues with elements of pop, soul, funk, hip hop, and electronic music. The genre features a distinctive record production style, drum machine-backed rhyt ...

and melodic

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' (G ...

. The EP has a lyrical theme of commitment and staying true to oneself, which Trainor hoped would empower women. It includes Trainor's debut

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

, "

All About That Bass "All About That Bass" is the debut single of American singer-songwriter Meghan Trainor, released on June 30, 2014, through Epic Records. The song was included on Trainor's debut extended play (EP) ''Title'' (2014) and her debut studio album of t ...

", which was released on June 30, 2014, and reached numberone in 58 countries with worldwide sales of 11 million units. ''Title'' garnered mixed reviews from critics, who thought its tracks had potential for commercial success, but considered the lyrics too repetitive and questioned Trainor's musicality. The EP debuted at number 15 on the ''Billboard'' 200 and sold 171,000 copies in the United States. It also entered charts in Canada and Denmark. Trainor promoted ''Title'' by performing "All About That Bass" on various television shows, and its title track at other venues. She included all tracks from the EP on the

set list A set list, or setlist, is typically a handwritten or printed document created as an ordered list of songs, jokes, stories and other elements an artist intends to present during a specific performance. A setlist can be made of nearly any materi ...

s of her 2015 concert tours That Bass Tour and MTrain Tour.

Background and development

developed an early interest in music and started singing at age six. After her father encouraged her to pursue her musical interests, she independently released three albums from material she had written, recorded, performed, and produced, between the ages 15 and 17. These included Trainor's eponymous 2009 release, and her 2010 albums ''I'll Sing with You'' and ''Only 17''. She introduced herself to former

NRBQ NRBQ is an American rock music, rock band founded by Terry Adams (musician), Terry Adams (piano), Steve Ferguson (guitar) and Joey Spampinato (bass). Originally the "New Rhythm and Blues Quintet", the group was formed around 1965. Adams disbande ...

member Al Anderson at a music conference in Nashville. Impressed by Trainor's songwriting, he referred her to his publisher Carla Wallace of music publishing firm Big Yellow Dog Music. Though Trainor had been offered a full scholarship to the

Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music is a private music college in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern American music, it also offers college-level cou ...

, she decided to pursue her songwriting career and signed with Big Yellow Dog in 2012. American songwriter

met Trainor in June 2013 at Wallace's request. He liked Trainor's voice and felt a strong songwriting affinity with her due to their mutual love of

pop music Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom. The terms ''popular music'' and ''pop music'' are often used interchangeably, although the former describ ...

from the

and

1960s File:1960s montage.png, Clockwise from top left: U.S. soldiers during the Vietnam War; the Beatles led the British Invasion of the U.S. music market; a half-a-million people participate in the 1969 Woodstock Festival; Neil Armstrong and Bu ...

. Disenchanted with the electronic dance music that populated

Top 40 radio Contemporary hit radio (also known as CHR, contemporary hits, hit list, current hits, hit music, top 40, or pop radio) is a radio format that is common in many countries that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by ...

, he had wished to create a "50s-sounding record of

doo-wop Doo-wop (also spelled doowop and doo wop) is a genre of rhythm and blues music that originated in African-American communities during the 1940s, mainly in the large cities of the United States, including New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chica ...

-inspired pop" for three years, but could not find any artist that shared his interest. Trainor, who had been introduced to doo-wop by her father at a young age, found it to be "the catchiest stuff" and wanted to create something reminiscent of

The Chordettes The Chordettes were an American female vocal quartet, specializing in traditional pop music. They are best known for their 1950s hit songs "Mr. Sandman" and "Lollipop". Career The group organized in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, in 1946. The origina ...

's 1958

Lollipop A lollipop is a type of sugar candy usually consisting of hard candy mounted on a stick and intended for sucking or licking. Different informal terms are used in different places, including lolly, sucker, sticky-pop, etc. Lollipops are av ...

". Kadish shared his idea with Trainor after the two bonded over

Jimmy Soul Jimmy Soul (born James Louis McCleese; August 24, 1942 – June 25, 1988) was an American vocalist. He is best remembered for his 1963 number one hit, " If You Wanna Be Happy." Background Born in Weldon, North Carolina,If You Wanna Be Happy", and they decided to create an

extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.

(EP) with the same sound, "just for fun". They completed three songs before Kadish started producing a

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

album for the rest of the year. Trainor moved to Nashville in November 2013 and they co-wrote the song "

", pitching it to different record labels, all of which rejected it due to its doo-wop pop sound as

synth-pop Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a subgenre of new wave music that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s ...

was more popular at the time.

L.A. Reid Antonio Marquis "L.A." Reid (born June 7, 1956) is an American record executive, A&R representative, and record producer. He is the founder and served as co-chairman of Hitco Entertainment. He also previously served as the chairman and CEO of E ...

, the chairman of Epic Records, heard the song and encouraged Trainor to record it herself. She signed with the label in 2014 and immediately began working on more songs with Kadish as Epic wanted her to record an entire album. The label briefly suggested that Trainor work with other producers, such as

Pharrell Williams Pharrell Lanscilo Williams (; born April 5, 1973) is an American record producer, rapper, singer, and songwriter. Alongside close colleague Chad Hugo, he formed the hip hop and R&B production duo the Neptunes in the early 1990s, with whom h ...

Timbaland Timothy Zachery Mosley (born March 10, 1972), known professionally as Timbaland, is an American record producer, rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. He has received widespread acclaim for his innovative production work and distinc ...

, but she insisted on continuing with Kadish: "Kevin's my guy". Epic Records's

artists and repertoire Artists and repertoire (colloquially abbreviated to A&R) is the division of a record label or music publishing company that is responsible for talent scouting and overseeing the artistic development of recording artists (singers, instrumentalist ...

division called Kadish and said, "whatever you did on 'Bass,' do it 10 more times. Don't bring in any more writers. Don't bring in any other producers. Whoever you used on that song." Upon its release as Trainor's debut single on June 30, 2014, "All About That Bass" reached numberone in 58 countries and sold 11 million units worldwide. Some critics considered it a

novelty song A novelty song is a type of song built upon some form of novel concept, such as a gimmick, a piece of humor, or a sample of popular culture. Novelty songs partially overlap with comedy songs, which are more explicitly based on humor, and wi ...

, and questioned if Trainor would be able to release a successful follow-up or end up a

one-hit wonder A one-hit wonder or viral hit is any entity that achieves mainstream popularity, often for only one piece of work, and becomes known among the general public solely for that momentary success. The term is most commonly used in regard to music p ...

Music and lyrics

Music

''Title'' comprises songs inspired by 1950s doo-wop music that "straddle the line between

and

melodic A melody (from Greek μελῳδία, ''melōidía'', "singing, chanting"), also tune, voice or line, is a linear succession of musical tones that the listener perceives as a single entity. In its most literal sense, a melody is a combina ...

pop", according to

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the dat ...

's Matt Collar. Jon Dolan of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its co ...

'' stated that the EP combines "trickle-down Beyoncé empowerment themes" and "sugary doo-wop and

girl-group A girl group is a music act featuring several female singers who generally harmonize together. The term "girl group" is also used in a narrower sense in the United States to denote the wave of American female pop music singing groups, many of who ...

melodies". Kadish produced, recorded, engineered, and mixed the entire EP at the Carriage House studio in

Nolensville, Tennessee Nolensville is a town in Williamson County, Tennessee. Its population was 13,829 at the 2020 census. It was established in 1797 by William Nolen, a veteran of the American Revolutionary War. Located in Middle Tennessee, it is about 22 miles southe ...

. He plays the drums,

acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...

electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar (however combinations of the two - a semi-acoustic guitar and an electric acoustic gu ...

, and

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gu ...

; Trainor handled drum programming and

clapping A clap is the percussive sound made by striking together two flat surfaces, as in the body parts of humans or animals. Humans clap with the palms of their hands, often quickly and repeatedly to express appreciation or approval (see applause), b ...

, and plays

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...

and

ukulele The ukulele ( ; from haw, ukulele , approximately ), also called Uke, is a member of the lute family of instruments of Portuguese origin and popularized in Hawaii. It generally employs four nylon strings. The tone and volume of the instrumen ...

. David Baron plays the piano, baritone saxophone, and

hammond organ The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert and first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding #Drawbars, drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, Hammond organs ...

; and Jim Hoke plays the baritone and

tenor saxophone The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (while ...

. Dave Kutch mastered ''Title'' at The Mastering Palace in New York City. The opening track, "All About That Bass", is a

bubblegum pop Bubblegum (also called bubblegum pop) is pop music in a catchy and upbeat style that is considered disposable, contrived, or marketed for children and adolescents. The term also refers to a rock and pop subgenre, originating in the United States ...

, doo-wop, hip hop, Italo-Latin

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun '':wikt:soul, soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The ea ...

, and

retro Retro style is imitative or consciously derivative of lifestyles, trends, or art forms from history, including in music, modes, fashions, or attitudes. In popular culture, the " nostalgia cycle" is typically for the two decades that begin 20–30 ...

-R&B pop song, influenced by 1960s genres—soul-pop,

groove Groove or Grooves may refer to: Music * Groove (music) * Groove (drumming) * The Groove (band), an Australian rock/pop band of the 1960s * The Groove (Sirius XM), a US radio station * Groove 101.7FM, a former Perth, Australia, radio station * ...

Motown Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''mot ...

bounce, and girl-group pop. The song includes

syncopated In music, syncopation is a variety of rhythms played together to make a piece of music, making part or all of a tune or piece of music off-beat. More simply, syncopation is "a disturbance or interruption of the regular flow of rhythm": a "plac ...

handclaps, bass instrumentation, and, according to ''

Slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic ro ...

''s Chris Molanphy, "a

scatting In vocal jazz, scat singing is vocal improvisation with wordless vocables, nonsense syllables or without words at all. In scat singing, the singer improvises melodies and rhythms using the voice as an instrument rather than a speaking medium. ...

tempo In musical terminology, tempo ( Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (ofte ...

and shimmying melody". The

title track A title track is a song that has the same name as the album or film in which it appears. In the Korean music industry, the term is used to describe a promoted song on an album, akin to a single, regardless of the song's title. Title track may a ...

is a doo-wop song with

Caribbean music Caribbean music genres are very diverse. They are each synthesis of African, European, Arab, Asian, and Indigenous influences, largely created by descendants of African slaves (see Afro-Caribbean music), along with contributions from other com ...

influences and a

ska Ska (; ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a wal ...

-inflected

bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...

, which blends the horn and ukulele

folk-pop Folk-pop is a musical style that may be 1) contemporary folk songs with large, sweeping pop arrangements, or 2) pop songs with intimate, acoustic-based folk arrangements. Recording production values created a unblemished style that appealed to ...

with island percussion instrumentation and a programmed

beat Beat, beats or beating may refer to: Common uses * Patrol, or beat, a group of personnel assigned to monitor a specific area ** Beat (police), the territory that a police officer patrols ** Gay beat, an area frequented by gay men * Battery ...

, and also incorporates handclaps and modern sound effects. Trainor projects an assertive and retro aural tone according to ''

Knoxville News Sentinel The ''Knoxville News Sentinel, also known as Knox News,'' is a daily newspaper in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States, owned by the Gannett Company. History The newspaper was formed in 1926 from the merger of two competing newspapers: ''The ...

'', and delivers a

rap Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

verse. She felt it showcased "what ersound really is", and considered its Caribbean drum and rapping new territory for her. "

Dear Future Husband "Dear Future Husband" is a song by American singer-songwriter Meghan Trainor. It was included on ''Title'', her 2014 extended play, and later on her 2015 studio album of the same name. Trainor wrote the song with its producer Kevin Kadish. ...

" is a doo-wop, pop, and girl-group bounce song, with influences of

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a majo ...

. It opens with a

stylus A stylus (plural styli or styluses) is a writing utensil or a small tool for some other form of marking or shaping, for example, in pottery. It can also be a computer accessory that is used to assist in navigating or providing more precision ...

sound on a damaged

vinyl Vinyl may refer to: Chemistry * Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a particular vinyl polymer * Vinyl cation, a type of carbocation * Vinyl group, a broad class of organic molecules in chemistry * Vinyl polymer, a group of polymers derived from viny ...

and transitions into retro ukulele instrumentation, further incorporating brisk piano, buoyant

brass Brass is an alloy of copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn), in proportions which can be varied to achieve different mechanical, electrical, and chemical properties. It is a substitutional alloy: atoms of the two constituents may replace each other wit ...

, and a drum track. The final track, "Close Your Eyes", is a contemporary

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or '' ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...

on which Trainor gives a soulful and "nuanced, fluttery vocal performance" over an acoustic guitar and pitch-shifted background vocals.

Lyrics

For ''Title'', Trainor wrote lyrics about things she thought many people ignore, such as "commitment and staying true to one's self". She wanted to speak from the place of "an awkward 19-, 20-year-old, when you're pretty sure you're an adult but you're not, yet," and identified the EP's material as "too young for Kesha" and too mature for

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

. It comprises "very personal, girl power anthems" that Trainor wishes existed when she attended high school: "Like, love yourself more, respect yourself more ..There are girl empowerment songs—like 'I love myself I'm beautiful'—but there are also 'I deserve a good man, I deserve a good boyfriend, man, you should take me out.' Trainor and Kadish grew up as "chubby" kids, and wrote the lyrics of "All About That Bass" as a call to embrace inner beauty, and promote positive

body image Body image is a person's thoughts, feelings and perception of the aesthetics or sexual attractiveness of their own body. The concept of body image is used in a number of disciplines, including neuroscience, psychology, medicine, psychiatry, psy ...

and self-acceptance. She calls out the fashion industry for creating unreachable beauty standards and criticizes the use of

Photoshop Adobe Photoshop is a raster graphics editor developed and published by Adobe Inc. for Windows and macOS. It was originally created in 1988 by Thomas and John Knoll. Since then, the software has become the industry standard not only in ras ...

in magazines. It includes the line "I'm bringing booty back", as a reference to Justin Timberlake's single "

SexyBack "SexyBack" is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter Justin Timberlake for his second studio album, ''FutureSex/LoveSounds'' (2006). It was released on July 18, 2006, to US mainstream and rhythmic radio stationsRadio single releases . F ...

" (2006). Trainor, who was ill-treated by unemployed men she dated in the past, wrote the title track and "Dear Future Husband" to correct issues with contemporary

dating Dating is a stage of romantic relationships in which two individuals engage in an activity together, most often with the intention of evaluating each other's suitability as a partner in a future intimate relationship. It falls into the category ...

and

hookup culture Hookup culture is one that accepts and encourages casual sex encounters, including one-night stands and other related activity, without necessarily including emotional intimacy, bonding or a committed relationship. It is generally associated with ...

, like women basing their self worth on social media likes and whether their partner replied to their texts. On the title track, she refuses to be friends with benefits and pushes her partner to define their relationship more clearly. "Dear Future Husband" is about

chivalry Chivalry, or the chivalric code, is an informal and varying code of conduct developed in Europe between 1170 and 1220. It was associated with the medieval Christian institution of knighthood; knights' and gentlemen's behaviours were governed b ...

and dating, and lists the things a man needs to do to be Trainor's life partner, and win her adoration and dedication. These include "treat ng herlike a lady" even when she behaves insanely, calling her pretty every night, and putting her family above his. "Close Your Eyes" encourages listeners to embrace what makes them different and show their authentic personality to the world.

Release and promotion

MTV News MTV News is the news production division of MTV. The service is available in the US with localized versions on MTV's global network. In February 2016, MTV Networks confirmed it would refresh the MTV News brand in 2016, to compete with the likes ...

premiered the title track on September 5, 2014. Epic Records released the EP through

compact disc The compact disc (CD) is a digital optical disc data storage format that was co-developed by Philips and Sony to store and play digital audio recordings. In August 1982, the first compact disc was manufactured. It was then released in Octo ...

(CD) and digital download formats four days later. The label released the CD in Australia on September 12. It debuted at number 15 on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart dated September 27, with first-week sales of 21,000 copies, and sold over 171,000 copies in the United States. ''Title'' peaked at number 17 on the

Canadian Albums Chart The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Monday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen SoundScan, and published every Tuesday by ''Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding ...

and number 35 on the

Danish Albums Chart Hitlisten, also known as Tracklisten, is a Danish top 40 record chart that is updated every Thursday midnight on the website hitlisten.nu. The weekly Danish singles chart Track Top-40 combines the 40 best-selling tracks from legal music downloa ...

. The digital release of "All About That Bass" in some European countries shared an identical track list. A pre-order of Trainor's 2015 debut major-label studio album of the same name, which included all tracks from the EP, replaced it later that month. "All About That Bass" served as the

lead single A lead single (also known as a debut single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. Release ...

from ''Title''. It spent eight consecutive weeks at number one on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, the longest run for any Epic Records artist in the chart's history, and was the best-selling song by a female artist in the

2010s File:2010s collage v21.png, From top left, clockwise: Anti-government protests called the Arab Spring arose in 2010–2011, and as a result, many governments were overthrown, including when Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi was killed; Crimea is an ...

, with 5.8 million digital downloads. The lyrics caused controversy; some critics called the song anti-feminist and accused Trainor of shaming thin women. It was nominated for

Record of the Year The Grammy Award for Record of the Year is presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without reg ...

and

Song of the Year Song of the Year may refer to: * Country Music Association Award for Song of the Year * Dove Award for Song of the Year * Golden Melody Award for Song of the Year * Grammis Song of the Year * Grammy Award for Song of the Year * Latin Grammy Awa ...

at the

57th Annual Grammy Awards The 57th Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 8, 2015, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. The show was broadcast live by CBS at 5:00 p.m. PST ( UTC−8). Rapper LL Cool J hosted the show for the fourth consecutive time ...

. "Dear Future Husband" and the title track were both considered options for release as Trainor's second single. Reid scrapped them in favor of "

Lips Are Movin "Lips Are Movin" is a song by American singer-songwriter Meghan Trainor, taken from her debut major-label studio album ''Title'' (2015). It was written by Trainor and the album's producer, Kevin Kadish. Epic Records premiered the song on MTV Ne ...

" (2014), which he thought "will do better". "Dear Future Husband" was eventually chosen as the third single from the album in 2015, and peaked at number 14 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. The title track attained viral popularity on video-sharing service

TikTok TikTok, known in China as Douyin (), is a short-form video hosting service owned by the Chinese company ByteDance. It hosts user-submitted videos, which can range in duration from 15 seconds to 10 minutes. TikTok is an international version ...

in 2021. Trainor promoted ''Title'' by performing its songs on various television shows and her concert tours. She sang "All About That Bass" at an Emily West concert, ''

Live! with Kelly and Michael ''Live with Kelly and Ryan'' (or simply ''Live'') is an American syndicated morning talk show hosted by Kelly Ripa and Ryan Seacrest. Executive produced by Michael Gelman, the ''Live with...'' show formula has aired under various hosts since ...

'', for ''

Entertainment Tonight ''Entertainment Tonight'' (or simply ''ET'') is an American first-run syndicated news broadcasting newsmagazine program that is distributed by CBS Media Ventures throughout the United States and owned by Paramount Streaming. ET also airs in Aust ...

'', ''

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jimmy Fallon that airs on NBC. The show premiered on February 17, 2014, and is produced by Broadway Video and Universal Television. It is the seventh in ...

'', ''The X Factor'' (Australia), and

2Day FM 2Day FM (call sign 2DAY) is a commercial FM radio station broadcasting in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, on a frequency of 104.1 MHz, and is part of Southern Cross Austereo's Hit Network. History 1980s 2Day FM was one of three radi ...

. She reprised the title track in sessions for

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

and the ''

National Post The ''National Post'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet newspaper available in several cities in central and western Canada. The paper is the flagship publication of Postmedia Network and is published Mondays through Saturdays, with ...

'', and as a

mashup Mashup may refer to: * Mashup (culture), the rearrangement of spliced parts of musical pieces as part of a subculture * Mashup (education), combining various forms of data and media by a teacher or student in an instructional setting * Mashup (mus ...

with "All About That Bass" at the 2014

iHeartRadio Music Festival The iHeartRadio Music Festival is a two-day music concert festival held every year in September since 2011 by iHeartRadio along the Las Vegas Strip in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. From 2011 to 2015, the festival was held at the MGM Grand ...

. Trainor included all tracks from the EP on her

for the Jingle Ball Tour 2014, and her 2015 concert tours That Bass Tour and MTrain Tour.

Critical reception

''Title'' received mixed reviews from music critics. Collar rated the EP four

star A star is an astronomical object comprising a luminous spheroid of plasma held together by its gravity. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked eye at night, but their immense distances from Earth make ...

s out of five, and ''Knoxville News Sentinel'' and Dolan rated it three. Collar praised Trainor's vocals as "soulful, highly resonant," and catchy; he considered "Dear Future Husband" and "All About That Bass" irresistible. Others criticized the lyrical themes as repetitive on ''Title'' despite its short duration. ''Knoxville News Sentinel'' thought she showed crisp artistic vision on the EP but dubbed its tracks "sort-of sequels" of her debut single. The newspaper said it proved Trainor was a "one-trick pony" and left much to the imagination about what else she is capable of doing. Chris DeVille of ''

Stereogum ''Stereogum'' is a daily Internet publication that focuses on music news, reviews, interviews, and commentary. The site was created in January 2002 by Scott Lapatine. ''Stereogum'' was one of the first MP3 blogs and has received several awa ...

'' thought she could only outlast the success of "All About That Bass" if she found new topics to write about, and was disappointed that the lyrics of "Dear Future Husband" and the title track were interchangeable. He maintained that any tracks on ''Title'' could achieve chart success with ample promotion.

Track listing

Kadish produced all songs and wrote them with Trainor.

Credits and personnel

Credits are adapted from the EP's liner notes. Locations *Recorded, engineered, and mixed at The Carriage House,

* Mastered at The Mastering Palace, New York City Personnel *Meghan Trainor – songwriter,

executive producer Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the making of a commercial entertainment product. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights ...

, drum programming *

– songwriter, producer, drum programming,

, vox organ,

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a musica ...

sound design Sound design is the art and practice of creating sound tracks for a variety of needs. It involves specifying, acquiring or creating auditory elements using audio production techniques and tools. It is employed in a variety of disciplines including ...

, mixing, recording, engineering,

synthesizer A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis ...

background vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are us ...

, executive producer * David Baron – piano, baritone saxophone, hammond organ *Jim Hoke – baritone saxophone, tenor saxophone (track 3) *Jeremy Lister – background vocals (track 4) *Dave Kutch – mastering *

Fatima Robinson Fatima Robinson (born August 29, 1971) is an American dancer, music video director and choreographer. Career Robinson has choreographed dance routines (for live performances and music videos) for several musical and pop artists, notably for th ...

– art direction, art design *JP Robinson – art direction, art design *Sarah McColgan – photography

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Release history

Footnotes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Title 2014 debut EPs Epic Records EPs Meghan Trainor albums Albums produced by Kevin Kadish