Meghan Trainor talks making hit songs

In just two years, Meghan Trainor has made a name for herself as one of the most consistent hitmakers in pop music. As both a highly sought after songwriter and a chart-topping singer in her own right, Trainor has a lot to boast about.

“I always say, ‘I sh— hits,'” Trainor said in Billboard‘s new cover story. “Because they come out so quick I can’t even keep up with myself.”

The 22-year-old singer exploded onto the music scene with her 2014 single “All About That Bass” and subsequent debut album Title, both of which featured a throwback, ’50s-inspired sound. But Trainor went in a completely different direction for her follow-up Thank You, which opts for a contemporary pop sleekness.

The shift in genre has earned Trainor success on the charts, but also some detractors who claim she’s affected a “blaccent” in recent singles like “No” and “Me Too.” Trainor, however, says that her sound is the result of her father, who led her family’s reggae band Island Fusion that she performed in as a child.

“It’s the Gary Trainor thing,” Trainor said. “My dad thinks he’s James Brown sometimes. He’s very soulful. He’ll just go, ‘How you doin’, baby?'”

Read the full interview, which also includes Trainor talking about her dating life and friendship with actress Chloë Grace Moretz, on Billboard‘s website.