Here's Why Tate McRae's Latest Song Is The Most Relatable Thing Ever
By Kelly Fisher
February 25, 2022
Tate McRae knew in her gut that the vulnerable pang of jealousy she felt when she went into a songwriting session had led to a good song – now, she’s “pumped” to see how fans are connecting with it. McRae released “she’s all i wanna be,” an upbeat “punk” track that delves into the negative feelings of comparison and puts a lighter spin on it.
Speaking with iHeartRadio, McRae recalled “doing the toxic thing” of scrolling through Instagram long enough to compare herself to every girl she saw on her phone. It drained her to a “horrible mood,” and it was during that time that she came up with a song concept: “she’s got everything that I don’t have/ how could I ever compete with that?” McRae took “the stereotype of what I think would be the perfect girl,” and built the story of her new song. She recalled: “It initially started as a really sad ballad, and then we did a full 180 and changed it into this punk song, which is cool.”
McRae’s “she’s all i wanna be” is a new song that she wrote herself. Although she admitted that it can be “scary” to release a song, it all pays off when she can see how it resonates with audiences. McRae said she often draws songwriting inspiration from her everyday life, at times struggling to put emotions into words until she puts them in a song. It’s “funny because I feel like that’s so extroverted and I feel like a pretty introverted person,” she said, and it’s meaningful when others can relate. “…When my fans relate to a song, as much as it makes them feel like they’re not alone, it makes me feel the same way. …That’s the most satisfying feeling when people can be standing in front of me at a concert and scream (the lyrics of the song) back and feel it. Everyone’s going through the same thing, they just don’t even realize it.”
McRae had another opportunity to connect with fans during her recent performance with Set the Stage by Sony. Marking her first time performing the song live, McRae drew fans into the song with a display of fan art projected onscreen during the show. Her Set the Stage performance, which streamed on Thursday evening (February 24), gave fans a “sneak peek” at McRae’s latest work. It also offered McRae a chance to connect with millions of fans in a new way: “This has been a passion project for me, and I am beyond excited to work with the people who inspire me so much – my fans. …My dream has always been to dance and sing in a way that represents my art. I’m finally living out that dream and sharing all-new music that is so personal to me.”
“…I’ve spent so much time alone on this album working on it by myself and I feel like any way I can try and interact with my fans through teasers or through performances and they can feel like they’re a part of it, just honestly just makes the album so much more special to me,” McRae said. “I also feel like I’m really close with them, so even the fact they can design their own designs for this performance and take my new song, ‘she’s all I wanna be,’ to the next level is really cool.”
For fans who haven’t seen the “she’s all i wanna be” music video yet, McRae described it as a fun video that was inspired by the iconic movie A Chorus Line, which she was watching with her mom when it dawned on them that a dance audition would be the perfect setting for the message of the song (with a plot twist at the end). Watch McRae’s latest music video here: