Tate McRae the dancer and aspiring singer-songwriter, who is 12 years old from Calgary, Canada, placed third in the 2016 season of “So You Think You Can Dance” and shared the stage with fellow Canuck Justin Bieber. Hence, McRae was better prepared than most when she made her stage debut as a pop singer on “Saturday Night Live” two weeks ago.
“We were all freaking out when my parents came,” McRae remarked in a Westwood interview at her management company’s headquarters. “Since Saturday Night Live is one of the remaining live TV programs, I believe there is a lot more emphasis on it. Everything that occurs happens, even if I fall flat on my face. I simply thought, “I don’t want to disappoint anyone.”
That evening, she gave two performances that showcased her athleticism and artistic skill in dancing to the Top 10 hit song “Greedy” and her poised and honest lyricism on the ballad “Grave.” She immediately became a part of a pantheon of idols that included Janet Jackson and Britney Spears, who knew exactly how to live their music physically.
McRae is probably next in line after contemporaries like Olivia Rodrigo, a close friend, and Billie Eilish redefined young women’s creative autonomy in music; her sophomore album, “Think Later,” releases on December 8 to much expectation.
Since I was thirteen, my followers have witnessed me writing music in my bedroom, according to McRae. “I don’t think I understood how much of a public figure I was at the time. Your viewpoints and preferences shift significantly. I’m beginning to understand the consequences of having people view you through a microscope.
Tate McRae hometown, widely renowned for its yearly huge Stampede rodeo, is frequently referred to as Canada’s Texas. Growing up in Calgary, her pursuit of art made her stand out.
“In our community, I believe it was somewhat taboo,” McRae remarked, donning the impeccable athleisure attire synonymous with L.A.’s Generation Z stars. “When I first started traveling for dance and putting myself out there, we got a lot of strange looks.”
At the age of 17, Tate McRae and her mother, a ballet instructor, relocated to Los Angeles. Her already-striking songwriting took off on TikTok thanks to her TV and dancing stardom, and she became quite popular in the L.A. pop scene. But she lost faith in this city a few days after moving here.
McRae remarked, “I was really confused and lost, but I looked put together on the outside.” “I was in a place where I thought, ‘I hate it here so much, but I have to stay here for work.'” I was accustomed to living in Calgary, where people always tell you what they mean to say.
Her savage ballad “You Broke Me First” peaked at No. 17 on the Billboard Hot 100, marking her first chart triumph after signing with RCA. The optimism and disappointment of the era were represented in her music; depressing titles like “Too Young to Be Sad” and “Feel Like S—” were among them.
“I Used to Think I Could Fly,” her debut album, made it to the Top 20 last year. McRae seemed a little awkward wearing the still-popular, all-caps, depressing female pop trend.
Tate McRae Nude stated, “People are just really critical of young women; the moment they share their passions, they get attacked.” “They expect women to be flawless, to be changing all the time, to say the right things, to date the right guys, and to project the correct image. People used to doubt me a lot when I initially started attending to writing sessions because they thought I was just 16 years old. Upon glancing in the mirror, I would ask myself, “Well, what do I know?” I’m surrounded by about six males in their 30s, and I’m not sure if I’m acting appropriately.
Tate McRae Nude
(Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)
Tate McRae therefore vowed to return to her childhood self—the carefree, physically ecstatic entertainer. Her latest album, “Think Later,” is a turn back toward a quick, self-assured version of herself. This time, she collaborated closely with writer-producer Ryan Tedder, an A-list collaborator for Adele and Taylor Swift as well as the frontman of One Republic.
She pays the same attention to detail in her production notes as she does in her dancing routines.
It’s insane. “After about 27 mixes, I’ll say to myself, ‘The snare sounds like pots and pans, change that,'” the woman remarked. “But I think the coolest thing to watch is a girl’s intuition.”
With hits like the reverse-flirty kiss-off “Exes” and the brash and lighthearted “Greedy,” where McRae taunts a leering dude with the line, “I’m runnin’ this room around and I’m still half your age / You’re lookin’ at me like I’m some sweet escape / It’s obvious that you want me, but I would want myself,” Tedder took it all very seriously.
Tate collaborated with renowned choreographer Sean Bankhead (Lil Nas X, FKA Twigs, Victoria Monét) to create the unforgettable visuals for the “Greedy” music video because a song like that needs moves to match. There, McRae drives a Zamboni over an ice rink with a moody demeanor and strikes a risky arabesque pose atop a weight bench.
“Where do you go knowing that she’s practically limitless?” Bankhead sent The Times an email. Working with an artist who can grasp not only my more complex timing and musicality, but also push them to truly find a place where they are in charge of the camera and the stage is really refreshing. He used technical terms to describe the dance moves McRae nailed, saying, “I’m glad she trusted me and was open even if I asked to see her dolphin dive out of a tilt.”
(Rosalind O’Connor / NBC via Getty Images)
She also struggles with the cynicism and loneliness of her early stardom on her new album, particularly on the tracks “Calgary” and “Plastic Palm Trees,” which depict her as neither fully present in her future nor detached from her past. Similar to Eilish, she is discovering that being in the spotlight may destroy a young woman’s self-esteem, even if she is confident in her skills.
McRae declared, “I detest taking pictures and I detest seeing myself on video.” “After spending the entire day being dolled up and having fifty people staring at me on a set, I would always think I looked awful when I was recorded. People never just see the performance in you; instead, they constantly look at women and attempt to figure out what’s wrong with them. Guys have the greatest time ever when they get on stage. When a girl does that, others comment, “Her hair is bad, and her outfit is sucks.” I have to truly overcome my tendency to be so detrimental to myself.
Though her celebrity friends have expanded to include musicians like Rodrigo, who texted McRae to ask if she could be in the music video for “Bad Idea Right?”, her personal life hasn’t altered much since “Greedy” became popular. “I’m extremely fortunate to have regular pals in the industry. However, I’m not sure if I enjoy dating in Los Angeles,” she remarked. The last NHL player McCrae dated was Cole Sillinger.
The stages for her upcoming summer tour will be considerably larger; McRae will play a show at Madison Square Garden in August after headlining the Greek Theatre in July. Plus, she’ll be the feature act for her first-ever show in Calgary. (The location is unknown, although the July 5th date falls on the same day as her hometown Stampede kicks off.)
