Maren Morris Recalls Being Rejected by ‘American Idol,’ ‘The Voice’
Maren Morris had her song "My Church" covered on both American Idol and The Voice earlier this year. It was a full circle moment for the singer, as she had tried out for both reality singing competitions and was rejected by both. It's something she's thankful for now.
"I think about all of the freaking talent shows I've tried out for in my life and I'm so glad I didn't make any of them," she tells Rolling Stone Country. "It's full circle, because I was rejected from The Voice. I was rejected from American Idol — and I'm happier for it now."
While her breakthrough single "My Church" talks of the joys of driving around while listening to the radio, Morris says she still loves listening to the radio for its musical discovery.
"I like to listen to what people are listening to and figure out why is this song so catchy. What is it about it? I really break it down to a science and try to figure out what makes a song particularly memorable," she explains. "And it's usually repetition and simplicity. At least with catchy pop songs that take on a life of their own and become huge smashes."
One of those "catchy pop songs" is Backstreet Boys' "Shape of My Heart." Morris tells RSC that she and co-writer Laura Veltz looked at how the band's lyric, "Looking back on the things that I've done," was used for a melody in the chorus and once again at the end of the song. This helped inspire the first track on the album, "Sugar," in which she and Veltz swap the lyrics in the chorus with a new melody and rhythm.
"I don't know if we did that out of laziness that day or what," she says. "And that's one of my favorite parts of that song because it's so catchy and fun."
Morris is currently on the road with Keith Urban.
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