In a time when we all could use some good news, Megan Thee Stallion has released her debut album, fittingly titled Good News.
The LP caps off the year of the Hottie, following Meg's recent "Rapper of the Year" crowning from GQ, her Time magazine "100 Most Influential People" cover, her multiple No. 1 singles, and that's just naming a few of her many accomplishments in 2020.
Good News also comes after the "WAP" rapper's slew of beloved mixtapes, which she's released over the years, that were not only the foundation of her success but the source of her stardom, solidifying her as one of hip-hop's brightest and most talented artists.
In an exclusive interview with iHeartRadio, Megan broke down each track on the album — excluding "Savage" remix, "Girls In The Hood" and her lead-off track "Shots Fired" — giving fans more insight into how each song came to be as well as what each track means to her.
Keep scrolling to read Megan's track-by-track breakdown of Good News.
Circles
'Circles' is produced by Cool & Dre and is one of my favorites. All the songs on that album are my favorite, but 'Circles' is another one of my favorites because I really love the fact that I'm emphasizing that we ain't going back and forth with the little boys, and it always be the little boys that be having something to say about women business. So, we ain't going back and forth with y'all. There's no need to argue with the little boys.
Cry Baby (ft. DaBaby)
'Cry Baby; is me and my brother, Baby. I really love DaBaby. We have really good chemistry, so it was only right that I have him on my album. Every song we make together is just a smash, and this was an easy lay up. And the track was produced by D.A. Got That Dope.
Do It On The Tip (ft. City Girls)
'Do It On The Tip' is another song that's produced by Lil' Jew. I called him and I was like, 'Jew, gimme a beat that sounds like we beating on the lunch table, like free-styling.' And he's like, 'Like this?' And I'm like, 'Yes, exactly like that.' So I really think the drums [on the track] is Jew beating on his desk. He sent a beat right back after I asked for it and I was in the living room free styling, and I was like, 'What's, what's gonna be something that's gonna stick?' So that's how we got the 'Do It On The Tip.' And I was like, 'You know what? City Girls will like really eat this.' Like JT and Yung Miami, the beat just sounded like them to me, so that's how we got them on there.
Sugar Baby
'Sugar Baby,' produced by Helluva, is a flip on 'Bad B*tch' by Webbie and Trina. We needed that. Like that song is already an anthem, and of course, it already has a lot of sauce, its own sauce, so it wasn't nothing that I really just had to do besides get on there and put my hot girl sh*t on it. Shout out to Webbie. Shout out to Trina. They was my inspiration.
Movie (ft. Lil Durk)
'Movie' is just a good strip club song to me and I love the strip club. I get a lot of inspiration from the strip club, and it's featuring Lil Durk. I feel like he is so great, and I really wanted to do a song with him, and when they sent me the beat, I was like, 'This is just too good. Like me and Durk really gotta kill this.' And we did, and I really want to shoot a video to it soon.
Freaky Girls (ft. SZA)
'Freaky Girls' is with me and SZA. I really, really love SZA as a person, and I really wanted to get music with her because we just have such a good chemistry in real life. We went to the studio with Juicy J, and we literally sat in there all night. I'd already called Juicy to tell him, 'Juicy, gimme, gimme a flip to 'A Freak Like Me.' ' And he's like, 'Bet, I love that song.' And I'm like, 'Yeah, me too.' And I wrote my verses and I just knew SZA would sound so good on it. So I called her up to the studio. She came. We were in there for hours. We were all just talking, laughing, and she went in there and she laid the hook down, and it's fire. Now we got 'Freaky Girls.' Love you, SZA.
Body
So 'Body,' which is produced by Lil' Jew, is one of my favorite tracks, because I just love working with Jew. I literally will call him and be like, 'Jew, make me a beat where it sounds like this girl is getting her life...' And he'll be like, 'Okay, cool.' So he literally sent the beat back in maybe an hour, if that, and I sat in the living room and recorded it. [...] I did all of the verses and I couldn't figure out, what I want the hook to be? And I was free styling, I was twerking, and then that's just how the hook came together.
What's New
'What's New' is basically saying, 'I don't care. I heard it all before. All the hate, all the negativity, baby, I'm used to it. What's new? I'm still getting money, I still mad. What's new?' And that's produced by Abba Dar.
Work That
So 'Work That' is another song produced by Juicy J and it's a 'Rodeo' flip. I love Juvenile. I love everything that he put out. I'm a hard girl, and I just felt like we really needed a 2020 version of it, like a 2020 girl flip for it.
Intercourse (ft. Popcaan)
Intercourse features Popcaan, who is amazing. He is actually one of my friends too and I was like, 'I just really need a song with you.' And he's like, 'Duh.' So, I actually let him pick the beat and send it to me. He laid down his verse and the hook, and it was another easy lay up. Bringing these two flavors together — Texas and Jamaica — we really had to.
Go Crazy (ft. Big Sean & 2Chainz)
'Go Crazy' is insane. I'm a huge fan of Big Sean and 2 Chainz, and when I heard the beat, I'm like, 'Yes. I gotta get Sean on this. I gotta get Chainz on this.' And I know Chainz, so I texted him, 'Look, I got a song.' That man sent me that verse back the next morning and I'm like, 'Yes!' Sean, he killed it. The song just goes crazy.
Don't Rock Me To Sleep
'Don't Rock Me to Sleep' is definitely one of my favorites because it's something new for me. It's a beat that I probably wouldn't have normally rapped over. It's more singy and it's more of a feel good song. I was really thinking, 'How can I say I'm breaking up with you, or eff you after the breakup without being so rough about it?' But I'm still hard, even when I'm singing.
Outside
'Outside' is another track produced by Juicy J and that was just me basically telling the boys, 'cause they love seeing girls for the streets, 'No, baby, I'm on the street. I am the street. Like how can I be for the streets, if I am the street?' Yeah, y'all know me.
Don't Stop (ft. Young Thug)
'Don't Stop' is produced by BuddahBlessThisBeat, which is another one of my close friends, and it's featuring [Young] Thug, another one of my friends, and everything was just too easy. If you know me, you know what I like, so it was very easy to work with people who know you and know what you're feeling and how you're gonna sound on something, and I just knew Thug was gonna sound crazy on there. We shot the video. It was Alice in Wonderland. I picked those things because I really love the dark films, and it was just great.
This conversation has been edited for clarity and length.