18-year-old, Canadian artist, Max Parker has recently released his newest single, “Something About You” independently, highlighting his entrepreneurial spirit and raw talent recording the song alongside celebrated producer John Nathaniel (One Republic, Switchfoot, Marie Mai).
“After a full year in studio, I cannot wait for this release,” shares Max Parker. “Something About You” is about who we choose to hang out with, even when your gut is telling you there’s something off and you need to watch your back a bit. I wrote it metaphorically, as a dance – representing the push and pull of relationships. This song brings the 80’s vibes and I couldn’t be more excited to have everyone dance in their living rooms, especially during this time when we really do need music to push us through.”
Check out the lyric video for “Something About You” below, and find out more about Max via our Five Questions With segment.
Care to introduce yourself to our readers?
Hey there! My name is Max Parker. I’m 18 years old, and I’m a pop singer/songwriter from Toronto Ontario. I picked up the guitar when I was 10, started writing tons of songs and realized that being an artist was something I wanted to pursue. I’ve released a few singles in the past, getting noticed by CBC Top 12 on Searchlight and also winning Canada’s Indie Week ‘Best Newcomer Award’ this past fall. I’ve started to find a new sound recently and have been hibernating in the studio this past year, writing over 50 songs with demos. Stoked to now have a catalogue of songs that are ready to be released over the course of the next few months. I’ve been so grateful to have such a fantastic team behind me as well as some amazing award-winning producers including John Nathaniel (One Republic, Switchfoot, Marie Mai), Derek Hoffman (Ralph, Caveboy), Connor Seidel (Charlotte Cardin, Ralph), Joel Stouffer (Ria Mae, bulow, Dragonette).
Tell us a bit more about your music and writing style.
I love pop music. I gravitate towards an upbeat pop style when writing most of my songs in this new project. I’m inspired by bands like Coldplay and OneRepublic, and their music is very much the same style, but also with some organic elements too that creates my personal narrative around the song. I tend to keep things balanced when it comes to electronic synths with the simplicity of chugging guitars. Lauv is also an artist that I’m inspired by. His sound is phenomenal, and his lyric writing cuts to the meaning of everyday living and relationships. For me, with my new song release “Something About You,” I was thrilled that Apple Music listed it as Pop/Rock because I also love slipping in angsty rock elements here and there.
For someone who has yet to see you live, how would you explain your live performance?
When I perform live, I usually have a back-up band supporting me – drummer, another guitar player, and a bassist. I really like to engage with the crowd and give a backstory about every song…so I’m not shy of being a bit of a talker when I’m up on stage. I want people to relate with my music and to understand that they’re not alone with what they’re going through. I also like to move around on stage to be close to my audience and to get into the movement of each song. Some of my live performance songs are straight-up dance/rock songs, with quite a bit of good sweat and energy, especially when I’m performing with my back up band, while other songs I quiet it down with ballads and different instrumentals – I’ve had a live cello for plenty of performances, courtesy of one of my bandmates.
If you were asked to suggest only one of your songs for someone to hear, which would it be?
It would definitely be my new single, called “Something About You.” I co-write this song with John Nathaniel, an incredibly talented producer, who works with artists/bands like OneRepublic, Marie Mae, and Switchfoot. I’ve been super grateful to be in the studio with him this past year writing a couple of bops. “Something About You” is about who you choose to hang out with and why. I’ve had to figure that out and ask myself sometimes about some relationships, “Why am I hanging out with this person if they make everything negative?” Usually, for many people, it might be about fitting into a group, or maybe you’re attracted to a certain person but you don’t know why. At the end of the day, it’s more about figuring out who you are as a person, rather than who the other person is or how they treat people. That’s the meaning I want to capture with this song. It’s that dance (metaphorically) of the push and pull in all relationships.
Canadian Beats is all about Canadian music – who are your current favourite Canadian bands/artists?
Well, I’ll say the obvious and give huge kudos to Canada’s own Shawn Mendes, The Weeknd, and Justin Bieber (who recently has come out with a new documentary and new music). It just shows how powerful Canadian talent truly is and how much reach Canadian talent has, internationally. Also right now, I’d have to say I’m truly appreciating Canadian artists, Shawn Hook and Tyler Shaw. I recently went live on Instagram with both of them in the past couple of weeks, while in quarantine. All of us are bringing the community together and it’s so awesome to see how much positivity we can bring, just through social media and technology. These guys are talented! Canada has so much talent!