The singer behind the hit "All About That Bass," Meghan Trainor, recently cleared up some misunderstandings concerning her music video that was edited without her consent. Not unlike other celebrities such as Zendaya, Lena Dunham, and Ronda Rousey who have spoken out against photo manipulations, Trainor found herself in a position where her images were significantly altered and shared on the internet. In 2016, she was forced to pull her music video for "Me Too" after noticing the retouching of her waistline to appear slimmer than it actually was. According to Trainor, the incident was an embarrassing one as she stated, "My waist is not that teeny. I had a bomb waist that night. I don't know why they didn't like my waist, but I didn't approve that video and it went out for the world." On Ashley Graham's podcast, Pretty Big Deal, Trainor expressed her feelings about the unsanctioned editing. The two discussed their common experiences with image manipulations. Graham also revealed instances where she explicitly instructed photographers not to alter certain details of her body, only to find them edited anyway without her approval. Trainor emphasized feeling powerless in these situations, particularly when the edits for her "Me Too" music video were approved. She was deeply involved in the video editing process and was shocked when she saw the final product. "I approved a video. It wasn't that," she confessed after seeing the released version. Fans brought to her attention screenshots of the video which made her believe that they were the ones to have manipulated the images. Regardless of who did it, she knew that the images were not representative of her true appearance. Determined to correct this, Trainor had her team pull down the first version of the video and replace it with the untouched version.
Meghan Trainor expressed profound disappointment over the digital altering of her music video, as it completely contradicts the body-positivity narrative she has been promoting throughout her career with empowering songs such as "All About That Bass". The irony of being the 'no Photoshop' advocate and having this happen to her left Meghan feeling distressed and humiliated.
In a conversation with Ashley Graham, she disclosed the difficulty in continuously promoting self-love, only to have their authentic images altered on magazine covers or music videos. Both agreed on the irritating inconsistency of spreading the message of self-acceptance while dealing with manipulated visuals. This inconsistency impedes their efforts to promote a healthier perspective on body image.
In her most recent chat with Billboard, Meghan Trainor admitted to times when she's not entirely confident about her body image, stating, "I encounter days where my self-esteem plummets, and it's an ongoing battle." However, according to model Ashley Graham, Trainor's journey is a lesson in gaining confidence, pursuing dreams, and delivering the messages that resonate with you. Graham emphasized this point in a post on Instagram, applauding Trainor's ability to promote self-love and body positivity through her music.