Hailee Steinfeld is in Rogers, Arkansas, and she’s super pumped about it—as she is about every part of being on tour. “Being in a different city every single night and performing for a new crowd is so exciting,” says the singer and actress, whom you miiiiiiiiight know from her star turn in True Grit, her plucky-newcomer Pitch Perfect 2 role, or, in fact, any one of her Hollywood hurrahs. (Psst: She’s got a new movie coming out in September, the hilarious-looking The Edge of Seventeen.)
But right now, Hailee—or Haiz, per the name of her debut EP—is on the road with Meghan Trainor, plying the crowds with her very own frank, emphatic pop tunes. The two singers bonded after Trainor gave Steinfeld a pep talk during last year’s Jingle Ball—”she’s so cool and so genuine”—sparking a friendship that’s turned into a national tour.
“Starving,” Steinfeld’s newest single, is a pretty, guitar-laced collaboration with Zedd and production team Grey that gives us major “More Than Words” vibes—updated with some nifty electro touches, of course. The dream team came together over the Zedd-penned ballad, which Steinfeld said she “immediately fell in love with” when she heard it, and it’s not hard to see why. We asked the teen wonder about the five albums that changed her life, and you might be surprised at just what’s influenced her musical taste. (Here’s your official “major throwback” alert.)
‘Hotel California’ by The Eagles
This album represents so many things—family memories, and family vacations and trips. I saw the Eagles perform years ago and I remember not really paying much attention to what was going on with the audience, but I knew every word to every song. I was too young to have an attention span long enough to sit still through the entire show, but I remember looking at my parents enjoying this show and the music. This album is represented in so many family memories that, to this day, they come back to me like nothing else, when I hear songs off this album. We would take boating trips every summer, my family and I—every time I hear “Hotel California,” I think of being on the boat and being with my family.
‘This is It’ by Michael Jackson
I remember buying this album—I feel like it was one of the first I bought myself, I asked my mom for the money—right around the time of the movie This Is It. I saw that movie so many times and was so incredibly moved and inspired by him. I’ve found something new every time I watched that movie and listened to that soundtrack, and I still play it to this day. Everything, from every video to every look to every album cover he’s had, is just so iconic and timeless.
Around the same time I bought the album, I bought an “I <3 Michael Jackson" shirt and I wore it all the time. Everybody would ask me what my favorite Michael Jackson song was and I would list every song off This Is It. But 'This Is It' was the first song that I called my favorite. I would sing that song in auditions.
‘+’ by Ed Sheeran
There are some songs that you listen to that you wish you could have written, and I feel like that’s every song on this album for me. When I was listening to this album I was making The Keeping Room. I tend to have a playlist for every movie that I do, and this album was really the entire playlist. It represented so many different emotions and experiences that I’ve gone through personally.
His lyrics are beyond incredible. Having seen him multiple times, when he comes out on stage it’s just him and his guitar. It’s about nothing but the music, and you can feel that when you listen to these songs. For some artists, production can override the message of the song and the vocal, but with Ed it’s just so stripped down and beautiful and raw.
‘Evolution’ by Boyz II Men
My mom introduced me to Boyz II Men, and this album was the first album where I would try and mimic the runs that they would sing. This is the album where I realized that singing is an art—what they do with their voices is so intricate and so incredible. Every song on that album is amazing.
One time my mom went to see Boyz II Men in concert at a place by our house and she called me during the song ‘A Song for Mama.’ For some reason I didn’t pick up my phone, but when my mom called she put it on speaker and held it out so I could hear the singing. One of the band grabbed my mom’s phone and it ended up being a voicemail that I still have, of them singing ‘A Song for Mama,’ which is so crazy because that song is my mama’s song.
‘Views’ by Drake
I had a hard time picking between this and Take Care—I was in middle school when Take Care came out and I went and saw Drake in concert with my brother. That was one of the first times my brother and I went to a concert alone, which was super cool. We both knew all the words to every one of his songs. Drake was one of the first artists that my brother and I really connected through. So Take Care is what sort of started it, but Views I’ve had on repeat since it came out and I’m such a huge Drake fan, I can’t wait to see his show.
He’s done things that are different and I completely respect that. It’s Drake, he can do anything, but there’s so much in this album that I’ve found myself referencing when I go into the studio wanting to make new music.