Metro Station (band)
Encyclopedia
Metro Station is an American
pop rock
band that formed in Los Angeles
by Mason Musso
and Trace Cyrus
. In late 2006, the band signed a recording contract with Columbia/Red Ink
. They are best known for their Top 10 Billboard
hit single "Shake It
" from their self-titled debut album
. The group officially disbanded on March 23, 2010, though Musso is currently launching a solo career under the name Metro Station.
agreed to meet on the set of Hannah Montana
, which stars Mason's brother, Mitchel
, and Trace's sister, Miley
. Sharing musical interests, they decided to form a band. Shortly thereafter, Cyrus recruited Blake Healy from Synthetic Joy as a keyboardist, synthesist, and bassist. Cyrus remained the singer and the lead guitarist. Musso became the group's main singer and rhythm guitarist.
Metro Station soon gained the attention of drummer Anthony Improgo, who was added as the band's drummer after the group released the song "Seventeen Forever
" on their MySpace
Music website. Musso sang lead on the track, The group's popularity on MySpace Music grew, and the band eventually topped the MySpace Music Unsigned Band's charts.
Metro Station was discovered by an intern working for Columbia Records
' Walking Eye program, while looking through the MySpace Music charts, and the group was signed shortly thereafter.
In the July 2007 issue of music magazine Alternative Press
, Metro Station was listed as one of the "22 Best Underground Bands (That Likely Won't Stay Underground for Long)."
Metro Station released their self-titled debut studio album
in September 2007. The album had two singles released, "Kelsey" and "Control". Although both singles failed to make the charts, with higher sales of the album both became more popular. It wasn't until mid-2008, after the release of the single "Shake It
," that the band received a significant amount of commercial exposure, and the song peaked in the top-ten of three US charts. The song peaked at #3 on Hot Digital Songs
, #9 in the Pop 100
, #10 in the Billboard Hot 100
and peaked at #20 in the Hot Dance Airplay
chart. The success of the song also affected album sales, the album charting nine months later in 2008 at #43 in the Billboard 200
, #1 Top Electronic Albums
and #2 in the Top Heatseekers
.
In 2009 Metro Station toured in the Believers Never Die Part Deux Tour which with Hey Monday
, All Time Low
, Cobra Starship
and Fall Out Boy
.
The band also contributed a song to the Alice In Wonderland
soundtrack Almost Alice titled "Where's My Angel".
page, metrostation2011. Musso has regained rights to the Metro Station name, and is currently using the band's name, without Cyrus. On July 20, Musso announced on Twitter
that he was working on the new Metro Station record with help from Anthony Improgo and Blake Healy. On September 25, Musso released a new song "Closer and Closer", produced by Blake Healy. On November 20, Mason Musso, Anthony Improgo, and Ryan Daly performed at the American Music Awards
Red Carpet.
Previous Members
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
pop rock
Pop rock
Pop rock is a music genre which mixes a catchy pop style and light lyrics in its guitar-based rock songs. There are varying definitions of the term, ranging from a slower and mellower form of rock music to a subgenre of pop music...
band that formed in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
by Mason Musso
Mason Musso
Mason Tyler Musso is an American singer-songwriter and musician, best known for his part in Metro Station. He is the older brother of actors Mitchel and Marc Musso.-Early life:...
and Trace Cyrus
Trace Cyrus
Trace Dempsey Cyrus is an American musician. He was the former guitarist, songwriter and vocalist of Metro Station before the band broke up. Currently, he is the owner of a clothing company called From Backseats to Bedrooms. Cyrus is the adopted son of country singer Billy Ray Cyrus...
. In late 2006, the band signed a recording contract with Columbia/Red Ink
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
. They are best known for their Top 10 Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
hit single "Shake It
Shake It (Metro Station song)
"Shake It" is a song by American pop group Metro Station released as the third single from their self-titled debut album. It is their first charting single, reaching #10 in the United States. Internationally, it charted in the top ten in ten countries outside the U.S...
" from their self-titled debut album
Metro Station (album)
Metro Station is the self-titled, first and only full length album by scene pop band Metro Station. The album was released on September 18, 2007, via Columbia/Red Ink. It is highly regarded as one of the key albums in the scene pop genre. Four singles were released; "Shake It" and "Seventeen...
. The group officially disbanded on March 23, 2010, though Musso is currently launching a solo career under the name Metro Station.
History
In 2006, Mason Musso and Trace CyrusTrace Cyrus
Trace Dempsey Cyrus is an American musician. He was the former guitarist, songwriter and vocalist of Metro Station before the band broke up. Currently, he is the owner of a clothing company called From Backseats to Bedrooms. Cyrus is the adopted son of country singer Billy Ray Cyrus...
agreed to meet on the set of Hannah Montana
Hannah Montana
Hannah Montana is an American television series, which debuted on March 24, 2006 on the Disney Channel. The series focuses on a girl who lives a double life as an average teenage school girl named Miley Stewart by day and a famous pop singer named Hannah Montana by night, concealing her real...
, which stars Mason's brother, Mitchel
Mitchel Musso
Mitchel Tate Musso is an American actor, singer-songwriter and musician. Musso is best known for his three Disney Channel roles as Oliver Oken in the Disney Channel sitcom, Hannah Montana, Jeremy Johnson in the Disney Channel animated series Phineas and Ferb and his role as King Brady in the...
, and Trace's sister, Miley
Miley Cyrus
Miley Ray Cyrus is an American actress and pop singer-songwriter. She achieved wide fame for her role as Miley Stewart/Hannah Montana on the Disney Channel sitcom Hannah Montana....
. Sharing musical interests, they decided to form a band. Shortly thereafter, Cyrus recruited Blake Healy from Synthetic Joy as a keyboardist, synthesist, and bassist. Cyrus remained the singer and the lead guitarist. Musso became the group's main singer and rhythm guitarist.
Metro Station soon gained the attention of drummer Anthony Improgo, who was added as the band's drummer after the group released the song "Seventeen Forever
Seventeen Forever
"Seventeen Forever" is the fourth single from scene pop group Metro Station's self-titled debut album. The single was released on December 13, 2008, and has charted on three major Billboard charts....
" on their MySpace
MySpace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
Music website. Musso sang lead on the track, The group's popularity on MySpace Music grew, and the band eventually topped the MySpace Music Unsigned Band's charts.
Metro Station was discovered by an intern working for Columbia Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
' Walking Eye program, while looking through the MySpace Music charts, and the group was signed shortly thereafter.
In the July 2007 issue of music magazine Alternative Press
Alternative Press (music magazine)
Alternative Press is an American music magazine based in Cleveland, Ohio. It generally provides readers with band interviews, photos, information on upcoming releases, and music charts. It was founded in 1985 by Mike Shea, who is the current president....
, Metro Station was listed as one of the "22 Best Underground Bands (That Likely Won't Stay Underground for Long)."
Metro Station released their self-titled debut studio album
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
in September 2007. The album had two singles released, "Kelsey" and "Control". Although both singles failed to make the charts, with higher sales of the album both became more popular. It wasn't until mid-2008, after the release of the single "Shake It
Shake It (Metro Station song)
"Shake It" is a song by American pop group Metro Station released as the third single from their self-titled debut album. It is their first charting single, reaching #10 in the United States. Internationally, it charted in the top ten in ten countries outside the U.S...
," that the band received a significant amount of commercial exposure, and the song peaked in the top-ten of three US charts. The song peaked at #3 on Hot Digital Songs
Hot Digital Songs
The Hot Digital Songs chart ranks the best-selling digital singles in the United States, according to Billboard.Beginning in February 2005, digital sales have been incorporated into many of Billboards music single charts. It was decided to do so mainly because of the dramatic rise in popularity of...
, #9 in the Pop 100
Pop 100
The Pop 100 was a songs chart that debuted in February 2005 and was released weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States until its discontinuation in 2009...
, #10 in the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
and peaked at #20 in the Hot Dance Airplay
Hot Dance Airplay
Dance/Mix Show Airplay is a monitored electronic dance music radio chart that is featured weekly in Billboard magazine. The chart came about as a result of the small but influential impact of electronic dance music on the radio in the United States and the stations that program it...
chart. The success of the song also affected album sales, the album charting nine months later in 2008 at #43 in the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
, #1 Top Electronic Albums
Top Electronic Albums
Dance/Electronic Albums is a music chart published weekly by Billboard magazine which ranks the top-selling electronic music albums in the United States. The chart debuted on the issue dated June 30, 2001. It originally began as a fifteen-position chart and has since expanded to twenty-five...
and #2 in the Top Heatseekers
Top Heatseekers
Top Heatseekers refers to either of two separate "Breaking and Entering" music charts issued weekly by Billboard Magazine: the Heatseekers Albums chart or the Heatseekers Songs chart. They were introduced by Billboard in 1993 with the purpose of highlighting the sales by new and developing musical...
.
In 2009 Metro Station toured in the Believers Never Die Part Deux Tour which with Hey Monday
Hey Monday
Hey Monday is an American rock band from West Palm Beach, Florida, formed in 2008. They released their debut album Hold on Tight in 2008 which produced notable singles "Homecoming" and "How You Love Me Now". The album was followed up with their 2010 EP Beneath It All, which achieved moderate...
, All Time Low
All Time Low
All Time Low is an American pop punk band from Baltimore, Maryland, formed in 2003.The band consists of vocalist and rhythm guitarist Alexander Gaskarth, lead guitarist and backing vocalist Jack Barakat, bassist and backing vocalist Zachary Merrick, and drummer Rian Dawson...
, Cobra Starship
Cobra Starship
Cobra Starship is an American synthpop band created by former Midtown bassist and lead vocalist Gabe Saporta in 2003 in New York City, New York...
and Fall Out Boy
Fall Out Boy
Fall Out Boy is an American rock band from Wilmette, Illinois, formed in 2001. The band consists of vocalist, guitarist and composer Patrick Stump, bassist and lyricist Pete Wentz, guitarist Joe Trohman, and drummer Andy Hurley. The band released five studio albums from 2003–2008...
.
The band also contributed a song to the Alice In Wonderland
Alice in Wonderland (2010 film)
Alice in Wonderland is a 2010 American computer-animated/live action fantasy adventure film directed by Tim Burton, written by Linda Woolverton, and released by Walt Disney Pictures...
soundtrack Almost Alice titled "Where's My Angel".
Breakup
In March 2010, after a number of personal disputes between band members Mason Musso and Trace Cyrus in the studio, Metro Station went into indefinite hiatus as Musso and Cyrus split to pursue solo projects, putting Metro Station on a back-burner until they felt they could record together again.Return
On May 31, 2011, Musso released a new song, Ain't So High", on his new YouTubeYouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
page, metrostation2011. Musso has regained rights to the Metro Station name, and is currently using the band's name, without Cyrus. On July 20, Musso announced on Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
that he was working on the new Metro Station record with help from Anthony Improgo and Blake Healy. On September 25, Musso released a new song "Closer and Closer", produced by Blake Healy. On November 20, Mason Musso, Anthony Improgo, and Ryan Daly performed at the American Music Awards
American Music Awards
-Conception:The AMAs were created by Dick Clark in 1973 to compete with the Grammys after the move of that year's show to Nashville, Tennessee led to CBS picking up the Grammy telecasts after its first two in 1971 and 1972 were broadcast on ABC...
Red Carpet.
Band Members
Current Members- Mason Musso – lead vocalsLead vocalistThe lead vocalist is the member of a band who sings the main vocal portions of a song. They may also play one or more instruments. Lead vocalists are sometimes referred to as the frontman or frontwoman, and as such, are usually considered to be the "leader" of the groups they perform in, often the...
, lead guitarLead guitarLead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure...
(2006–2010; 2011–present)
Previous Members
- Trace CyrusTrace CyrusTrace Dempsey Cyrus is an American musician. He was the former guitarist, songwriter and vocalist of Metro Station before the band broke up. Currently, he is the owner of a clothing company called From Backseats to Bedrooms. Cyrus is the adopted son of country singer Billy Ray Cyrus...
– lead guitarLead guitarLead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure...
, backing vocalsBacking vocalistA backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists...
(2006–2010) - Kenny Bozich – drums (2009–2010)
- Blake Healy – bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, keyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
, synthesizerSynthesizerA synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
s (2006–2009) - Anthony Improgo - drums (2006–2009)
Studio albums
| Title | Details | Peak chart positions | Certifications Music recording sales certification Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,... (sales threshold) |
|||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
US Elec |
US Rock |
AUS ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
AUT Ö3 Austria Top 40 Ö3 Austria Top 40 is the name of the official Austrian singles chart, as well as the radio show which presents it, aired Fridays on Hitradio Ö3. The show presents the Austrian singles, ringtones and downloads chart. It premiered on 26 November 1968 as Disc Parade and was presented by Ernst Grissemann... |
GER Media Control Charts The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie... |
IRE Irish Albums Chart The Irish Albums Chart is the Irish music industry standard albums popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on its behalf by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured electronically... |
NL MegaCharts MegaCharts is responsible for the composition and exploitation of a broad collection of official charts in the Netherlands, of which the Mega Top 50 and the Mega Album Top 100 are the most known ones. Mega Charts also provides information to the Stichting Nederlandse Top 40, of which the Dutch Top... |
NZ |
UK UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
|||
| Metro Station Metro Station (album) Metro Station is the self-titled, first and only full length album by scene pop band Metro Station. The album was released on September 18, 2007, via Columbia/Red Ink. It is highly regarded as one of the key albums in the scene pop genre. Four singles were released; "Shake It" and "Seventeen... |
|
39 | 1 | 15 | 17 | 29 | 27 | 36 | 100 | 39 | 35 |
Canadian Recording Industry Association Music Canada is a Toronto-based, non-profit trade organization that was founded 9 April 1963 to represent the interests of companies that record, artists, manufacture, production, promotion and distribution of music in Canada... : Gold |
Extended plays
| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| The Questions We Ask at Night The Questions We Ask at Night The Questions We Ask at Night is an EP by American scene pop band Metro Station, it was an independent release. It leaked onto the internet via blogs and BitTorrent in 2007, but there was such minimal online success, the band took no further action. There is still no word on whether or not actual... |
|
| Kelsey — EP |
|
Singles
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | Certifications Music recording sales certification Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,... (sales threshold) |
Album | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
US Pop Mainstream Top 40 (Pop Songs) The Mainstream Top 40 is an airplay chart from Billboard magazine, and is also known as Pop Songs on billboard.com. It was often mistaken for and confused with the now discontinued Pop 100 Airplay chart... |
AUS ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
CAN Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine which ranks songs in Canada. The chart debuted in the Billboard issue dated June 16, 2007 and was made available for the first time via their online services on June 7, 2007... |
AUT Ö3 Austria Top 40 Ö3 Austria Top 40 is the name of the official Austrian singles chart, as well as the radio show which presents it, aired Fridays on Hitradio Ö3. The show presents the Austrian singles, ringtones and downloads chart. It premiered on 26 November 1968 as Disc Parade and was presented by Ernst Grissemann... |
GER Media Control Charts The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie... |
IRE Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured... |
JPN Japan Hot 100 The Japan Hot 100 is a music singles chart in Japan. It is compiled by Billboard and Hanshin Contents Link ever since February 2008. The chart is updated every Wednesday at billboard-japan.com and every Thursday at billboard.com .... |
NZ |
UK UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
|||||
| 2007 | "Kelsey" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 25 | — | Metro Station | ||
| "Control" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
| 2008 | "Shake It Shake It (Metro Station song) "Shake It" is a song by American pop group Metro Station released as the third single from their self-titled debut album. It is their first charting single, reaching #10 in the United States. Internationally, it charted in the top ten in ten countries outside the U.S... " |
10 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 9 | 9 | 4 | 8 | 9 | 6 |
|
||
| "Seventeen Forever Seventeen Forever "Seventeen Forever" is the fourth single from scene pop group Metro Station's self-titled debut album. The single was released on December 13, 2008, and has charted on three major Billboard charts.... " |
42 | 26 | 43 | 74 | 57 | 61 | — | — | — | 89 |
|
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| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | ||||||||||||||
Music videos
| Year | Song | Director(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 2007 | "Kelsey" | Dean Cain |
| "Control" | Josh Forbes Josh Forbes Josh Forbes is an American music video director. He has directed videos for The Fray, Sara Bareilles, Good Charlotte, Alkaline Trio, Metro Station , Coheed and Cambria, Sea Wolf, Barenaked Ladies, and Ingrid Michaelson, and Jenny Owen Youngs. Forbes is signed to More Media for music videos and... |
|
| 2008 | "Shake It" | Josh Forbes Josh Forbes Josh Forbes is an American music video director. He has directed videos for The Fray, Sara Bareilles, Good Charlotte, Alkaline Trio, Metro Station , Coheed and Cambria, Sea Wolf, Barenaked Ladies, and Ingrid Michaelson, and Jenny Owen Youngs. Forbes is signed to More Media for music videos and... |
| "Seventeen Forever" | Josh Forbes Josh Forbes Josh Forbes is an American music video director. He has directed videos for The Fray, Sara Bareilles, Good Charlotte, Alkaline Trio, Metro Station , Coheed and Cambria, Sea Wolf, Barenaked Ladies, and Ingrid Michaelson, and Jenny Owen Youngs. Forbes is signed to More Media for music videos and... |
|
| 2009 | "Kelsey" (UK version) | Josh Forbes Josh Forbes Josh Forbes is an American music video director. He has directed videos for The Fray, Sara Bareilles, Good Charlotte, Alkaline Trio, Metro Station , Coheed and Cambria, Sea Wolf, Barenaked Ladies, and Ingrid Michaelson, and Jenny Owen Youngs. Forbes is signed to More Media for music videos and... |
| "Last Christmas" | ||
Awards and nominations
| Year | Association | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Australian Kids' Choice Awards | Favourite Song — "Shake It" | |