Though Tegan Marie penned many songs throughout her young life, she considers "I Know How to Make a Boy Cry" her first official one.

Marie co-wrote the song in 2016 when she was just 12, holding her own alongside veteran writer Nathan Chapman. Marie only had three other professional co-writes before stepping in the room with Chapman, spending much of her childhood writing songs solo.

"I definitely felt the pressure," she says of going into the studio and approaching the longtime writer with the idea for the song. "I definitely get very nervous, but you have to grow from that. You have to open yourself up to these people and tell them how you're feeling, what you like, what you don't, and I've learned a lot about being comfortable with other people."

A phrase that comes up more than once when talking to Marie is "girl power," a message she hopes translates to her fanbase through the upbeat track that serves as her second single. This sense of empowerment also stems from the mission of her management company Sweety High, which works to provide quality entertainment and develop a positive community among its young consumers.

"I wanted to write a song about girl power and sticking up for yourself and taking the high road and being the bigger person," she says of the origin of her latest single. "My whole life I've grown up with a lot of different people and knowing that girls can basically do the same things as boys can. Being with Sweety High really made me think of girl power and empowerment and being true to yourself and being who you want to be."

Though just 14, Marie exhibits a sincere sense of self-assurance in the song's lyrics, knowing that she's able to stand up for herself when someone betrays her trust. "Do what you gotta do / My mascara's waterproof / Say what you gotta say / No black lines running down my face," she proclaims in one of her favorite lines in the song, knowing her fans will connect with the message.

"Every single one of them, they'll relate to this song in a bunch of different ways, ways that I wouldn't even think of," she says with confidence. "With my other songs, they've told me how much they love listening to it and how it makes them feel strong, so I'm excited for them to tell me how much they relate to this song."

Marie plans to carry this confidence over into the music video, which serves as an homage to Elvis Presley, re-imagining the classic 1968 TV special Singer Presents...ELVIS. "Elvis was the boy who made all the girls cry, so we're going to flip the script and make it to where I'm the one making all the boys cry," describes Marie, who will be donning a recreation of his signature white getup in the video.

"The thing that I love about this is that it's not about being mean, it's not about hurting anybody. When you see her sing the song, it's really just about lifting girls up," says Marie's manager Veronica Zelle. "It's more of a movement."

"It's powerful," adds Marie. "It is a girl power anthem."

"I Know How to Make a Boy Cry" is available on June 1.

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