Ariana Grande's '34+35' Meaning Surprised Tayla Parx, Her Co-Writer, Too

For Tayla Parx, everything is about the music. Any time you begin adding ego into [it], saying, 'Well, I have to write this,' that's not about the song, then. That's about you," she tells MTV News correspondent Dometi Pongo. And she would know.


With dozens of songwriting credits to her name, and a pair of emotionally probing albums of her own, the singer-songwriter has fortified herself as one of the premier musical minds of her generation. On the latest episode of “The Method,” a new MTV News documentary series highlighting the creative forces that power and motivate some of today's top artists and creative minds, Parx went deep indoors her process to share what makes a song like Ariana Grande's "34+35," as an example, hang with each other so well — and why she made it a priority to maintain the song's winking title while also building up a foundation around that. "It was just a matter of being like, OK, how do we ensure this is mentioned in the correct way?"


On Grande's 2020 Positions album, Parx co-wrote five of the tracks, continuing her longstanding relationship with the pop star that dates back to the swaggering Thank U, Next. She worked alongside fellow trusted inner circle members Victoria Monét and Tommy Brown to shape the tunes remotely, because the bulk of these were created throughout quarantine. Still, the feeling of togetherness, even while remote, came conveniently for Parx and Grande, who first met on a Nickelodeon set years ago.


"We saw Ariana really really take the driver's seat this record as well, which was naturally something that we knew because we know her and we know those capabilities," Parx says, detailing how her and Ariana's similar efficiency backgrounds help them get into the mindset of writing with each other. The rest of it? That's "method acting," as Parx says, though the success of other songs she's helped pen — Panic! At the Disco's "High Hopes," Fifth Harmony's "Boss" — would recommend her techniques are proven. "Longevity is the thing that anybody in our industry should be seeking."


To that end, Parx has made a point to tell her own stories, also. Her latest LP, Coping Mechanisms, finds her completely in control of the narrative, spinning tales of love, heartbreak, and healing from her own life. "I show people who I am in each little thing there really is, just because I feel like, what's the point?" She says. "I'm truthful about the fact that it changes after awhile. I'm gonna be evolving anyway, and also you may as well be a segment of that." Find out more about Parx's rise, her dedication, and what she thought the initial time she realized what "34+35" meant by watching "The Method" below.