Meghan Trainor is the pop-music It Girl of the moment. With her retro, peppy, empowering singles like "All About That Bass" and "Lips are Movin'," she has inspired young girls (and countless spin classes).

While sudden stardom has a way of fading just as fast, the thing about Trainor that gives her a good chance at a long-lasting career is this: her impressive songwriting talent. She writes her own material with Taylor-Swiftian preternatural maturity.

It's not a new knack. Trainor started penning tunes as a kid, and her parents were so encouraging, they got her music production software so she could record, too.

Speaking of those parents, her father was a church organist, and he wasn't the only relative with musical talent. Meghan's uncle, who was born in Tobago, influenced her with his melding of R&B and soca (which calls upon calypso rhythms, along with hip-hop and reggae).

Trainor inked a deal with a music publishing company in Nashville when she was still just a high-school student. Her songs were recorded by the country-star likes of Rascal Flatts and Hunter Hayes.

Now, the 21-year-old is headlining her own tour, and she's doing a concert Saturday at Mohegan Sun Arena.

— Kristina Dorsey

Meghan Trainor, 7 p.m. Saturday, Mohegan Sun Arena; with Life of Dillon, and Who is Fancy; $45; mohegansun.com.