# Metro Station (band)
**Metro Station** is an American electropop band formed in 2006 in Los Angeles, California, by [Trace Cyrus](https://www.edgepedia.org/trace-cyrus) and [Mason Musso](https://www.edgepedia.org/mason-musso), who became known for the 2008 double-platinum single "Shake It" from their self-titled 2007 debut album.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/metro-station-mn0000614830) The classic lineup was a quartet: Cyrus and Musso on guitar and vocals, Blake Healy on synthesizers and bass, and Anthony Improgo on drums.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/metro-station-mn0000614830)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Formed | 2006 in Los Angeles, CA[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/metro-station-mn0000614830) |
| Members | Trace Cyrus, Mason Musso (vocals, guitar), Blake Healy (keyboards, bass), Anthony Improgo (drums)[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/metro-station-mn0000614830) |
| UK performance | "Shake It" peaked at number 6 on the Official Singles Chart and stayed on the chart for 26 weeks in 2009[2](https://www.officialcharts.com/songs/metro-station-shake-it/) |
| Debut album | *Metro Station* (2007), Columbia/Red Ink[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/metro-station-mn0000614830) |
| Hiatus and returns | Quit March 2010; reunited for *Gold* (2014) and *Savior* (2015); breakup announced August 2017; reunion announced in late 2019, with new music planned for 2020[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/metro-station-mn0000614830) • [3](https://www.altpress.com/metro-station-reunion-trace-cyrus-interview) |
## Formation and the Hannah Montana connection
Trace Cyrus and Mason Musso met in 2006 on the set of the [Disney Channel](https://www.edgepedia.org/disney-channel) series *Hannah Montana*. Both had siblings on the show: Cyrus's sister [Miley Cyrus](https://www.edgepedia.org/miley-cyrus) played the title character, and Musso's brother [Mitchel Musso](https://www.edgepedia.org/mitchel-musso) played Oliver Oken. "Basically the band wouldn't even be in existence if it wasn't for my sister getting cast on 'Hannah Montana'," Cyrus said.[4](https://news.pollstar.com/2008/10/31/hotstar-metro-station/)
The name came from Blake Healy's description of what the band represented: "A metro station is a place where paths meet, and our band is where our paths met."[5](https://www.seventeen.com/celebrity/a863/metro-station-buzz-092607/) Cyrus and Musso, who wrote their first song together the day after they met, were both 17 at the time.[6](https://switchbitchnoise.com/metro-station-talks-comeback-and-warped-tour-2015/) Healy joined as keyboardist and bassist, and Improgo, previously a veteran of three major-label bands, was added on drums in late 2006.[7](https://uofsdmedia.com/metro-station/)
## MySpace and the record deal
The band owed its signing to MySpace, the social music platform of the era, rather than to its members' family connections. About a month after forming, before they had even added a drummer, the band was spotted on MySpace by an intern at Columbia. After months of meetings and word-of-mouth gigs, Columbia offered a record deal; the band signed with [Columbia Records](https://www.edgepedia.org/columbia-records) and Crush Management.[4](https://news.pollstar.com/2008/10/31/hotstar-metro-station/) • [7](https://uofsdmedia.com/metro-station/) Their demo for "Seventeen Forever", posted on MySpace, stirred enough attention that labels and managers began courting them.[7](https://uofsdmedia.com/metro-station/)
Columbia sent the band to Minnesota, where their first two songs were recorded with [Motion City Soundtrack](https://www.edgepedia.org/motion-city-soundtrack), whose members Joshua Cain and Justin Pierre produced tracks on the album.[4](https://news.pollstar.com/2008/10/31/hotstar-metro-station/) • [8](https://rockeyez.com/reviews/cd/metrostation/rev-metrostation.html)
## Sound
Critics grouped the band's music as electro-pop or emo-pop: machine beats and synth melodies carrying songs about being young, partying, and girls. The *Guardian* described it as "a sort of cross between saccharine boy-band pop" and emo, driven by electronic production, and noted that two members were still under the US drinking age at the time.[9](https://www.theguardian.com/music/2008/dec/08/new-band-metro-station) Trace Cyrus cited 1980s influences, including [Guns N' Roses](https://www.edgepedia.org/guns-n-roses) and Motley Crue, alongside pop-punk acts like [Blink-182](https://www.edgepedia.org/blink-182), and said he had been listening to the Postal Service almost constantly when the band began.[10](https://www.vexplode.com/en/top_10_things/interview-with-trace-cyrus-of-metro-station/) Musso described the debut as demos cut with electronics to which the band deliberately added a rock guitar sound.[11](https://vindyarchives.com/news/2008/may/08/metro-station-founders-carve-out-their-own-way/)
## Breakthrough with "Shake It"
Initial sales of the 2007 debut were lukewarm, but the release of "Shake It" as a single changed the band's fortunes. The song became their first charting hit, peaking at number 10 on the US Billboard Hot 100 with a peak date of June 28, 2008, and was certified gold by the RIAA on June 13, 2008, platinum later that year, and 2× platinum by the end of January 2009.[12](https://nowmusicwiki.com/index.php?title=Metro_Station_-_Shake_It) In the UK it entered the Official Singles Chart in March 2009 and reached number 6 on April 11, 2009, remaining on the chart for 26 weeks.[2](https://www.officialcharts.com/songs/metro-station-shake-it/) [Music Canada](https://www.edgepedia.org/music-canada) certified the *Metro Station* album gold on April 27, 2009, and "Shake It" as a double-platinum digital download on April 29, 2009.[13](https://musiccanada.com/gold-platinum/?_gp_search=Metro+Station)
Other songs from the album, including "Seventeen Forever", "Kelsey", "Control", and "Wish We Were Older", became fan favorites.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/metro-station-mn0000614830) • [9](https://www.theguardian.com/music/2008/dec/08/new-band-metro-station) The band toured heavily, opening for [We the Kings](https://www.edgepedia.org/we-the-kings), Boys Like Girls, Good Charlotte, and [Simple Plan](https://www.edgepedia.org/simple-plan), and expanding its venues from rooms of about 1,000 capacity to 1,000-to-2,500-capacity rooms on a 2008 fall tour.[7](https://uofsdmedia.com/metro-station/) • [4](https://news.pollstar.com/2008/10/31/hotstar-metro-station/)
## Hiatus, reunion, and later years
By the end of 2009 the group had slimmed to the duo of Cyrus and Musso, and Metro Station officially called it quits in March 2010.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/metro-station-mn0000614830) Cyrus later said the band's decline followed an exhausting schedule: touring eight to nine months a year from age 17 and 18, having dropped out of high school to tour, with no guidance from a manager early on.[14](https://www.altpress.com/metro-station-trace-cyrus-breakup-interview)
The duo reunited and released the album *Gold* on October 14, 2014, following a four-year hiatus, and toured on The Outsiders Tour with The Ready Set, [Against the Current](https://www.edgepedia.org/against-the-current-band), and Downtown Fiction.[15](https://www.blastmagazine.com/2014/11/05/blast-interview-metro-station/) AllMusic lists a further album, *Savior*, released in 2015 on Metro Station Music.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/metro-station-mn0000614830) An official breakup was announced in August 2017, after which "Shake It" remained a sing-along staple at Emo Night events.[3](https://www.altpress.com/metro-station-reunion-trace-cyrus-interview)
In late 2019, Trace Cyrus announced the band was working together again, with new music planned for 2020. He attributed the renewed interest to streaming: "Shake It" had drawn 26 million streams on Spotify in the preceding year, and TikTok had given the song new reach without any promotion from the band.[3](https://www.altpress.com/metro-station-reunion-trace-cyrus-interview)
## Reception
Critical response to the debut was mixed. Reviewers praised the catchiness of "Shake It" and "Kelsey" while questioning the band's instrumental depth; one Sputnikmusic review gave the album a 1.8/10 user-score average and called it more product than art, noting that Healy's bass guitar went unused in favor of synthesizers.[16](https://www.sputnikmusic.com/review/27088/Metro-Station-Metro-Station/) Rock Eyez named them one of Alternative Press's top underground bands of 2007.[8](https://rockeyez.com/reviews/cd/metrostation/rev-metrostation.html) In retrospective coverage of [Taylor Swift](https://www.edgepedia.org/taylor-swift)'s 2008 album *Fearless*, Time noted that "Forever & Always" "splits the difference between The Fray and Metro Station", reflecting how central the band's sound was to that pop moment.[17](https://time.com/5953619/fearless-taylors-version-reactions-taylor-swift/)
## References
1. [Metro Station biography and discography, AllMusic](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/metro-station-mn0000614830)
2. [SHAKE IT – METRO STATION, Official Charts Company](https://www.officialcharts.com/songs/metro-station-shake-it/)
3. [Trace Cyrus confirms Metro Station reunion, new music in 2020, Alternative Press](https://www.altpress.com/metro-station-reunion-trace-cyrus-interview)
4. [HotStar: Metro Station, Pollstar News (October 31, 2008)](https://news.pollstar.com/2008/10/31/hotstar-metro-station/)
5. [Meet Metro Station!, Seventeen (September 27, 2007)](https://www.seventeen.com/celebrity/a863/metro-station-buzz-092607/)
6. [Metro Station Talks Comeback and Warped Tour 2015, SwitchBitch Noise (July 2, 2015)](https://switchbitchnoise.com/metro-station-talks-comeback-and-warped-tour-2015/)
7. [Metro Station, USD Student Media / The Vista (November 20, 2008)](https://uofsdmedia.com/metro-station/)
8. [Metro Station CD Review, Rock Eyez Webzine](https://rockeyez.com/reviews/cd/metrostation/rev-metrostation.html)
9. [No 445: Metro Station, The Guardian (December 8, 2008)](https://www.theguardian.com/music/2008/dec/08/new-band-metro-station)
10. [Interview with Trace Cyrus of Metro Station, Video Explode (June 12, 2009)](https://www.vexplode.com/en/top_10_things/interview-with-trace-cyrus-of-metro-station/)
11. [Metro Station founders carve out their own way, Vindy Archives (May 8, 2008)](https://vindyarchives.com/news/2008/may/08/metro-station-founders-carve-out-their-own-way/)
12. [Metro Station - Shake It, Now That's What I Call Music Wiki](https://nowmusicwiki.com/index.php?title=Metro_Station_-_Shake_It)
13. [Gold & Platinum search: Metro Station, Music Canada](https://musiccanada.com/gold-platinum/?_gp_search=Metro+Station)
14. [Trace Cyrus reveals why Metro Station needed to break up, Alternative Press](https://www.altpress.com/metro-station-trace-cyrus-breakup-interview)
15. [Pop Rock Band Metro Station: The Blast Interview (November 5, 2014)](https://www.blastmagazine.com/2014/11/05/blast-interview-metro-station/)
16. [Metro Station - Metro Station (album review 2), Sputnikmusic](https://www.sputnikmusic.com/review/27088/Metro-Station-Metro-Station/)
17. [The Significance of Taylor Swift's Fearless in 2008, Time (April 9, 2021)](https://time.com/5953619/fearless-taylors-version-reactions-taylor-swift/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musicians and ensembles › Ensembles and groups › Rock, pop, and metal bands › Rock, indie, and pop groups › Rock bands › Pop rock and power pop bands › 2000s and later pop rock*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license