Shawn Mendes

Canada's Shawn Mendes rose from teenage phenom to a mature, soulful singer-songwriter whose path includes Juno wins and Grammy nods. Taking early inspiration from John Mayer and Ed Sheeran, the Pickering, Ontario native first connected with listeners through online covers. At fifteen he issued his debut single, 2014's "Life of the Party," which climbed to number 24 on the Billboard Hot 100 and made him the youngest artist ever to place an initial entry inside the U.S. Top 25. His 2015 debut album Handwritten topped the charts in both the United States and Canada, a success his later releases—2018's Shawn Mendes and 2020's Wonder—would duplicate. Additional hits followed, among them the 2019 Camila Cabello duet "Señorita," the 2021 Tainy collaboration "Summer of Love," and the solo release "It'll Be Okay." After stepping away in 2022 to tend to his mental health, Mendes lent his voice to the title role and several songs on the soundtrack of the musical film Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile. That same year he also contributed to Jacob Collier's "Witness Me" alongside Stormzy and Kirk Franklin, then unveiled the climate-focused single "What the Hell Are We Dying For?" in 2023. Returning in 2024, he delivered his fifth studio album, the introspective and largely acoustic Shawn.

Born Shawn Peter Raul Mendes in Pickering, Ontario, part of the Greater Toronto Area, he learned guitar on his own at fourteen and sang in his high-school glee club while also studying acting. Beginning in 2013 he posted covers online, building a growing audience; his rendition of A Great Big World's "Say Something" won Ryan Seacrest's contest in April 2014, prompting a deal with Island Records the following month. The label rushed out "Life of the Party" that June, and although U.S. radio was slow to respond, the track still debuted at number 24 on the Hot 100, again marking Mendes as the youngest artist to achieve that milestone with a first single. The song anchored his four-track debut EP, The Shawn Mendes EP, which reached number five on the Billboard album chart and paved the way for the full-length Handwritten.

Handwritten entered at number one in the U.S., Canada, and Norway while landing inside the Top Ten across much of Europe. Its third single, "Stitches," became his first U.S. Top Ten hit, peaking at number four and topping the U.K. chart. Mendes also placed "Believe" on the soundtrack to the Disney Channel's Descendants. While supporting Taylor Swift on the North American leg of her 1989 World Tour, he teamed with Fifth Harmony's Camila Cabello for "I Know What You Did Last Summer," added to a November 2015 deluxe edition of Handwritten; the duet reached the Top 20 in both the U.S. and Canada.

Illuminate, recorded upstate New York and released in September 2016, featured the Top Ten singles "Treat You Better" and "There's Nothing Holdin' Me Back." Co-written in part with Teddy Geiger and Scott Harris, the album topped charts in the U.S. and Canada, and "There's Nothing Holdin' Me Back" later earned a Juno for Single of the Year. A digital-only live set, Live at Madison Square Garden, followed in December, and Mendes embarked on an extensive world tour in April 2017 that included an MTV Unplugged session issued that November.

In April 2018 he performed "In My Blood" at a Royal Albert Hall concert honoring Queen Elizabeth II's ninety-second birthday. The song, which candidly addressed his anxiety, served as the lead single for his self-titled third album, released in May. Featuring further work with Geiger, Shawn Mendes debuted at number one in the U.S., Canada, and Australia, received Grammy nominations for Best Pop Vocal Album and Song of the Year, and swept multiple Junos in Canada, including Pop Album of the Year, Album of the Year, Artist of the Year, and Songwriter of the Year. A 2019 deluxe edition added the hits "If I Can't Have You" and the global chart-topper "Señorita," the latter earning another Grammy nod for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance.

The title track from his fourth album, "Wonder," reached number 18 on the Hot 100 upon its October 2020 release, while the follow-up "Monster," a duet with Justin Bieber, climbed to number eight. Wonder itself arrived December 4 and topped both the U.S. and Canadian charts. Mendes next joined Tainy for the August 2021 single "Summer of Love," then issued the solo track "It'll Be Okay" months later; "When You're Gone" became an international Top Ten hit in 2022. His Wonder tour launched that June but was curtailed after seven dates so he could address his mental health.

October 2022 saw him voice the anthropomorphic crocodile in the family film Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile and contribute several songs to its soundtrack, including "Carried Away" and "Heartbeat." The following year he appeared on Jacob Collier's "Witness Me" with Stormzy and Kirk Franklin, then released the climate-themed single "What the Hell Are We Dying For?" Recorded days before its release, the track's artwork showed the New York skyline under smoke from Canadian wildfires.

Mendes resumed recording in 2024, announcing his fifth album, Shawn, alongside the singles "Why Why Why" and "Isn't That Enough." Co-produced by the artist and featuring longtime collaborator Scott Harris plus Mike Sabath, Nate Mercereau, and Eddie Benjamin, the October release adopted a spare, roots-oriented approach that merged introspective folk, country, and soul.