Shawn Mendes

 Shawn Peter Raul Mendes is a Canadian singer and songwriter. He gained a following in 2013, posting song covers on the video-sharing application Vine. The following year, he caught the attention of artist manager Andrew Gertler and Island Records A&R. Ziggy Chareton, which led to him signing a deal with the record label. He has since released three studio albums, headlined three world tours, and received several awards.

 Biography

Mendes was born in the city of Pickering, Ontario, to Karen , a real estate agent, and Manuel Mendes, a businessman, who sells bar and restaurant supplies in Toronto. His father is Portuguese , while his mother is from England. He has a younger sister named Aaliyah. He was raised in a religious family.

Mendes was raised in Pickering where he attended Pine Redge Secondary School. At school, he played ice hockey and soccer, joined his high school glee club, and practised his stage presence in acting lessons (leading as Prince Charming at one point). He also auditioned for Disney Channel in Toronto. Mendes graduated from high school in June 2016.

Career

Mendes released his self-titled debut EP (2014) and his debut studio album Handwritten (2015), whose single “Stitches” reached number one in the United Kingdom and the top 10 in the United States and Canada. He then released his second studio album Illuminate (2016), whose singles “Treat You Better” and “There’s Nothing Holdin’ Me Back” reached the top 10 in several countries. Hisself-titled third studio album (2018) was supported by the lead single “In My Blood“. In 2017, Mendes became the first artist to land three number-one singles on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart before turning 20 years old. In 2018, he became the first artist to achieve four number-one singles on the Adult Pop Songs chart before the age of 20 as well. In 2019, he released the hit singles “If I Can’t Have You” and “Senorita“, with the latter peaking at number one on the US Billboard Hot 100.

Awards and nominations

Mendes has received several nominations and awards. He won 13 Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN) awards, 11 MTV Europe Music Awards (EMA), eight iHeartRadio Much Music Video Awards (MMVA), eight Juno Awards, three BMI Awards, three American Music Awards, two MTV Video Music Awards, and the Allan Slaight Honour from Canada’s Walk of Fame. He was nominated for three Grammy Awards.

Philanthropy and supported causes

In 2014, Mendes and DoSomething.org launched their campaign called “Notes from Shawn” where fans were encouraged to write positive notes and leave them in unexpected places. The campaign was inspired by the lyrics to his first single, “Life of the Party“, and addressed low self-esteem, depression and awareness of self-harm. They relaunched their campaign for the second year in a row in 2015, where the campaign was hashtagged online as NotesFromShawn. He partnered with BlendApp with the goal of raising up to $25,000, where $1 was raised for every signup and positive message shared on the application. The campaign was relaunched for a third year in a row in 2016.

In September 2017, after witnessing the devastation of the earthquake in Mexico City, Mendes created the Mexico Earthquake Relief Fund in conjunction with the American Red Cross and donated $100,000 towards relief efforts.

In 2018, Mendes worked with Omaze to raise funds through donations to support the WE Schools program, a movement aiming to support youth through educational services and mentorship. Mendes encouraged his fans to help the cause while giving the donors a chance to attend his upcomin concert tour.

In September 2018, Mendes took part in the annual Global Citizen festival held at Central Park, New York City.

On October 20, 2018, Mendes performed along with other artists such as Khalid, NF, Marshmello, Meghan Trainor, and Ella Mai at The Hollywood Bowl, Los Angeles for the “We Can Survive” event. The event was organized to raise funds for Young Survival Coalition, in an effort to support young women who were diagnosed with breast cancer.

Love life

After their song ”Senorita” with Camila Cabello Shawn and Camila started dating. Shawn and Camila have also been spotted together in Hollywood right before Shawn’s big show in LA. Even though Shawn has been rumored to be dating Camila Cabello on and off for years now, the two friends have repeatedly shut down any hints of a romantic relationship. During his latest pre-show Q+A session with some of his fans, a lucky person got to ask Shawn if he was dating Camila and he shut down the rumors.

 I chose Shawn Mendes, because I’ve been a big fan of him since I was little. He treats his fans well and participates in charitable causes. He has a very nice voice and I really like his songs. My favorite of his songs is duet with Camila Cabello – ”Senorita”. I hope to go to his concert one day.

“I want to create anthems for people. I want to create anthems for big moments in their lives…I don’t want my music to play for a few months and then go away forever. And not only that, I want to do incredible things that make a difference too. I think it’s not only about the music you release, it’s about the things you do while you’re making the music.”

Mendes stated in an interview with Clash magazine