Sheila Natasha — 3/2/2021
In this post-millennials era, the Internet has become a stage with a worldwide audience for any musician. Virality can reach anyone who is unique enough to capture the world’s attention. Even a small-town guy from Pickering, Ontario was able to get a spotlight.
Shawn Mendes was born and raised in Pickering with a population of less than 100,000 people. He has come a long way, from singing in his bedroom to worldwide stadiums. The world has witnessed him rise from vine to fame. Shawn Mendes’ journey includes going through puberty in a sudden fame, having to experiment on several musical styles as a part of his self-exploration, as well as breaking the toxic masculinity stereotype by highlighting coming-of-age issues and showing his vulnerable side in his musical records.
Shawn Mendes went viral via Vine, a 6-second video-based social media. In 6 seconds, he was able to capture the hearts of 500,000,000 viewers in 2013
That’s almost twice as much as Indonesia’s population!
Nonetheless, Shawn Mendes is not the only one whose musical talent gets noticed by the world through the internet.
Mendes, who was only 15 years old when he went viral, grew up along with his gen-z listeners. Like normal teenagers who have not had their life completely figured out, Mendes is still wondering what is his signature music style as well; which results in his varied album theme.
From Ed Sheeran-esque acoustic Handwritten to John Mayer’s soft-rock/blues ballad vibe in Illuminate, Shawn Mendes’ main story is to be the hopeless romantic hero for heartbroken teenage girls through songs like Treat You Better and Bad Reputation. When other songs on the radio are depicting bubble butts and coke bottle-shaped bodies, Mendes is highlighting his sensitive side by serenading how he glorified women with all their imperfections. He also explores coming-of-age issues which represent gen z voices, like the battle of love, and to struggle with mental health.
Followed by his self-titled third album a year later, Mendes’ name skyrocketed more as the sounds of summer 2018 with his JT-inspired groovy tune Lost In Japan and his sultry Spanish-fusion duet Señorita. This shows Mendes can sing just any kind of music and makes it sound easy-listening.
In his latest debut album Wonder, Mendes unraveled his thoughts about being vulnerable, to fight anxiety, and to be grateful for the love he received. What makes this album different from Mendes’ previous records is that he becomes more open lyrically through songs like Monster and Call My Friends. Moreover, he crafted a lot of new majestic musical arrangements; i.e. the grand choir, altering vocals, loud brass instruments, and distorted synths.
Shawn Mendes proved the world that he’s not just another one-hit wonder.
2 American Music Awards (AMAs) trophies, 3 Grammy Awards Nominations, and 4 debut albums later; Shawn Mendes became the epitome of internet star success and one of the youngest artists to have all four of his debut albums reached #1 on US Billboard 200.
Starting from a 6-second Vine video, Shawn Mendes has successfully captured our hearts until more than 6 years later and his achievements still continue to rise from here.
Editor: Taufan Roekman