Shawn Mendes has clearly heard the constant whispers about his sexuality over the years, and on Monday (October 28) the singer addressed the elephant in the room during a quiet moment on his For Friends and Family tour at Red Rocks Amphitheater in Denver.
“I thought about it for a minute today, if I was going to say something tonight in this part of the set,” Mendes told the crowd while sitting on a stool and strumming noodles on his acoustic guitar, as seen by a fan. TikTok videos. After the crowd chanted “We love you!” repeatedly, Mendes, 26, went on to describe what it was like growing up in the spotlight.
“I was very young when I started. I was 15 years old… The truth is, I didn't get to do a lot of 15-year-old things and discover parts of myself that you do at 15,” she explained about the transition from high school to traveling the world. “Ever since I was very young there's been this thing about my sexuality, and people have been talking about it for so long. I think it's kind of silly, because I think sexuality is such a beautifully complex thing and it's so hard to put in boxes.”
Mendes has kept his dating relationship pretty private over the past decade, and although he's been linked to a few other co-stars, his most popular romance was his two-year relationship with Camila Cabello, who inspired many of his songs, including “Summer of Love” and “Wonder” and their 2019 hit duet “Señorita”.
“It always felt like such an intrusion into something very personal to me. Something I discovered in myself, something I had to discover yet and still haven't,” he told the crowd about writing new confessional song “The Mountain,” which tackles persistent rumors about his sexuality. he continues with the lyrics: “You can say I'm too young/ You can say I'm too old/ You can say I like girls or boys/ Whatever fits your mold.”
“Writing this song felt really important to me because it felt like a moment where I could address it in a way that felt close to my heart. I guess now I speak freely because I just want to be closer to everyone and kind of be in my truth. The real truth about my life and my sexuality is, man, I just get it like everybody else,” Mendes said to another round of supportive cheers. “I don't really know sometimes and I do other times. And it's really scary because we live in a society that has a lot to say about that. And I'm trying to be really brave and just allow myself to be human and feel things… And that's all I really want to say about it for now.”
He then launched into the verse “You can say I'm too small” from “The Mountain,” which is set to be featured on the singer's upcoming fifth studio album. Seanwhich is expected to be released on November 15.
Back in 2019, Mendes said The Guardian that the persistent whispers and speculation about his sexuality was “hurtful … I get mad when people assume things about me because I imagine people who don't have the support system I have and how that must affect them.” He said at the time that the rumors hurt not only him, but also members of the LGBTQ community who admire him. “That's why I was so angry, and you can see I'm still angry, because I don't think people understand that when you condemn me for something that's stupid, you're hurting so many other people,” he said. “They may not be talking, but they are listening.”
Mendes discussed the issue in that interview in the wake of 2018 Rolling Stone cover to which he addressed the speech head-on, saying, “I feel like I have to go out with someone — like a girl — in public, to prove to people that I'm not gay… Even though I know in my heart it's not a bad thing. There is still a part of me that believes this. And I hate that side of me.” He later criticized both stories for not giving the full picture of who he is.
from our partners at https://www.billboard.com/music/pop/shawn-mendes-talks-sexuality-denver-show-figuring-it-out-1235813777/
