Shawn Mendes

“	For me, it was just about exploring myself musically and not just sticking to one genre, and allowing myself to create the music that my heart really wanted to make and understanding that it's not about the genre but it's about the person and the cohesiveness within the stories I was telling and with my voice. That I'm really proud of. I'm proud of the fact that you can listen to the top of this album and hear a big rock anthem, and then halfway through you're in some kind of crazy slow R&B jam and then, at the very end, you're in the singer/songwriter world [...]	”
–Mendes on his self-titled album

Shawn MendesStudio album by Shawn Mendes
General information
Release Date	May 25, 2018 (Standard edition) July 26, 2019 (Deluxe edition)
Recorded	2017 - 2018
Studio	The Woodshed Studio (Malibu, California) Geejam Studios (Port Antonio, Jamaica)
Genre	Pop
Length	44:08 (Standard edition) 49:38 (Target & Japan edition) 50:49 (International deluxe edition) 50:28 (Deluxe edition) 53:49 (CD deluxe edition) 71:37 (Japan deluxe edition) 44:08 (Spotify re-release)
Producer(s)	Shawn Mendes (also exec.), Louis Bell, Teddy Geiger, Ian Kirkpatrick, Joel Little, Nate Mercereau, John Mayer, Zach Skelton, Ryan Tedder, Andrew Watt, Benny Blanco, Cashmere Cat, Ojivolta
Label
Studio albums chronology
Previous	Illuminate
Current	Shawn Mendes
Next	Wonder
Singles
1. "In My Blood" Released: March 22, 2018 2. "Lost In Japan" Released: March 23, 2018 3. "Youth" Released: May 3, 2018 4. "Where Were You In The Morning?" Released: May 18, 2018 5. "Nervous" Released: May 23, 2018

Shawn Mendes (alternatively Shawn Mendes: The Album) is Shawn Mendes's third studio album. It was released on May 25, 2018, through Island Records.

The album debuted at number one in Canada, making it Mendes' third number one album in his home country. It also debuted at the top of the US Billboard 200. It marked Mendes' third number one album in the US, making him the third youngest artist to top the chart at least three times. The album also topped the charts in Australia, Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, Spain and Switzerland. It received generally positive reviews from music critics.

The lead single, "In My Blood" peaked at number 11 on the US Billboard Hot 100, and reached the top ten in several other countries. "In My Blood", "Lost In Japan", and "Youth" were certified gold or higher in Canada. The album was nominated for Best Pop Vocal Album and "In My Blood" for Song of the Year at the 61st Annual Grammy Awards.

On July 26, 2019, a deluxe version of the album including Mendes' "If I Can't Have You" and the Billboard Hot 100 number-one collaboration with singer Camila Cabello, "Señorita", were released on digital platforms.

Background

The album was recorded over three to four months, primarily at The Woodshed Studio in Malibu, California. Recording sessions also took place in Port Antonio, Jamaica. Mendes drew inspiration from music artists Justin Timberlake, Kings of Leon, Kanye West and Daniel Caesar while making the record.

Promotion

To announce the release date, album artwork, and title, Mendes hosted a 9-hour live video stream on YouTube, culminating on April 26, 2018, at midnight. The live stream featured a crew setting up a floral arrangement to recreate the album's cover.

In promotion of the album, Mendes played a concert at the Ford Theatres in Hollywood on May 17, which was live-streamed by Apple Music and followed by a Q&A with radio presenter Zane Lowe In a surprise PR stunt, Mendes and his team made a stop at Simon Baruch Middle School in NYC, performing three acoustic songs off the new album. The recording of the performance titled Shawn Mendes: Live In Los Angeles, was released by Apple Music.

Mendes also spent the week of June 4, 2018, on The Late Late Show with James Corden where he performed one of his new songs each night. The full week event was hashtagged as LateLateShawn on social media. He also did a Carpool Karaoke episode where he sang some of his new songs alongside his old ones.

Spotify invited Mendes’ fans for an intimate Spotify Fans First event held on July 19 at Beverly Hills. To promote the album, Mendes embarked on his third solo world tour, called Shawn Mendes: The Tour.

Singles

• "In My Blood" was released on March 22, 2018, as the album's lead single, and sent to contemporary hit radio on March 27.

• "Lost In Japan" was released as the second single on March 23, 2018.

• "Youth", which features American singer Khalid, was released as the third single.

• "Where Were You In The Morning?" was released as the fourth single on May 18.

• "Nervous" was released as the fifth single on May 23.

In My Blood

Lost In Japan

Youth

Where Were You In The Morning?

Nervous

Standalone singles

• "If I Can't Have You" and "Señorita" was originally released as standalone singles on May 3, 2019, and June 21, 2019, respectively. They were later added to the deluxe edition of the album.

Señorita

If I Can't Have You

Commercial performance

Shawn Mendes debuted at number one on the Billboard Canadian Albums Chart with 32,000 album-equivalent units, becoming Mendes' third Canadian number-one album. On October 3, 2018, Shawn Mendes was certified Platinum by Music Canada for shipments of 80,000 copies in the country.

Shawn Mendes debuted atop the ARIA Albums Chart, giving Mendes his first number-one album in Australia. On the UK Albums Chart, the album opened at number three, with first-week sales of 23,419.

Shawn Mendes debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 with 182,000 album-equivalent units (including 142,000 pure album sales), becoming Mendes' third consecutive US number-one album. This feat made Mendes the third youngest artist to top the chart with at least 3 albums, along with Miley Cyrus and Justin Bieber. At the time, it became Mendes' best performing week ever, the fifth-best week of the year, and the second-biggest week for a pop album of the year, behind only Justin Timberlake's Man of the Woods. Additionally, it became the second most streamed pop album in 2018 for the first week, behind Timberlake, and the most streamed on the first week on Apple Music, surpassing Timberlake's record.

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	73/100
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic
Billboard	favourable
The Guardian
The Independent
London Evening Standard
NME
Pitchfork	5.1/10
Rolling Stone
South China Morning Post
USA Today	favourable

Shawn Mendes received generally positive reviews from music critics, with particular praise towards Mendes' songwriting and artistic maturity compared to his previous work.

Ilana Kaplan from The Independent gave the album 4 of 5 stars, praising Mendes's maturity compared to his previous album: "With his latest effort, the 19-year-old singer moves beyond stereotypical relationship woes and goes for something more personal." In another positive review, Jem Aswad from Variety opined the album as a "remarkably well-crafted pop album that finds the singer trying on different styles, prominently showcasing his collaborators and making some flagrant references - yet his persona has become strong enough that he's never overpowered by any of it." Hannah Mylrea of NME complimented Mendes's growth, calling his rock- and funk-inspired sound "a bright and bold new direction." Mike Nied of Idolator called it his best album to date, in addition to one of the best of the year so far.

Jon Caramanica of The New York Times gave a mixed review, calling the album "appealing if not wholly engaging, full of pleasantly anonymous songs that systematically obscure Mr. Mendes's talents." Jamieson Cox of Pitchfork gave a rating of 5.1 out of 10, noting that Mendes's songs lack a unique sound, "and you can imagine them being recorded by anyone: Nick Jonas, Charlie Puth, a random choice from the One Direction diaspora." In a three-star review, The Guardian's Laura Snapes opined that Mendes's "attempt to detoxify pop masculinity is admirable, but you’re left yearning for a bit of rough and tumble."

Mark Kennedy of the Associated Press gave the album a positive review, praising the songwriting, hooks, as well as the duet with Khalid, but was unimpressed by "Like To Be You", the duet with singer Julia Michaels and "Fallin' All In You", co-written with Ed Sheeran and Johnny McDaid. Maeve McDermott of USA Today highlighted "In My Blood" as one of the best songs, saying the album "nails the innocence, thrills and pain that’s unique to being 19, alone and hopeful." In contrast, Brittany Spanos of Rolling Stone called "In My Blood" one of the album's weakest songs, favoring instead the collaborations with Michaels. Chris Gillet from South China Morning Post complimented Mendes' songwriting abilities as well, citing "Because I Had You", "Perfectly Wrong", and "When You're Ready" as the album's highlights, as well as acclaiming his vocal performance in "Perfectly Wrong," but was critical with "Queen" and "Fallin' All In You" labelling them "generic," he ended the review with awarding the album 4 out of 5 stars.

Accolades

• Awards and nominations
• Year-end lists

Year	Organization	Award	Result	Ref.
2018	People's Choice Awards	Album of 2018	Nominated
2019	Grammy Awards	Best Pop Vocal Album	Nominated

Publication	Accolade	Rank	Ref.
Billboard	The 50 Best Albums of 2018	22
People	Top 10 Albums of 2018	8
Rolling Stone	The 20 Best Pop Albums of 2018	9
Time	The 10 Best Albums of 2018	4

Tracklist

Target deluxe edition and Japan bonus tracks
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
15.	"In My Blood" (Live Session)	Mendes · Warburton · Geiger · Harris	Mendes · Geiger	3:32
16.	"Where Were You In The Morning?" (Acoustic)	Mendes · Warburton · Geiger · Harris	Mendes · Geiger	2:58
Total length:				49:38

International deluxe edition
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
15.	"In My Blood" (Acoustic)	Mendes · Warburton · Geiger · Harris	Zubin Thakkarakkar	3:32
16.	"Youth" (Acoustic) (featuring Khalid)	Mendes · Robinson · Warburton · Geiger · Harris	Little · Mendes	3:09
Total length:				50:49

CD deluxe edition (bonus track)
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
17.	"Lost In Japan" (Remix) (with Zedd)	Mendes · Geiger · Harris · Mercereau · Bell	Geiger · Mendes · Zedd · Mercereau	3:21
Total length:				53:49

Japanese deluxe edition (bonus tracks)
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
18.	"If I Can't Have You" (Gryffin Remix)	Mendes · Geiger · Harris · Mercereau	Geiger · Mendes · Mercereau · Ojivolta · Gryffin	4:13
19.	"There's Nothing Holdin' Me Back"	Mendes · Geiger · Harris · Warburton	Geiger · Andrew Maury	3:19
20.	"Treat You Better"	Mendes · Geiger · Harris	Geiger · Dan Romer · Daylight	3:07
21.	"Stitches"	Daniel Parker · Geiger · Daniel Kyriakides	Geiger · Parker · Daylight	3:26
22.	"In My Blood" (Acoustic)	Mendes · Warburton · Geiger · Harris	Thakkar	3:32
Total length:				71:37

Shawn Mendes: The Album (Remixes)
No.	Title	Length
1.	"Where Were You In The Morning?" (Kaytranada Remix)	3:10
2.	"Why" (Remix) (featuring Leon Bridges)	3:54
3.	"Youth" (Remix) (featuring Khalid and Jessie Reyez)	3:21

Videos

Shawn Mendes The Album

Shawn Mendes The Album - Secret Listening Sessions

The Making Of Shawn Mendes The Album

The Making Of Shawn Mendes The Album - On Location

The Making Of Shawn Mendes The Album - “Lost in Japan”

The Making Of Shawn Mendes The Album - “Nervous"

Gallery

• Photoshoot
• Booklet

References

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