The 'Treat You Better' hitmaker talks about life during the coronavirus pandemic and how the lockdown has been a reflective period for him as he takes a break from his hectic schedule.
- Nov 18, 2020
AceShowbiz - Shawn Mendes admits the pandemic has been a "terrifying" yet "beautiful" experience for him, as it brought him "stillness."
The 22-year-old singer, who is preparing to drop his new album "Wonder" next month (Dec20), tells Zane Lowe on Apple Music the change of pace was a blessing for the star.
"The pandemic that's happening and the isolation and the quarantine has been terrifying and really hard, but something really beautiful for me came out of it, which was you're not allowed to leave. Stillness," he says.
"I went to Miami and I was living with Camila (Cabello, girlfriend) and her parents and her sister and I was in panic for the first week being like there's no way I'm going to make an album," he continues. "And then when I started to settle in to how nice it is to be in the same place every night, to have a movie time, to cook dinner with the family and to do laundry. I know it sounds really kind of silly but when you've been touring the world since you're 15 years old, like, I don't remember the last time I smelled laundry. It's a nice smell. It's a really calming smell. It feels like growing up."
The "In My Blood" hitmaker goes on to note that the downtime "brought a lot of anxiety to the surface," but says that, "on the other side of that was a really reflective period for me where I could be like, 'Oh this is what I've been doing. This is crazy. This is what I can do. This is art. This is bigger than me.' "
"It was the first time I had the chance to even think about someone more than me," adds the star, who releases his Justin Bieber collaboration, "Monster", on Friday (20Nov20). "It was the first time I had enough space in my heart and my head that wasn't so consumed about how many people were caring about what I was doing."
"It was the first time I was quiet and I was able to be like, 'What is happening in this world and how do I feel about it and what can I do and where does this go from here?' That was the best gift I think I've ever, ever been given in my whole life," concluded Shawn.
