28 jul 2022 om 20:36 | Update: 2 uur geleden
Shawn Mendes needs time to ground and come back stronger. The singer wrote this on Instagram on Wednesday, when he announced that he was breaking off his international tour. It is not the first time that the 23-year-old singer has struggled with his mental health coupled with a career that is taking its toll.
By: Michiel VosIn an emotional message to his fans, Mendes wrote that he will do something he has never done before: take time for himself.
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The Canadian pop star started recording his first album at the age of fifteen. Before that, he was already active on YouTube, where he performed songs by other artists. His first album immediately delivers the big hit Stitches on, after which the singer can always be found on tour or in the studio.
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In a message on Instagram from earlier this month, in which he announced that he would postpone some of his concerts, Mendes already wrote that touring – which he has been doing since he was 15 – is hard for him. “The toll of touring and the pressure that comes with it has caught up with me. I need to take time to recover and take care of myself and my mental health,” he writes. On Wednesday it appears that the rest of the concert series will also be cancelled.
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Singer longs for a more normal life
In the documentary Shawn Mendes: In Wonder, which will appear on Netflix in 2020, the singer already says that he often longs for a more normal life. “I’m having more fun than ever during the performance, but at the same time I want to spend time with my parents and watch movies with them. I want to take rides around the neighborhood and lie on a football field, smoke a joint and watch the stars with my friends I miss that now. It’s so intense all the time.”
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The singer also talks in the documentary about the ever-present pressure to perform, while all eyes are on him. It can be seen that he goes through a valley when he has to cancel a concert due to voice problems. “Even with such success, it often feels like I’m failing. I’m always focused on what I don’t have and I forget to see what I do,” Mendes explained in a tweet earlier this year.
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Mendes sings about his fears
In the same message, the artist says he feels like he’s flying or drowning. He also sings about this kind of fear in the 2018 single In My Blood. “I’m scrolling through my phone again, I feel anxious. I’m afraid of being alone, I hate this. I’m trying to find a way to relax, but I can’t breathe. Is there anyone who can help me?” , he sings in the song.
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Also from the duet Monster with Justin Bieber shows the pressure that constantly haunts Mendes. In the verse he sings how he is placed on a pedestal and praised further and further into the sky, until he can hardly breathe. “What if I stumble? What if I fall? Am I the monster?”, he sings about the fear of making a mistake.
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At the end of April, Mendes let his fans know that life is sometimes difficult and that this has certainly been the case for him lately. “Always trying to be the best doesn’t work for me anymore. It feels better to be myself.” The singer addresses his fans who may feel the same and urges them to seek help in their environment. “Nothing is better than a friend who sees who you really are and cares about you,” he concludes.
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Mendes has decided not to travel the world for a while and to stay close to the friends and relatives who can do this for him. He assures his fans that this doesn’t mean he won’t release new music. He also does not rule out tours in the future. “I’ll be back as soon as I’ve taken enough time to recover.”
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