Shawn Mendes, VMan’s latest cover star, opened up about making music with his childhood hero.
In a new interview for the magazine, published Thursday (November 19), the “Lost in Japan” crooner speaks with legendary musician Elton John. During the chat, Mendes dished on everything from his love story with singer-songwriter and girlfriend Camila Cabello to recording his upcoming fourth studio album, Wonder, during the coronavirus pandemic.
The album, out everywhere on December 4 from Island Records, features 14 new tracks, including one with a very special collaborator: Justin Bieber. As fans know, the Canadian crooners recently announced their long-awaited team-up, “Monster,” which drops Friday (November 20).
Speaking with John, Mendes revealed why working with his childhood hero was the opportunity of a lifetime.
“So, Justin and I haven’t been close for a long time. When I was nine, Justin was my Michael Jackson. He was everything,” the 22-year-old said. “He was what everyone talked about, the singer who everyone wanted to sing and dance like. He completely inspired me to start singing."
Of bonding and making the song with Bieber, Mendes shared: “Justin and I have never really had a relationship together, and I had this song called ‘Monster’ that I wrote a long time ago. It’s about how society wants to put celebrities up on a pedestal, but as much as they want to do that, they want to celebrate the fall. It was a time when I was really afraid of my industry and afraid of my craft and afraid of everything. I didn’t have control. Everyone else had control over me. I think it just ended up becoming a metaphor for a bigger thing; that we all put pressure on each other as humans to be great, to be perfect.”
“I called Justin and said, ‘I have this song and it means a lot to me. If it means something seriously to you and you want to put something very real on it, please be a part of this with me." And he did,” the “Wonder” star recalled. “Since then, we have become closer than ever. Sometimes I think that music comes along for a bigger reason, which, for me in this case is to create a song to inspire people, but to also create a friendship that was never there before.”
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