Shawn Mendes made a comeback to the music industry with his first album after his four year hiatus. His album, titled “Shawn” replays all of the self discoveries he has come across on his time off. The song mixes his style of indie pop from his earlier music with some of his techno influences seen in his last album “Wonder”. The overall vibe is very folky with a variety of reflective ballads and relatable messages.

Mendes took a break from releasing music and performing after struggling with mental health from 2022 until recently. Two years after “Wonder” was released in 2020, Mendes began a world tour. Shortly thereafter he had to cancel the rest of his tour dates for mental health reasons. Since then, Mendes hasn’t really done any large performances and has only released singles scattered throughout the years.

 With so much time to himself, Mendes has been on a self discovery journey. Recently, he came out with a statement of how he is still figuring out his sexuality. With so much change going on within Mendes’ life, this album brings fans inside his thoughts. This album was an outlet for him to work through himself. 

He kicks the album off with the song “Who I Am”, opening up by being very transparent with how lost he currently feels. He is unsure of who his true self is, and he uses music as an outlet to work out his identity. In many songs, Mendes mentions writing about his feelings either in lyrics or journaling. His openness with his struggle to find himself is moving and welcoming to others who share similar feelings. 

This album is a documentation of Mendes’ growth. His new slowed down, melodic style helps draw attention to his meaningful lyrics. Although this album was definitely different from his previous ones, I really enjoyed this new style. This album is pretty short so if you’re looking for something to listen to on a half hour drive or while doing a quick assignment.