In A New Song, Shawn Mendes Seemingly Addressed His Sexuality

    "Literally saying you can say whatever you want about him," one comment read.

    Natasha Jokic
    by Natasha Jokic

    BuzzFeed Staff

    Shawn Mendes seemingly addressed speculation surrounding his sexuality in a new song.

    Shawn in a dark suit poses on the MTV VMAs red carpet
    Dimitrios Kambouris / Getty Images

    The Canadian singer has been targeted with comments around his sexuality for years now. As he said in 2020 in an interview with Dax Shepard, "Everyone's been calling me gay since I was 15 years old...I'm not gay and I'm like, 'What does that mean?' I had these problems with the way my voice sounded. I'm like, 'How do I sit?' I'm always first to cross my legs and sit with a position of this feminine style and I really suffered with that shit."

    Shawn performs on stage with a guitar, surrounded by smoke, while a crowd claps and a camera operator films the scene
    Kevin Mazur / Kevin Mazur / Getty Images for MTV

    In a fan video captured by TikTok user @theliyahrich at a recent performance in New York, Shawn debuted a previously-unheard song on acoustic guitar. “I have a change of heart / you can say what you need to say," he begins in the clip.

    Pascal Le Segretain / Getty Images for Loewe

    "You can say I’m too young / you can say I’m too old / you can say I like girls or boys / whatever fits your mold," he continues. "But I've never been better / so call it what you want."

    A closeup of Shawn
    Dimitrios Kambouris / Getty Images

    Cue Shawn fans in the comments praising his professed indifference:

    Comments expressing support for a musician, emphasizing his happiness and talent despite criticism
    theliyahrich / Via tiktok.com

    According to People, the song is titled "The Mountain" and will be on his self-titled album set to drop on Nov. 15.

    A man wearing a white tank top and jeans performs on stage, smiling with arms outstretched, holding a microphone
    Wagner Meier / Getty Images

    Guess we'll see when the full version's out!

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