Where has Shawn Mendes been for the past few years? In the woods, apparently. The pop singer-songwriter is emerging with his fifth album, Shawn (not to be confused with 2018’s Shawn Mendes), and he sounds a lot like Zach Bryan and Noah Kahan. Mendes teased his folkier era with a black-and-white trailer showing him playing new single “Isn’t That Enough†for friends around a campfire, cut with other photos of him in nature (often shirtless, naturally). “My hands still shaking / My mind’s still racing / My heart’s still breaking in two,†Mendes sings over acoustic guitar and a bit of harmonica and fiddle. The stomp-and-holler revival really does come for us all.
The full album is on October 18 and it’s his first full-length since 2020’s Wonder, after which he canceled a tour and took a mental-health hiatus. “Music really can be medicine,†Mendes wrote on Instagram. “Two years ago, I felt like I had absolutely no idea who I was. A year ago, I couldn’t step into a studio without falling into complete panic. So to be here right now with 12 beautiful finished songs feels like such a gift.†A better-received gift, he must hope, than his ex’s pivot to hyperpop.
Any follow up singles?
He’s got one more for ya. 8 days after announcing his album trailer/lead single, Mendes dropped “Why Why Why†and possibly a new chapter in his lore. He sings, “Thought I was about to be a father/ Shook me to the core, I’m still a kid,†as he dances with his guitar around a campfire. Basically, it’s his version of “I think about it all the time.†Brat summer eventually leads into yearning Shawntumn.
This post has been updated throughout.Â