Shawn Mendes’ candid quotes about his sexuality over the years

Shawn Mendes knows that there is an intense curiosity about his private life, including his sexuality.

Ever since he became a music superstar around 2013 at the age of 14, rumors have swirled about his sexual orientation. Mendes – from whom celebrity exes involve Camila Cabello And Sabrina Timmerman – previously stated that he was not gay. He later confessed that he felt the need to quash the rumors by making his love life public.

“In my heart of hearts, I feel like I need to be seen in public with someone – like a girl – to prove to people that I’m not gay,” he said. Rolling stone in 2018. “Even though I know in my heart it’s not a bad thing. There’s still a part of me that thinks that. And I hate that side of me.”

The dialogue around the topic evolved over the years, and in October 2024 he publicly shared that he was trying discovering his sexuality.

“The real truth about my life and my sexuality is: man, I’m figuring it out just like everyone else. Sometimes I don’t really know and other times I do,” the singer said during a concert, according to fan footage posted on social media at the time. “It feels very scary because we live in a society that has a lot to say about this. I try to be very brave and allow myself to just be human and feel things. That’s all I want to say about it for now.”

Keep scrolling to see everything Mendes has said about his sexuality over the years:

Tackling speculation

Mendes talked about his sexuality for the first time in 2016.

“So normally I don’t do this or raise issues, but I was on YouTube watching some of my interviews, and I was scrolling through the comments and noticed a lot of people were saying I was giving them a ‘gay vibe’ . “First of all, I’m not gay,” he said in a series of videos. “Second, it shouldn’t make any difference whether I was or not. The focus should be on the music and not on my sexuality.”

The “Stitches” singer encouraged fans not to make assumptions about a person based on their mannerisms. He added that although he is attracted to girls, he didn’t care if people called him gay – unless it was meant as an insult.

“I’m frustrated because people nowadays have the nerve to write online that I’m gay, as if that’s a bad thing. That’s all I have to say about that,” Mendes said. “I wish that one percent of people would grow up. I love you.”

Don’t understand the interest

Mendes said he didn’t understand why so many people were concerned about the idea of ​​his sexuality.

“I thought, ‘You guys are so lucky that I’m not actually gay and I’m terrified of coming out.’ That’s something that kills people,” he said Rolling stone in 2018. “It is that sensitive. Do you like the songs? Do you like me? Who cares if I’m gay?”

Getting frustrated

The “Treat You Better” musician opened up about the toll it took on him to deal with the rumors about his sexuality.

“Everyone has called me gay since I was fifteen years old. I’m not gay and I’m like, ‘What does that mean?’ I was having issues with the way my voice sounded,” he said during an episode of the “Armchair Expert” podcast in December 2020. “I was like, ‘What am I doing?’ I’m always the first to cross my legs and sit in a position of this feminine style and that really bothered me. I think a lot of guys go through that and, even worse, there are so many guys who are gay and in the closet and have to hear things like that and say, “I’m terrified of coming out.” ”

Mendes said the speculation about him upset him, especially for the LGBTQIA+ people in his life who were struggling to come out.

“There were a number of people in my life who I was very close to who were gay and in the closet. And I felt a real anger for those people,” he continued. “It’s such a difficult thing. You want to say, “I’m not gay, but it would be fine if I were gay – but there’s also nothing wrong with being gay, but I’m not.” You don’t know how to respond to the situation.”

Put it in Song

Mendes has dropped a teaser a new song titled “The Mountain” during a concert in October 2024 and the lyrics weighed on his personal life.

“Some days I change my mind / You can say what you gotta say / You can say I’m too young / You can say I’m too old / You can say I like girls or boys / Whatever suits you fungus,” he sang to the crowd, according to images on social media.

Questioning yourself

While on stage during an intimate concert at Red Rocks Amphitheater in Colorado, Mendes, then 26 years old, spoke to the audience and let them know that he, like everyone else, was “figuring out” his sexuality.

“I think it’s a bit silly because I think sexuality is a beautifully complex thing and it’s so hard to compartmentalize,” he said. “It always felt like an infringement on something very personal to me. Something I was discovering within myself. Something I had yet to discover and still have to discover.”