“Sometimes I feel like giving up,but I just can’t/ it isn’t in my blood.” (“In My Blood”, Shawn Mendes:The Album).Twenty-one year old Canadian pop star,Shawn Mendes, released his most recent album on May 25th, 2018 and it’s his best one yet. With a mixture of slow love songs to upbeat, optimistic songs, this album can get you into a great mood.  Many songs from the album play on the radio on a daily such as “In My Blood.” This album is usually compared to work by other famous artists such as Charlie Puth and Ed Sheeran because of its variety in genres. Shawn’s amazing vocal skills and guitar talent leave the listeners in awe. 

         When Shawn started to write the album he couldn’t decide which genre he wanted to focus on. One day he would want to do R&B, but the next day he would want to do rock. He then came to the conclusion that the genre may not matter as much as he thinks it does. According to Billboard.com, Shawn recalled, ”Am I screwing up the cohesiveness of the album? Is this bad to do? I realize that it’s not about the genre of the song anymore. People don’t care about the genre. If it’s a good song, it’s a good song.” This led to the album being a melting pot of different genres. The first song on the album, “In My Blood,” is based on his real experiences with anxiety. During an interview with Pandora, Shawn revealed that “about a year prior was my first time experiencing anxiety and I wrote down in my notes the feelings and exactly what was going on.” These notes led to the writing of the most popular song from the album. Since Shawn developed songs from his own personal experiences, the listeners get to know a little more about him and can relate to the songs.

    That feeling of getting up and wanting to dance is a frequent theme throughout the album . For example, the song, “Lost in Japan,”which is regularly plays on the radio, starts out slow but then becomes upbeat as the song goes on. In addition, “Particular Taste” and “Mutual” have a consistent rhythm throughout the song. Mendes does a great job of mixing these songs with the calm ones on the album to show the variety of style the album has to offer.

      Shawn lightly strumming the guitar in the background of most of the songs is one reason why this album was such a big hit  . Some love songs like, “Fallin All in You” and “Why” gives you a reason to be obsessed with his amazing guitar skills. If you had a bad day and need a song to relate to, “Because I had You” is a perfect one.  This is different from the rest of the album since most of the songs talk about finding true love or a good friendship while this one talks about losing someone special in your life and having to move on. Shawn’s vocal ability, such as being able to hold a note for a long time,contributes to you getting into a relatable mood.

    One thing that makes this album stand out from the rest is it doesn’t only have one, but two collaboration songs with different singers.  “Like to Be You” (featuring Julia Michaels) is set up as a conversation between a boy and a girl after an argument. Lyrics like “Don't cry or do, whatever makes you comfortable”  and “I’m so sorry that we’re still stuck in the middle” really help the listeners picture the conversation going on, which is what the songwriters were aiming for. The second collaboration has an incredibly deep meaning. “Youth” (featuring Khalid), was written right after the bombing attacks at the Ariana Grande concert in the UK. Shawn and Khalid wanted to pay tribute to all the young lives that were lost on that day. “Pain, but I won’t let it turn into hate” and “you can’t take my youth away, the soul of mine will never break” are the two most important lyrics in the song.

      By just saying that the album has won the Grammy award for “Best Pop Vocal Album,” it shows that Shawn Mendes: The Album is  worth listening to. It’s perfect for any mood- such as, happy, tired, or you just need some motivation. Even if you have “Particular Taste” in music, Shawn Mendes: The Album is the one for you.

(Video) Pandora “Shawn Mendes:Breaking Genres” May 25th,2018.

-”About a year prior was my first time experiencing anxiety and I wrote down in my notes the feelings and exactly what was going on.”

(Article) Billboard.com “Shawn Mendes Opens up About The Process of Making the Self-Titled Album.” May 25th,2018 by Alvarez,Lauren

-Am I screwing up the cohesiveness of the album? Is this bad to do? I realize that it’s not about the genre of the song anymore. People don’t care about the genre. If it’s a good song, it’s a good song.”