Shawn Mendes celebrated his birthday, August 8, with a double release on Thursday — revealing tracks “Why Why Why” and “Isn't That Enough” from his upcoming fifth studio album, Shawn.
The first single was released alongside a new video that shows Mendes playing his guitar and singing inside a barn and along a river, with footage of him performing solo on a darkened stage. Directed by Anthony Wilson and Connor Brashear, the music video for “Why Why Why” sees Mendes reminiscing about a former lover while contemplating the cyclical nature of life.
“Naked visions in my head / But I went and chose myself instead,” Mendes sings in the opening verse, and later in the song, he reveals: “Thought I was about to become a father / Shaken me to my core that I’m still a child / Sometimes, I still cry for my mama.”
When discussing “Why Why Why” in an upcoming interview with Zane Lowe on Apple Music, Mendes told the host, “There was something anthemic about those lyrics.” He added, “It felt like she was crying. It felt like… I don't know. It just felt powerful and beautiful.”
He also said that “Isn’t That Enough” felt like “I had a conversation with the fans and the audience.” He explained, “I needed to address this, ‘Hey, how are you?’ And I needed to respond, ‘I’m fine. Everything’s fine. It’s going to be fine. Everything’s fine.’”
The new songs come nearly three years after Mendes and Camila Cabello announced their split in November 2021. In 2019, they released their collaborative song “Señorita,” which reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Mendes also shared that the process of making his fifth album was “the most natural thing I've ever done.” Mendes added that “it feels like the most natural thing to talk about. It feels like the most natural thing to play live. So it gives me all these things… It feels easier than ever in a really beautiful way.”
with Shawn Mendes announced earlier this month that he would perform the album from start to finish in six upcoming shows at theaters in Woodstock, London, Nashville, Brooklyn, Los Angeles and Seattle. The tour kicked off Thursday at the Bearsville Theater in Woodstock, and next week he will take the stage at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane in London.
