Shawn Mendes (born Shawn Peter Raul Mendes; August 8, 1998 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada) is a Canadian singer-songwriter. After posting a series of his cover versions to various video-sharing sites, Mendes earned a dedicated following of viewers. His mix of Ed Sheeran and Justin Bieber's styles also appealed to Island Records, who signed Mendes in 2014. That same year they released the then-15-year-old's debut single, "Life of the Party." American radio initially ignored it