Canadian singer-songwriter Shawn Mendes was discovered in January 2014 and by the end of the year had nabbed a spot opening for Taylor Swift on her 1989 World Tour. Born in Toronto in 1998, Shawn made a name for himself and found millions of fans via the popular social-media app Vine. His six-second clips of him covering popular songs led to his being signed to record label Island Def Jam. Debut single ‘Life of the Party’ was released in June 2014 and hit No. 24 on the Billboard Hot 100. With that he became the youngest artist ever to have his or her first song make the top 25 of the tally. His self-titled major-label debut EP dropped in July 2014.
Selected discography: ‘Life of the Party’ (2014), ‘Shawn Mendes’ EP (2014), ‘Something Big’ (2014)
Related artists: Taylor Swift, The Vamps, Austin Mahone
Further reading: Shawn Mendes Performs on ‘GMA’, Watch Shawn Mendes’ ‘Something Big’ Video, Shawn Mendes Is ‘Life of the Party’ on ‘Ellen’