Inside Shawn Mendes' 'calculated' album promo

Shawn Mendes' decision to share the 'truth' about his sexuality felt like a 'calculated move' to 'get people talking' ahead of his new album, insiders have claimed.

The singer, 26, gave an emotional speech to his fans during his concert in Morrison, Colorado, earlier this week, in which he confessed that he was still 'figuring out' his sexuality - after years of fiercely denying that he is gay.

But according to a source, the Stitches crooner made the 'big reveal' on stage because he knew it would cause 'hype' for his upcoming LP, Shawn, which hits stands on November 15.

'Shawn's big reveal feels like a calculated move,' they told DailyMail.com. 'He says he is figuring out his sexuality after repeatedly saying flat out for the past 10 years "I am not gay?"

'Everyone is talking about it now. And all of this Shawn hype is coming out just weeks before he drops his new album, Shawn. 

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'He is not stupid and knows how to get people talking.'

The insider said Shawn's comments should not be taken as him 'coming out,' but rather, it was simply a way to 'keep everyone happy.'

'Shawn did not come out on stage in that video,' they said. 'He just decided to figure out a way to keep everyone happy by simply revealing he has thought about sexuality,' they continued. 

'He knows what he is doing. He doesn’t want to lose any fans and he wants to sell albums.'

But they added that the 'move' may have backfired, because some people feel like he was 'queer-baiting.'

Social media has been flooded with criticism. 

'Shawn is queer-baiting so bad and y'all falling for it,' one user wrote.

'You do not reach Shawn Mendes' age without knowing your sexuality,' someone else said.

'If he’s gay or bi he should just f***ing say that instead of "haha idk" every three years when public interest in him wanes. I could care less it’s the queer-baiting I HATE.'

'I don't think Shawn Mendes is gay, bisexual, or something related to the LGBTQ+ community but since he’s in the flop he will take advantage of all the rumors that were surrounding him since the beginning of his career,' another user scathed. 

'He will do queer-baiting and play with all the gays to get their money.' 

Shawn spoke about his sexuality while introducing one of his new songs, The Mountain, during his show on Monday.

'There's this thing about my sexuality, and people have been talking about it for so long,' he told the audience.

'It's kind of silly, because I think sexuality is such a beautifully complex thing, and it’s so hard to just put into boxes.

'The real truth about my life and my sexuality is that, man, I’m just figuring it out like everyone.'

He said people's comments felt like 'such an intrusion' because it was something that was 'very personal to him.' 

'It was something that I was figuring out in myself, something that I had yet to discover and still have yet to discover it,' he continued.

'And it feels really scary because we live in a society that has a lot to say about that. 

'I’m trying to be really brave and just allow myself to be a human and feel things. And that’s all I really want to say about that for now.'

The hitmaker has previously addressed speculation about his sexuality.

In a social video shared in 2017, he stated: 'I noticed a lot of people were saying I gave them a "gay vibe."

'First of all, I’m not gay. Second of all, it shouldn’t make a difference if I was or wasn’t.'

While discussing his decision to share the clip with Rolling Stone months later, he explained: 'I thought, "You f***ing guys are so lucky I’m not actually gay and terrified of coming out. That’s something that kills people. That’s how sensitive it is. Do you like the songs? Do you like me? Who cares if I’m gay?"'

The musician also addressed the 'gay' rumors during an appearance on Dax Shepard's podcast Armchair Expert in 2020.

And he admitted that people 'calling him gay' made him worried that he was coming off as too 'feminine.'

'Everyone's been calling me gay since I was 15 years old. I’m not gay and I'm like, "What does that mean?"' he confessed.

'I had these problems with the way my voice sounded. I'm like, "How do I sit?" I'm always first to cross my legs and sit with a position of this feminine style and I really suffered with that s**t. 

'It was so, so frustrating for me because there were some people in my life that I was very, very close to, who were gay and in the closet. And I felt like this real anger for those people.'

Shawn added that the situation was 'tricky' because he didn't want to offend people who are gay. 

'It's such a tricky thing.' he said. 'You want to say, "I'm not gay but it'd be fine if I was gay - but also there's nothing wrong with being gay but I'm not,"' he said. 'You don't really know how to respond to the situation.'

Although he has been the object of wild speculation about his sexuality, Shawn has only ever publicly dated women.

Arguably his most famous relationship was with former Fifth Harmony member Camila Cabello, whom he dated from 2019 until 2021.

In early 2023, rumors erupted that he was dating singer Sabrina Carpenter, but the romance was short lived as he publicly got back with Camila soon after.

He and Camila have since split again, and it's now rumored that Sabrina's hit song Taste was inspired by the ordeal.