Shawn Mendes is opening up about how he was bullied as a kid, for wanting to sing.
The musician posted a candid Instagram post on Sunday, telling his fans about his experience with bullies while he was growing up.
Mendes encouraged his fans to follow their dreams no matter what in the inspirational post.
Mendes posted this message alongside numerous pics showing his success: “I’m thinking about being in 9th grade right now. The day after I posted one of my first covers onto YouTube back in 2014.”
Mendes added of a group of older bullies, “[They were] yelling out ‘sing for me Shawn, sing for me!’ in a way that made me feel absolutely horrible… made me feel like a joke, like what I was doing was just stupid and wrong.”
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The Canadian singer continued, “Every single person deserves to do what makes them feel alive.”
“I’m writing this not only to the 15-year-old kid who’s scared to follow their heart because of what people might say, but also to the 50-year-old who may be doing the exact same thing.”
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He finished up the post by saying: “I’m here and I’m rooting for you.”
Niall Horan was among those commenting, writing: “Couldn’t relate or agree with something more If I tried. We had the last laugh.”
