Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello have broken up. The couple of two years announced the news in a joint statement issued on their respective Instagram Stories on Wednesday, Nov. 17, assuring fans that their “love for one another” is “stronger than ever.”
“We’ve decided to end our romantic relationship but our love for one another as humans is stronger than ever,” the message read. “We started our relationship as best friends and will continue to be best friends. We so appreciate your support from the beginning and moving forward.”
Shawn, 23, and Camila, 24, confirmed their romance in the summer of 2019, though their friendship dates as far back as 2015. The musicians first sparked romance speculation after their collaboration on the steamy 2019 track “Señorita.” (They also previously collaborated on the 2015 song “I Know What You Did Last Summer,” featured in Shawn’s Handwritten Revisited, an iteration of his debut studio album, Handwritten.)
The confirmation of their relationship came not too long after the release of “Señorita,” with some questioning whether the romance was a publicity stunt. Shawn shut down the speculation when approached by paparazzi at LAX airport, replying, “We’re definitely not a publicity stunt.” The relationship continued to grow strong thereafter, with Shawn crediting his girlfriend with helping him become more open and vulnerable.
While promoting his fourth studio album Wonder in 2020, he told radio.com of the relationship: “I thought that I was a pretty open, emotional, guy until I started being in a relationship with someone that I really, truly love and, realizing that ‘oh no, I really have this big ego, and I don’t want to show her that I’m hurting and I don’t want to show her that that offended me, and like I want to be the man, and I want to be strong in this relationship.'”
Instead, the musician found that his initial thinking had been “hurting our relationship,” adding that it was difficult to learn that “the real strength does lie inside of being emotional and being vulnerable.” In an interview with Bustle in August, Camila said there was “a lot of sweetness and tenderness” in the relationship. “I probably have a nurturing attitude because I also like being nurtured. I’m lucky that my partner is the same way,“ she said. “I think we’re both sensitive. I’m really lucky to be able to surround myself with tenderness; it’s really important to me.”