HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

"Wonder" is a song by Canadian singer
Shawn Mendes Shawn Peter Raul Mendes (; born August 8, 1998) is a Canadian pop singer. He gained a following in 2013, when he posted song covers on the video sharing platform Vine. The following year, he caught the attention of artist manager Andrew Gert ...
from his fourth studio album of the same name. The song, which serves as the album's
lead single A lead single (also known as a debut single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. Release s ...
, was released on October 2, 2020, by
Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in 1959 by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in Jamaica, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, anoth ...
. The track was written and produced by Mendes, Scott Harris, Nate Mercereau and
Kid Harpoon Thomas Edward Percy Hull (born 20 April 1982), known professionally as Kid Harpoon, is an English singer, songwriter, musician and record producer. Career Already a fixture at local venues in his hometown of Chatham, Kid Harpoon first emerge ...
. The single reached the top-ten in Canada, Hungary, and Singapore, as well as the top-twenty in twelve countries including Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States.


Release and promotion

The song and the album were first teased on September 30, 2020, on Mendes'
Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
account, where he tweeted "WHAT IS #WONDER". He followed the tweet up with a link to an interactive website, where, on a piece of paper on the floor in the interactive room, was a setlist with the word Wonder. Later on, he posted a handwritten note onto social media and confirmed that the single, as well as an accompanying music video would be released on October 2.


Live performances

On October 26, 2020, Mendes announced The Wonder Residency, a series of performances from different theaters & venues performing songs from the album. On October 27, 2020, Mendes performed the song as part of a medley on ''
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jimmy Fallon that airs on NBC. The show premiered on February 17, 2014, and is produced by Broadway Video and Universal Television. It is the seventh incar ...
'' for the first time. On October 29, Mendes performed an acoustic version of the song on Global Citizen: EveryVoteCounts/2020. On November 10, Mendes performed the song on BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge. On November 13, he performed the track as part of BBC's Children In Need show. On November 22, Mendes performed the song at the American Music Awards of 2020. On December 6, Mendes performed the song on "Live From Wonder: The Experience".


Composition

The song has been described as a
power ballad A sentimental ballad is an emotional style of music that often deals with romantic and intimate relationships, and to a lesser extent, loneliness, death, war, drug abuse, politics and religion, usually in a poignant but solemn manner.J. M. C ...
. Lyrically, the song sees Mendes contemplating "imagined scenarios", as well as "stepping foot into his friend's shoes". The singer also comments on
toxic masculinity Toxic masculinity is a set of certain male behaviors associated with harm to society and men themselves. Traditional stereotypes of men as socially dominant, along with related traits such as misogyny and homophobia, can be considered "toxic" d ...
, singing "I wonder, when I cry into my hands, I'm conditioned to feel like it makes me less of a man". "Wonder" finds Mendes "broadening his sonic horizons — experimenting with a widescreen, full-bodied sound".


Accolades


Music video

The music video premiered on Mendes'
Vevo Vevo ( , an abbreviation for "Video Evolution", stylized as VEVO until 2013) is an American multinational video hosting service, best known for providing music videos to YouTube. The service is also available as an app on selected smart TVs, di ...
channel on October 2, 2020, at midnight
Eastern Time The Eastern Time Zone (ET) is a time zone encompassing part or all of 23 states in the eastern part of the United States, parts of eastern Canada, the state of Quintana Roo in Mexico, Panama, Colombia, mainland Ecuador, Peru, and a small port ...
. The video was directed by Matty Peacock.


Synopsis

The music video starts with a scene that shows Mendes sitting on a train by himself, looking outside the window. He then stands from his seat and makes his way to the top of the train. The train ride was compared to the scenes on the
Hogwarts Express Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry () is a fictional Scottish boarding school of magic for students aged eleven to eighteen, and is the primary setting for the first six books in J. K. Rowling's '' Harry Potter'' series and serves as a m ...
during the ''
Harry Potter ''Harry Potter'' is a series of seven fantasy literature, fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The novels chronicle the lives of a young Magician (fantasy), wizard, Harry Potter (character), Harry Potter, and his friends ...
'' series. The next scene immediately cuts to Mendes in a forest, where he begins to run towards the edge of the forest, where there is a cliff. As he sings, it begins to rain and Mendes is seen singing at the top of his lungs. The video closes out with Mendes kneeling on top of the cliff whilst the rain stops.


Lyric video

A lyric video was also released to Mendes' Vevo channel on October 5, 2020.


Commercial performance

"Wonder" debuted and peaked at number 18 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 on October 12, 2020. It debuted at number 4 on the Canadian Hot 100. The song also charted in various European countries.


Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from
Tidal Tidal is the adjectival form of tide. Tidal may also refer to: * ''Tidal'' (album), a 1996 album by Fiona Apple * Tidal (king), a king involved in the Battle of the Vale of Siddim * TidalCycles, a live coding environment for music * Tidal (servic ...
. *
Shawn Mendes Shawn Peter Raul Mendes (; born August 8, 1998) is a Canadian pop singer. He gained a following in 2013, when he posted song covers on the video sharing platform Vine. The following year, he caught the attention of artist manager Andrew Gert ...
– vocals, songwriting, production, composition, piano, synthesizer * Scott Harris – songwriting, production, composition * Nate Mercereau – songwriting, additional production, composition, guitar, horn, drums *
Kid Harpoon Thomas Edward Percy Hull (born 20 April 1982), known professionally as Kid Harpoon, is an English singer, songwriter, musician and record producer. Career Already a fixture at local venues in his hometown of Chatham, Kid Harpoon first emerge ...
– songwriting, production, composition, guitar, drums, programming, synthesizer * Michael Lehmann Boddicker – engineering * Edie Lehmann Boddicker – additional vocals, choir arrangement * George Seara – vocal engineering * Jeremy Hatcher – vocal engineering * Mike Stent – mixing * Kaushlesh "Garry" Purohit – vocal engineering * Clydene Jackson – additional vocals * Jarrett Johnson – additional vocals * Nayanna Holley – additional vocals * Toni Scruggs – additional vocals


Charts


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


Certifications


Release history


References


External links

* {{Shawn Mendes 2020s ballads 2020 songs 2020 singles Electronica songs Island Records singles Pop ballads Rock ballads Shawn Mendes songs Songs written by Kid Harpoon Songs written by Scott Harris (songwriter) Songs written by Shawn Mendes