Shawn Mendes recalls being bullied for singing, finds support from Señorita pal Camila Cabello & Niall Horan

Shawn Mendes has surely come a long way since his YouTube singing days! With records like Mercy, There's Nothing Holding Me Back, Stitches, In My Blood and If I Can't Have You, just to name a few, Shawn has become a worldwide sensation. It comes as no surprise that soulful singer with a heart of gold was nominated for two Grammys this year. There really is no holding back Shawn Mendes! But, did you know that Shawn was bullied as a child for his talent, that made him what he is today?

Taking to Instagram with an emotional note, Mendes revealed that when he was in the 9th grade and had just posted one of his first covers on YouTube in 2014, a group of older guys bullied him for his voice exclaiming, "Sing for me Shawn, sing for me!" Shawn felt horrible as it made him feel like he was a joke. However, his parents and best friends were very supportive. Mendes wrote, "It’s not joke to me. To make someone feel bad about doing what they love... every single person deserves to do what makes them feel alive."

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.. at school walking down the hall straight into a group of older guys 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 & wrong. I was lucky though, I had the best friends & the best parents anyone could ask for... no matter what they would never let me stop doing what I LOVED to do just because someone ELSE thought it was stupid. It’s not joke to me. To make someone feel bad about doing what they love... 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. I know it’s not just that easy & I’m not asking you to change your world over night, BUT I want you to know that no matter how old you are, no matter who you are, no matter where you’re from... you deserve to follow your heart Im here & i’m rooting for you

ALSO READ: Señorita: Twitterati goes berserk over Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello's sensual chemistry in the music video

The singer found support not just from his millions of fans but his pals like Señorita buddy Camila Cabello and Niall Horan as well. While Camila commented, "This is beautiful," with crying and hail emoticons, Niall commented, "@shawnmendes Couldn't relate or agree with something more if I tried... we had the last laugh," with funky emoticons.

Shawn Mendes surely had the last laugh, indeed!