He’s the Canadian singer-songwriter behind a slew of worldwide hits.
But Shawn Mendes brought his brand of modern pop to the southern hemisphere, when he kicked off the Oceanic leg of his Illuminate world tour in Auckland on Saturday.
The 18-year-old, who rose to fame after posting covers of popular songs on the now defunct video-sharing application Vine, was armed with only his signature acoustic guitar as he walked out to Spark Arena in front of thousands of adoring fans.
Nothing holdin’ him back! Shawn Mendes lit up the stage in Auckland on Saturday as part of his ‘Illuminate’ world tour
Revelling in the high number of devout New Zealand fans who had turned out in droves to watch him perform, Shawn appeared to not be able to wipe the smile off his face throughout the entire performance.
Shawn’s pop music sensibility is one that has earned him his stripes, and playing smash hits like the ear-thumping pop anthem ‘Nothing Holdin’ Me Back’ sent the crowd into a frenzy.
While a capo adorned the top of his guitar’s fret board to help him correct pitch for an enthralling live performance, it didn’t stop the Stitches singer from ditching his signature instrument altogether at one point and switching to piano.
A heavily rehearsed and stripped back cover of Ed Sheeran’s ‘Castle On The Hill’ ensued, with screaming fans not missing a beat and singing in unison with Shawn as the crowd raised their phones to act as lighters.
More than happy! Shawn didn’t seem to able to wipe the smile off his face for the entire performance
Prancing around in front of a psychedelic backdrop, Shawn then switched to an electric guitar and quickly changed the vibe as the show came to a close with the smash-hit ‘Treat Her Better.’
Cutting a casual look for his show, it seemed as if Sean didn’t even break a sweat under the stage’s bright lights, despite wearing a loosely-fitted faded green shirt with the sleeves rolled up.
Simple yet stylish! Sean wore a loosely-fitted faded green shirt and a pair of tight black skinny jeans
Tight black skinny jeans rounded out Sean’s image for the night, and a pair of polished brown boots acted as his choice of footwear for his performance.
Having kicked off in Glasgow in April of this year, Shawn has been touring extensively in support of his second studio album ‘Illuminate’, released in 2016.
The tour has 60 stops all over the world, with his first Australian show getting underway this Wednesday November 29 in Brisbane.
On the road: Sean has been touring extensively all over the world since April of this year