It turns out there is something holding Shawn Mendes back: his age.
The “In My Blood” singer tried his darndest to get into a Dublin bar in the early hours of Monday, April 15, four months shy of his 21st birthday — but he was promptly turned away.
A fan tweeted a video of security guards denying Mendes entry into the iconic pub Bruxelles. One of the bouncers explained to the Grammy nominee that while the official drinking age in Ireland is 18, many bar managers have their own rules in place after certain hours.
“OK, thank you. Wow,” Mendes graciously replied before walking away. “All right, bye. I tried.”
The former Vine star, who had just finished a concert at Dublin’s 3Arena, still made the best of the night, though. He ended up going to the newly renovated McDonald’s on Grafton Street, where he posed for a bunch of selfies with fans just after 3 a.m.
To ease the pain of the bar’s rejection, Mendes treated himself to a Happy Meal. (“Y’all think @ShawnMendes had to get a happy meal at Mcdonalds cause he’s a child??” one Twitter user quipped.)
The “Youth” crooner has been outspoken through the years about the varying drinking ages across the world, explaining that he usually ends up skipping alcohol completely when he is not in his native Toronto.
“I just don’t drink in America. I get it all out when I go home,” he told Rolling Stone in May 2018. “I don’t find it frustrating because I care about alcohol. I care about time with friends in bars. I’m being denied a social experience, not an alcoholic beverage. I wish I was allowed to just go in the bar and drink a pop because then I would at least be there with everyone and I wouldn’t have to be in my hotel while everyone else is at the bar.”
As for his drink of choice? He told the magazine, “I love rye and ginger. But I had to slow down because they don’t feel good the next morning, so I just started drinking tequila, and it’s better. I drink either Don Julio or Casamigos.”
