Shawn Mendes is being called out for using the environmental impact of the Canadian wildfires to hype yet another song about Camila Cabello.
The singer shared news of the overnight release of “What the Hell Are We Dying For?” on social media with an image of the orange haze that blanketed New York City due to hundreds of wildfires in his native Canada.
Not surprisingly, many people took to social media to criticize Mendes for exploiting a natural disaster.
On Instagram, one person commented: “ppl are dying in wildfires n getting sick by the poor air quality n u rlly decided to make it ur aesthetic?” Someone commented: “Damnnn my reality for your entertainment smh.”
Others blasted the image as “ignorant” and “horrible timing.” One person opined “oh he’s lost his damn mind.”
Upon releasing the song, Mendes said in an Instagram post that he will be “donating to the Canadian Red Cross” and urged fans to do so as well.
“Started writing this song yesterday morning with my friends in upstate New York & finished it only a few hours ago,” Mendes wrote on Instagram. “Felt important to me to share with you guys in real time.”
The song appears to be about Mendes’ second split from Cabello. (The couple called it quits in November 2021 and then, after trying again earlier this year, reportedly ended things last week.)
“Smoke in the air / the city's burning down / I want to speak / but I don't make a sound,” he sings. “Locked in my mind, you're all I think about / I want to save us, but I don't know how ... If we don't love like we used to, if we don't care like we used to, what the hell are we dying for?”
Mendes also sings: “If it doesn't cut like it used to, if you're not mine and I'm not yours, what the hell are we dying for?”
In his 2020 documentary In Wonder, Mendes revealed that “every song I’ve ever wrote” was about Cabello. Following their 2021 break-up, he released “It’ll Be Okay” and “When You’re Gone.”