John Mayer gave Shawn Mendes advice.

Shawn Mendes

Shawn Mendes

The 'Stitches' hitmaker has been taking tips from the 38-year-old musician, who listened through and critiqued all the songs on his new album 'Illuminate'.

He told Rolling Stone magazine: "I didn't get to work with him, but he listened to a bunch of the songs and gave great pieces of advice through the music and production and lyrics and stuff, especially on songs like 'Three Empty Words' and 'Ruin' and 'Patience.' It was great to have him listening through it all."

Meanwhile, the 18-year-old singer previously described his new album as a "game-changer".

He shared recently: "It's going to be soon - definitely soon. We're just finishing it off, honestly. It's very nearly done. I'm very excited ... it's a game-changing album. Honestly, I've never felt so proud of something in my life. It's totally, for me, the experience making it in the studio this time around was life-changing.

"I really got to link up with the perfect people. Jake Gosling, who worked on some of the Ed [Sheeran] records ... like, 'Thinking Out Loud', and he's phenomenal. We spent a few weeks up in upstate New York. It's working so well. We write the songs, they're being produced ... to make it feel easy, it's such a good feeling."

Shawn feels he has become a "lot more self-aware" since finding fame and insists he has never been more judgemental of himself.

He explained: "I think the biggest thing is how I feel about myself, I think I'm a lot more self-aware. I've never been more judgemental about everything that I do; I'm being a self-critic.

"I think, like, this has made be a little too aware, to the point where I feel it gets to me sometimes. Sometimes I wish that I could just turn my brain off, just tune out, turn it all off for a second."