Camila Cabello isn't crying in the club over her new chapter.
Instead, the "Havana" singer is letting her emotions flow through her music on her upcoming fourth album. While Camila hinted that she was influenced by a difficult relationship, she was tightlipped on whether the songs directly reference her off-and-on romance with ex Shawn Mendes, which ended in 2021 before they briefly rekindled the spark last spring.
"It's me sitting with this feeling of understanding," she told Puss Puss in an interview published Feb. 21, "that I feel really confused as a 26-year-old."
The Fifth Harmony alum continued, "I really felt I was in love with this person. Now I feel kind of lonely and small and weird, but at the same time, I'm an adult and I feel so strong in other areas of my life, but not this one."
And for Camila—who also went through a breakup with Lox Club CEO Austin Kevitch last year—the theme of her album isn't just about love, but is actually a chance for her to explore everything she's been feeling.
"There's just the wrestling of those feelings without it being kind of neat or in a box. You can't really say that it's a sad song, you can't really pin it down," she explained. "It's just kind of me wrestling with these feelings and me kind of being really present on a particular feeling and exploring it."
And how is Camila now? As she told the magazine, she's feeling "chaotic and brave," especially after debuting her new blonde locks, which have helped get her "unhinged sparkle" back.
Camila and Shawn, who collaborated on the hit song "Señorita" in 2019, announced their breakup in November 2021 after two years together.
"Hey guys, we've decided to end our romantic relationship but our love for one another as humans is stronger than ever," they both wrote on Instagram at the time. "We started out relationship as best friends and will continue to be best friends. We so appreciate your support from the beginning and moving forward."
And while the couple have tried to rekindle their romance over the years—even sharing a kiss at Coachella 2023—Camila has instead most recently been linked to rapper Drake as the two were seen hanging out in Turks and Caicos in December. However, neither has publicly spoken out about where they stand.
E! News has reached out to Shawn's rep for comment on her new interview but hasn't heard back.
Keep reading for a look back at Camila and Shawn's romantic history.
Back in 2015, Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello first made headlines together not as a couple, but as a musical duet on their joint hit single, "I Know What You Did Last Summer."
Four years later, the performers' new steamy music video for their "Señorita" duet, released in June, raised eyebrows over whether there was a romance brewing behind the scenes.
The following month, the two were spotted holding hands while out together in West Hollywood. "They were telling people they were a couple," a source told E! News at the time. Soon after, the stars were seen getting close in San Francisco.
While the two had not publicly confirmed their relationship status, this steamy makeout in the Miami water did all the talking.
The rumored pair rang in Mendes' 21st birthday together in August 2019, including a big kiss for the birthday boy. Cabello also declared her love for her musical beau over on Instagram.
At the 2019 MTV Video Music Awards, Camila and Shawn stole the show with a sexy live performance of "Señorita" as viewers waited to see if they would kiss.
After laughing off breakup rumors in October 2019, their romance was on full display as they made out courtside throughout a basketball game.
Shawn revealed that during the pandemic, he went to Miami to live with Camila. "Something really beautiful for me came out of it, which was you're not allowed to leave," he told Zane Lowe in 2020. "I went to Miami and I was living with Camila [Cabello] and her parents and her sister."
Relationship milestone alert: They welcomed a new member of their family after picking up a puppy named Tarzan in November 2020.
Shawn revealed he and Camila get into fights from time to time. "We definitely fight, and we get in like the worst little arguments," he said on SiriusXM's The Morning Mash Up in August. "But, like, I think that we definitely are pretty good at picking up on when it's just ego talking. And we like, usually like call each other out. We have a really honest and open relationship—but, yeah, no, we definitely fight."
Shawn was by Camila's side while she walked the red carpet for the premiere of Cinderella in September.
Shawnmila attended their first Met Gala together in 2021, wearing Michael Kors Collection looks.
The pair celebrated Halloween together in 2021, writing on social media, "Feliz día de los muertos."
The couple announced their split on Nov. 17, 2021. As they wrote, "we've decided to end our romantic relationship but our love for on another as humans is stronger than ever." The pair added, "we started our relationship as best friends and will continue to be best friends."
The pair reunited at Coachella in April 2023 and were seen kissing during the festival.
Rekindling the Flame
After their Coachella moment, Shawn and Camila were spotted hanging out a few times during early summer 2023—including at a Taylor Swift concert—but ultimately called it quits once more in June.