Shawn Bosco Fernandes (born January 12, 1982), known by his stage name Shawn Desman, is a Canadian singer, songwriter, dancer, and choreographer.
Shawn Desman | |
|---|---|
 Desman performing in 2011 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Shawn Fernandes |
| Born | January 12, 1982 Mississauga, Ontario, Canada |
| Occupations |
|
| Years active | 1991–present |
| Website | shawndesman |
| Musical career | |
| Genres | |
| Instruments |
|
| Labels |
|
Early life
editShawn Desman attended St. Francis of Assisi Elementary School in Toronto. After discovering his passion for performing, Desman's parents encouraged him to pursue a career in music. From age nine to 16, he made Portuguese albums and toured under his legal name, Shawn Fernandes. In 1998, Shawn was in The Boomtang Boys video for their song "Squeeze Toy" as a dancer.
Career
edit2002–2005: Debut Album and Back for More
editAt 18, Desman was signed to BMG Music Canada and started recording an album, which was released in 2002. The self-titled breakthrough album featured three top ten singles ("Shook", "Spread My Wings" and "Get Ready") on the Canadian charts. The album went on to achieve gold certification in Canada.[1] The single, "Spread My Wings", is a cover of the unreleased group Vega, featuring Chilli of TLC.
His follow-up album, Back for More garnered a Juno Award for the R&B/Soul Recording of the Year which featured the single "Let's Go". After the release of his second album, BMG dropped him from the label. He was then signed to Universal Music Canada.
2010–2015: Fresh and Alive
editHis 2010 album Fresh garnered two gold singles, one platinum single, Video of the Year at the Much Music Video Awards, Canadian Dance/Pop Song of the year at the Stylus Awards, as well as SOCAN Number 1 Award for Electric/Night Like This.
Desman is also a producer and has worked with various artists producing hit singles for Nick Carter, Kreesha Turner, Keshia Chanté as well as contestants on YTV's The Next Star, where he produced the song (One More First Chance) for Brock Zanrosso in 2009 and "It Might Be You" for contestant Parker Schmidt in 2011.
In 2013, Shawn Desman released his fourth studio album, Alive, along with an accompanying short film of the same name. The album spawned two singles; "Nobody Does It Like You" and "Dum Da Dum". In 2015, he released the songs "Victoria" and "Obsession",[2] and was dropped by Universal Music.
2020–present: Resurgence
editAfter coming to terms with the end of his music career, he received a call from Canadian country music singer Tebey, who suggested they collaborate on a project called RadioClub. With RadioClub, Desman released a dance remix of Rick Astley's song "Never Gonna Give You Up".
In July 2022, Desman performed at Drake's All Canadian North Stars concert at OVO Fest, featuring a dozen Canadian hip-hop and R&B artists. After the show, Drake approached him in the hallway outside of the green room, praising him for his performance and had encouraged him to continue making music.[3] A few months later he had signed a new deal with Wax Records and released a new single called "Maniac", his first single since 2015's "Obsession".[4][5] In January 2023, the single debuted at number 99 on the Canadian Hot 100, making it his first appearance on the chart in 10 years, it would then peak at number 71.[6][7]
In 2023, he participated in an all-star recording of Serena Ryder's single "What I Wouldn't Do", which was released as a charity single to benefit Kids Help Phone's Feel Out Loud campaign for youth mental health.[8]
Personal life
editDesman is of Portuguese and Italian descent. He has two younger brothers (one of them being fellow Canadian singer Danny Fernandes). He is also a cousin to another Canadian singer Tyler Medeiros.
In 2015, Desman's wife became ill, so he made the difficult decision to step away from his music career to focus on his family.[9] He credits his appearance at Drake's 2022 OVO Fest concert celebrating a legacy of Canadian hip-hop and R&B musicians as one reason why he returned to making solo music.[9] A conversation with Drake and response from the audience gave him the conviction to return to the recording studio.
Accolades
edit- Eponymous was certified Gold by the Canadian Recording Industry Association.
- In 2006, won a Juno Award for "R&B/Soul Recording of the Year".
- In 2011, won "Video of the year" at the Much Music Video Awards for his video "Electric/Night Like This".
- In 2011, won Canadian Dance/Pop Single of the Year at the Stylus Awards.
- In 2011, awarded SOCAN No. 1 Award for Electric/Night Like This reaching No. 1.
- In 2013, Alive awarded Best Outstanding Short Film at Reel World Film Festival
Discography
editStudio albums
edit| Title | Album details | Peak | Certifications |
|---|---|---|---|
| CAN [10] | |||
| Shawn Desman | 38 | ||
| Back for More |
|
— | |
| Fresh |
|
29 | |
| Alive |
|
— | |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. | |||
Live albums
edit| Title | Album details |
|---|---|
| Shawn Desman: Live from the Phoenix, Toronto |
Singles
edit| Year | Title | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAN [13] |
CAN AC [14] |
CAN CHR [15] |
CAN HAC [16] |
AUS [17] |
GER [18] | ||||
| 1995 | "Tu és Minha" | — | — | — | — | — | — | Portuguese albums | |
| 1999 | "Don't Want to Lose You" | 19 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2002 | "Get Ready" | 1 | — | — | — | 37 | — | Shawn Desman | |
| "Shook" | 3 | — | — | — | — | 64 |
| ||
| 2003 | "Spread My Wings"[19] | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Sexy"[20] | — | — | — | — | — | — | Back For More | ||
| 2005 | "Let's Go" | — | — | 3 | — | — | 27 | ||
| "Red Hair"[21] | — | — | 9 | — | — | — | |||
| 2010 | "Shiver" | 18 | 33 | 16 | 18 | — | — |
|
Fresh |
| "Night Like This" | 22 | 9 | 9 | 13 | — | — |
| ||
| "Electric" | 23 | — | 11 | 15 | — | — |
| ||
| 2011 | "Moneyshot" / "Something Stupid"[A] | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012 | "Nobody Does It Like You" | 18 | 12 | 23 | 12 | — | — |
|
Alive |
| "Dum Da Dum" | 32 | 14 | 14 | 21 | — | — | |||
| 2013 | "Too Young to Care"[23] | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Stuck"[24] | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| 2015 | "Victoria"[25] | — | — | 31 | 48 | — | — | Non-album singles | |
| "Obsession"[26] | — | — | 24 | — | — | — | |||
| 2022 | "Maniac"[27] | 71 | — | 48 | — | — | — | ||
| 2023 | "Love Me with the Lights On"[28] | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2024 | "Beautiful Day"[29] | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Heels on the Ground"[30] | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Never Fall in Love Again"[31] | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released to that territory or format. | |||||||||
- Notes
Features
edit- 2003: "Movie Star (Remix)" Rascalz feat. Shawn Desman
- 2006: "All Eyes on Me" Puppet feat. Shawn Desman
- 2010: "Feel It" Danny Fernandes feat. Shawn Desman
Collaborations
edit- 2009: "One More First Chance" (as producer for Brock Zanrosso on YTV's The Next Star)
Filmography
edit- Get Over It (2001)
- Honey (2003)
- How She Move (2007)
- The Next Step (2015)
References
edit- ^ "Music Canada - Gold/Platinum". musiccanada.com. February 20, 2003. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
- ^ "Songs of Summer brings variety of headliners". Sudbury.com. July 27, 2016. Retrieved May 25, 2023.
- ^ Shawn Desman Says Drake Spurred His Comeback, Gets Emotional: ‘It’s Been Really Tough’
- ^ "Shawn Desman is back with a new sound after stepping away from music nearly a decade ago | CBC Radio". CBC News. October 26, 2022. Archived from the original on February 17, 2023.
- ^ ON THE RISE AGAIN: JULLY BLACK, GLENN LEWIS, SHAWN DESMAN
- ^ MANIAC SHAWN DESMAN
- ^ Billboard Canadian Hot 100 WEEK OF JANUARY 21, 2023
- ^ Brent Furdyk, "Feel Out Loud: Alessia Cara, Serena Ryder & More Canadian Artists Collaborate On New Single Promoting Youth Mental Health Initiative". Entertainment Tonight Canada, March 2, 2023.
- ^ a b David Friend (June 26, 2024). "Shawn Desman on restarting his career from the bottom, with a little help from Drake". thecanadianpressnews.ca. The Canadian Press. Retrieved June 27, 2024.
- ^ Peak chart positions for albums in Canada:
- Shawn Desman: Williams, John (October 30, 2002). "Foos, Santana storm charts". JAM! Music. Canadian Online Explorer. Retrieved April 4, 2011.
- Fresh: "ALBUMS : Top 100". Canadian Online Explorer. August 19, 2010. Retrieved April 4, 2011.
- ^ a b c d e f "Canadian certifications – Shawn Desman". Music Canada. Retrieved May 26, 2018.
- ^ "Shawn Desman: Live From The Phoenix, Toronto". iTunes Store. Apple. July 7, 2024. Retrieved July 25, 2024.
- ^ "Shawn Desman Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved December 31, 2019.
- For 1995–2007: "Shawn Desman | Awards". AllMusic. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved May 26, 2018.
- For "Maniac": "Billboard Canadian Hot 100: Week of February 18, 2023". Billboard. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
- ^ "Shawn Desman Chart History (Canada AC)". Billboard. Retrieved December 31, 2019.
- ^ "Shawn Desman Chart History (Canada CHR/Top 40)". Billboard. Retrieved December 31, 2019.
- "Let's Go": "Canada CHR/Pop Top 30" (PDF). Radio & Records. April 29, 2005. p. 25. Retrieved December 31, 2019.
- "Red Hair": "Canada CHR/Pop Top 30" (PDF). Radio & Records. August 12, 2005. p. 30. Retrieved December 31, 2019.
- "Man in Me": "Canada CHR/Pop Top 30" (PDF). Radio & Records. November 25, 2005. p. 26. Retrieved December 31, 2019.
- ^ "Shawn Desman Chart History (Canada Hot AC)". Billboard. Retrieved December 31, 2019.
- ^ Steffen Hung. "Shawn Desman – Get Ready". australian-charts.com. Retrieved March 2, 2011.
- ^ Peak positions on German Singles Chart:
- "Let's Go": "Shawn Desman - Let's Go". Offizielle Deutsche Charts. Retrieved December 31, 2019.
- "Shook": "Shawn Desman - Shook". Offizielle Deutsche Charts. Retrieved December 31, 2019.
- ^ "Shawn Desman – Spread My Wings (Vinyl)". discogs. Retrieved July 13, 2016.
- ^ "Sexy – Shawn Desman | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved July 13, 2016.
- ^ "Promo Only – Promo Only – Chart Radio 096 – 2005 07 Jul :: Various Artists [CHRRADIO_096]". University of British Columbia Music Database. Retrieved July 13, 2016.
- ^ Collins, Leah (June 15, 2011). "MMVAs Profile: Shawn Desman on 'Electric/Night Like This'". Ottawa Citizen. Postmedia Network. Retrieved July 13, 2016.
- ^ "Virgin Radio 96 :: Shawn Desman – Too Young To Care". CJFM-FM. Retrieved July 13, 2016.
- ^ "Stuck (Version Francaise) – Single by Shawn Desman". iTunes Store (Canada). Apple Inc. January 2013. Retrieved July 14, 2016.
- ^ "Victoria – Single by Shawn Desman". iTunes Store (Canada). Apple Inc. Retrieved July 14, 2016.
- ^ "Obsession – Single by Shawn Desman". iTunes Store (Canada). Apple Inc. June 16, 2015. Retrieved July 14, 2016.
- ^ "Maniac – Single by Shawn Desman". iTunes Store (Canada). Apple Inc. Retrieved October 31, 2022.
- ^ "Love Me With The Lights On – Single by Shawn Desman". iTunes Store (Canada). Apple Inc. Retrieved August 27, 2023.
- ^ "Beautiful Day – Single by Shawn Desman". iTunes Store (Canada). Apple Inc. Retrieved February 16, 2024.
- ^ "Heels On The Ground – Single by Shawn Desman". iTunes Store (Canada). Apple Inc. Retrieved July 12, 2024.
- ^ "Never Fall In Again – Single by Shawn Desman". iTunes Store (Canada). Apple Inc. Retrieved July 12, 2024.
External links
edit- Official website
- Shawn Desman at AllMusic
- Shawn Desman discography at Discogs
- Shawn Desman at IMDb
- Shawn Shawn Desman at Last.fm
- Shawn Desman MuchMusic page (archived 2009)