Just after Shawn Mendes hit the stage at the 2018 TIME 100 Gala on Tuesday night to perform for a room of luminaries and fellow honorees — including Jennifer Lopez, who insisted on getting a photo with the young singer-songwriter after his heartfelt set — Mendes stopped to chat with TIME about his friendships with some of music’s most popular voices, like John Mayer, who wrote his TIME 100 tribute, and Camila Cabello, who he calls his “favorite person in the world.” “It’s impossible to have a conversation with [Mayer] without some profound piece of advice coming out of his mouth,” Mendes told TIME at the gala.