Charlie Puth Was Floored By Taylor Swift's Name-Drop. His Outlook On Music Shifted, Too.

Since catapulting on to the music scene over a decade ago, Charlie Puth has released three studio albums, racked up four Grammy nominations and collaborated with Elton John and James Taylor, among others.

Still, the New Jersey-born pop musician says he wasn’t prepared for the amount of attention he received after Taylor Swift name-dropped him on the title track of “The Tortured Poets Department,” her latest album, and said he “should be a bigger artist.”

“The Tortured Poets Department” has been perched at the top of the Billboard charts since its release in April, meaning that legions of listeners have since taken note of Swift’s endorsement and, in turn, sought out Puth’s music.

Nearly four months later, Puth says Swift’s words of encouragement continue to boost his confidence, both in and out of the studio. In May, he dropped a tender ballad, “Hero,” which he’d recorded some time ago but had been hesitant to share with fans.

“I have a fear of being vulnerable sometimes, which is maybe why my music hasn’t hit a certain point in my goal-oriented mind,” Puth told HuffPost. “I think I’m going to hit that with this next record. There’s an album I’m making right now that I’m approaching in a way that Taylor approaches her music, where it feels like a diary entry with melody. It’s about a lot of things that I’ve felt afraid to sing about.”

Fans may have to wait a bit longer to hear Puth’s next album, which he says is about “halfway” done. In the meantime, he’s hoping to pay it forward by partnering with Bic and the Save the Music Foundation for a back-to-school “creativity camp” for students and teachers.

The campaign’s kickoff event, held in New York last week, found Puth encouraging groups of teens and young adults to try