By: Serena Edwards
In 2008, the world changed forever. 13-year-old Canadian Justin Bieber was discovered, and would soon become a pop icon and teen heartthrob. While growing up in the limelight, he faced scrutiny from the public for mistakes he made as a teenager and young adult. This led him to step away from music for a few years. But through all of the obstacles, Bieber has overcome and evolved into a nuanced artist.
Bieber was first put on our screens through YouTube. His mother, Patti Mallette, posted videos of him singing on the website. Through that, producer Scooter Braun discovered him and managed him. Music icon Usher would later become a mentor to Bieber through Braun. The teenager’s first album, “My World,” brought us into his life as a 15-year-old upcoming artist; little did he know his debut single ‘One Time’ would take him to new heights.
In 2011, Bieber faced his first real scandal with a woman named Mariah Yeater. Yeater, who was 20 at the time, claimed that Bieber, 17, was the father of her child. She ended up filing a paternity lawsuit, which would later be dropped. Bieber denied the allegations and fully closed this conflict in a song called “Maria” on his third studio album, “Believe.” In the song, Bieber took the Michael Jackson “Billie Jean’ approach to addressing it. Some lyrics stated, “That ain’t my baby, that ain’t my girl”, “she’s all over the news, saying everything but the truth. She’s faking, faking it all.” At 17, Bieber was able to navigate through conflicts with his talent, music. But this wouldn’t be the last time he had to use music to silence the noise from society
Bieber faced more serious consequences in 2014, arrested for driving under the influence. Like many celebrity mugshots, Bieber’s mugshot had been put on t-shirts and all over the internet. As a Belieber, I faced scrutiny for still supporting him; however, people make mistakes, and he was only 20 at the time. This was the start of the immense scrutiny Justin would face as he started to enter his 20s.
The Canadian artist was always on watch when it came to his relationships.
Though he is now married to model and businesswoman Hailey Bieber, he has had many tumultuous relationships. A notable relationship was with another artist, Selena Gomez. In 2010, Bieber and Gomez started dating, going on and off with her until 2018. During one of those breakups, we would get one of his greatest albums: “Purpose.” Some songs like “What Do You Mean”, “Where Are U Now?”, and “Sorry” address the issues in their relationship and what ultimately led them to break up at that time.
During his Purpose era, Bieber dived deeper into his faith as a Christian, and it influenced the way he did music. In the album, the title track stated how God gave him a purpose. With lyrics like, “That’s what happening with me, it’s like God // I’m giving it all I’ve got, sometimes I’m weak and I’m going to do it. // And it’s like I’m not giving myself grace, // I’m just like understanding that’s how it is”. Still to this day, Bieber talks about faith in little aspects of his music and uses social media as a way to speak further on his relationship with God.
After dealing with public opinions for years, Bieber decided to take a break and disconnect from society. In 2018, he got married to his wife and focused on his family. Then COVID hit, and like many people, spent that time discovering more about himself. This made the media view him a little more lightly and softly. It was clear that he had made significant changes in his life when he dropped his album “Justice”.
There was a complete rebrand from the “bad boy” era he once had.
This year, Bieber has faced more allegations of not liking his wife and being on drugs. With his latest album release, SWAG, he reminds us that he is still here, human and standing on business. In this album, he shows us his versatility within music while also addressing the rumors that have been circulating on social media. “Go Baby” was one of the many songs he dedicated to his wife. In the song, he talks about the model, saying she’s “iconic” and giving a shout-out to her brand Rhode Beauty. “That’s my baby. She’s iconic. iPhone case. Lip gloss on it.”
In his interlude, “Therapy Session”, he addresses how living life in the public eye is weighing on him.
“And that’s been a tough thing for me recently. // It’s feelin’ like, you know, I have had to go through a lot of my struggles as a human. // As all of us do really publicly. And so people are always askin’ if I’m okay. // And that starts to really weigh on me.” He also addresses people, saying that he is losing his mind, and responds by saying that he is human.
“Even sometimes where I know you’re trollin’. // And they don’t even understand it, like, “Oh my God, he’s losin’ his mind” […] He’s enjoyin’ social media like the fuckin’ rest of us.
As any person who was put into the public eye as a child, Bieber faced obstacles and judgment. But, it is evident to notice that Bieber never strayed fully away from his talents; instead, he used them as a coping mechanism to silence the judgment.