Justin Bieber: Congrats On Your Comeback — It’s Great That You Took Off Two Years

Justin — you didn’t have the easiest time in the past year and a half. But the most important thing is that you learned, you grew, and you’re coming back to your music career better than ever with ‘What Do You Mean’.
Justin Bieber, one of the toughest things in the world for a young person as talented as you, is to grow up in the spotlight and NOT combust. The examples of child stars who never crossed over to major adult careers are legendary: Macaulay Culkin, Lindsay Lohan, Aaron Carter and Amanda Bynes are examples. So, you were faced with a tricky situation. You were catapulted into stardom at 14 and worked nonstop for five years until the end of your Believe tour in 2013.


Justin, you needed to take a break. You HAD to have a break. You needed time to yourself, time to get some sleep, time to hang out and have fun and enjoy being a teenager. This was something you had to do, or you could have burned out for good. You knew that, your mom Pattie Mallette knew it, and your team knew it. But you had growing pains. You goofed up and you did some acting out. There are lots of teen guys who party a little too much at times, drive too fast sometimes, date a lot of different girls, and pull some pranks with their friends.

However, most teen guys aren’t under a microscope, aren’t followed by a herd of paparazzi and don’t have tens of millions of fans. But what’s most important is that going through everything — your ups and your downs, which were so cleverly roasted during the Roast of Justin Bieber — enabled you to mature and move on. You were able to “find” yourself and to find the new music within you. “The last couple of years have been a learning process for me,” you readily admitted in your interview with Elvis Duran Z100 on Aug. 28. “I never thought I really did anything wrong either, I think I’m under a microscope and there’s certain things I can look at and be like, ‘Yeah, that wasn’t me!’ but we all have those moments,” you explained.




It’s been great to see you move forward from those moments, though, with a new maturity and with humility and humor. “There was really no preparing me for this life. I was thrown into this at 12 years old, and I didn’t really know what I was getting myself into. There’s been moments I’m really proud of and a lot of moments I look back and I’m pretty disappointed with myself for. But the things that I’ve done really don’t define who I am. I’m a kind-hearted person who loves people and through it all, lost some of my best qualities. For that, I’m sorry,” he said at his March 30 roast.

Justin, you’re now 21, and being humble and honest demonstrates how much you have grown up. Now you’ve been able to move forward and make the best music of your life. “Where Are U Now” was such a surprising and brilliant progression for you. And you let it come out so quietly that it was like a wonderful gift for your fans and new listeners to unwrap. Now you’ve premiered your catchy “What Do You Mean” single, and fans can’t get it out of their heads.

The video teaser looks amazing, and appears to be another fascinating next step. You’ve said that you want to focus on “the music” now, and it’s clear that you have. “I just want to be around people who I feel are supporting me, uplifting me, and making sure I’m the best version of myself.” Wise words, Justin. Also love that you said the only thing you’d do differently about the last couple of years is “stay away from Miami”! You really are totally together now! Congrats, Justin — can’t wait to see everything that you’re going to do.