You've heard of him, right? He's everywhere. He is always on the news, in magazines, or on the Internet. Are you a obsessed fan with a serious case of "Bieber-fever"? Or maybe a hater that thinks he is the worst thing to become famous after Hannah Montana? I have to admit, I am a fan, and yes, my wall is plastered with posters of him. But I'm not going to yell at the haters, or say "O-M-G he is sooooo hot!" I am going to try to understand why this teenage boy is hated and loved on so many different levels.
For those of you who have no idea who Justin Bieber even is, I'll help sort it all out. Justin grew up in Stratford, Ontario, Canada with his single mom. They didn't have a lot of money, which now makes Justin appreciate what he has. At a young age he taught himself how to play the guitar, drums, trumpet, and piano. Along with those talents, he could also sing. When he was twelve years old he entered a singing competition, in which he won second place. He and his mom put his performances on You-Tube for friends and family to see. What was just meant for a few people to see, grew in numbers as a the word about young boy who could belt out Ne-Yo's "So Sick" and Sarah Mclachlan's "Angel" was spread.
With his increasing popularity, Justin began posting more videos of himself singing in his apartment, including the songs "Back at One" by Brian McKnight and "I'll Be" by Edwin McCain. Little did Justin know that Scooter Braun, his future manager, saw these videos. Scooter immediately knew that Justin could become big. He had raw talent. Scooter flew him and his mother down to Atlanta to meet with some people. A couple weeks later, Usher and Justin Timberlake were in a bidding war over who was going to sign him. Justin eventually signed with Usher. He then started building an even bigger fan base. He currently has two albums out: My World(EP) and My World 2.0. The albums are filled with love songs, ballads about his parents' divorce, and catchy songs about, you guessed it . . . girls.
He is now currently the biggest pop star in the world. In the past couple months he has traveled to Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and Canada. His fans are crazy; people say they remind them of the Beatles' fan hysteria. A mall signing had to be canceled because there wasn't enough security for the amount of girls that showed up. More recently, in Australia, a performance at a news studio was canceled because the girls had become unruly. A handful of girls were sent to the hospital on stretchers because the crowds were so massive. If the fans are like this before Justin Bieber even shows up, what would it be like to be at one of is concerts? People describe it like this: screaming. Thousands of girls show up to his concerts screaming, crying, and even fainting. Girls camped out days before Justin performed on "The Today Show", so they could be in the front row.
Bieber Fever has knocked the world off of its feet. Justin has preformed on "The Late Show with David Letterman", "The Tonight Show", "The Today Show", "American Idol", "Good Morning America", "Chelsea Lately", "Much Music", "MTV", "The White House" (twice), and "Saturday Night Live" (where he also appeared in two skits_. He threw the first pitch at a White Sox game, and let's just say, the pitch wasn't a strike. He is starting his new My World Tour on June 23rd (which I am going to!) Wow. He is a very busy teenage boy.
Most recently, he sang a song called "Never Say Never" with Jaden Smith (Will Smith's son) to promote the upcoming movie "Karate Kid". He has also worked with Jessica Jarrel, Souja Boy, and Ludacris. Even though Justin is a pop/R&B artist, other big artists respect him because he didn't go the Disney route. He wasn't a child actor trying to make it big, he wasn't pre-made to sing. He never even dreamed about being famous, it just happened.
Justin has reached many milestones in these past few months. He is the only artist to have four hit songs before releasing an album. My World 2.0 debuted at number one on the Billboard Top 200, making him the youngest solo artist since Stevie Wonder to get the top spot. But he said his biggest feat was singing "Someday at Christmas" to President Obama.
A fan's point of view is needed. Personally, I am the ONLY person who likes him in my whole town (pop. 2,000). But, I am a Belieber and even though everyone bashes him and myself, I do not stop loving him. Why do I love him? I love his voice, his personality, his normality, and how he cares about his fans. I could go on for days, but that would probably bore most of you or maybe want to shoot me. Justin carries himself in a certain way, he is confident, he has "swagger". He's funny, caring, and loving. He is a flirt, a big flirt. He tells his fans all the time how much he loves and appreciates them, because without his fans he would be nowhere. Sometimes, when fans can't get into a private concert, he sings to them from a window.
A couple of times when fans were having buyouts, he came to the mall and surprised them all. Also, he uses Twitter to talk to his fans all the time. He seems like the most down to earth celebrity out there, even he thinks of himself as a normal teenage boy. He plays basketball and hockey with his friends. His main goal is to stay grounded. His mom wants her son to stay down to earth and keep to his morals. Some of the things he does is pray before every concert, stays humble, and takes time out to just be with his friends family. I would have never thought that I would even be in the same building as him, but never say never. I am going to his concert in Sacramento on October 22nd! I am so excited and can't wait to here him sing live.
Girls fall in love with him for a reason. Boys say he sounds like a girl. Of course many boys won't like him, if all he sings about is love. But singing about love is exactly what girls what to listen to. His brown eyes and mop top haircut that beats Zac Efron's helps too. Another reason that girls fall in love with him is because he is safe. We are allowed to love him, since he is only 16. Unlike Jesse McCartney who was like 19 when I was 10. Us fans, we all know that Justin will never break our hearts, since our chances of dating him are millions to one. It's easier to love him, than to get your heart broken by a boy who doesn't care about you.
I don't love all of his songs, like "First Dance" and "Kiss and Tell", but most of them I do like. I like them for three reasons: the lyrics are meaningful, they're catchy, and he sings what a fourteen year old girls wants to hear. Here are some lyrics I personally like.
"It's all fun and games, 'til someone gets hurt, and I don't, I won't let that be you. Now you don't wanna let go,and I don't wanna let you know, that there might be something real between us two. Who knew?" -- "Stuck in the Moment"
"Its a big, big world. Its easy to get lost in it. You've always been my girl, and I'm not ready to call it quits. I know its hard, but baby believe me, that we can go nowhere but up, from here, my dear." -- "Up"
"Do you do what you did when you did with me? Does he love you the way I can? Did you forget all the plans that you made with me? 'Cause baby I didn't! That should be me, holdin' your hand. That should be me, makin' you laugh."-- "That Should Be Me"
"I will never say never! I will fight till forever! Whenever you knock me down, I will not stay on the ground."-- "Never Say Never"
"You know you love me, I know you care. Just shout whenever, and I'll be there."-- "Baby"
Now, I want some views of others, hopefully without getting attacked. I interviewed four people: mimopwer, loslily, luvv2hate, and jake6633 .
Gasohp: Do you like Justin Bieber?
mimopwer: No, I do not.
loslily: Ya.
luvv2hate: I'm not a huge fan of Justin Bieber but I will give him credit for getting up on stage in front of millions of people, dancing and singing, trying to do the best he can to please his fans.
jake6633: I am a dude so I don't like Justin Bieber! LoL.
Gasohp: Do you like his music?
mimopwer: A little, but his voice doesn't go so well with it.
loslily: Yes.
luvv2hate: He came to my school after we won a contest and he sang. I got a headache afterward, but you could tell it was his dream to sing up there and that he really does try his best.
jake6633: To me he sings like a girl, but I like "Eenie Meenie" kinda . . .
Gasohp: Why do like/dislike him?
mimopwer: I dislike him because my music taste is much different than what he sings.
loslily: He is cute.
luvv2hate: I'm not a fan at all.
jake6633: Almost every girl in my school likes him and talks about him and he sings like a girl but I am sure he is a nice guy.
Gasohp: Who do you like better: Justin, Miley, or the Jonas Brothers?
mimopwer: I don't really like any of them. But, if I had to choose one, I would choose the Jonas Brothers.
loslily: Wow, um . . . let's see. I don't know.
luvv2hate: I like BFMV, ACDC, Guns N Roses, not Disney bands, pop, R&B, or whatever you would consider Miley Cyrus.
jake6633: Maybe Miley because she's kinda hot. LoL, I said kinda!
Unfortunately, I didn't meet any big Justin lovers like myself. But, I know you are out there! Hopefully this article would make people like Justin a little bit more, knowing that he's not a stuck up kid trying to be a gangster. Or maybe it will make you think if your reasons for liking him are superficial, or you will just hate him more.
Author's Note: Most of the things in this article I remember from other articles and magazines I have read, but some of the sites that I got information from are: http://twitter.com/justinbieber , http://bieberfever.com/ , and http://www.justinbiebermusic.com/.
