The American Music Industry is one of the most influential music markets globally – it is one big world in itself. The industry produces countless noteworthy artists and boasts a massive pool of music-loving fans from around the world.
Making a name for oneself in this industry is an arduous business that requires a strenuous amount of effort and dedication. Justin Bieber is one of very few stars in the American music industry who has created a noteworthy space for himself.
In today's article, we take a look at the evolution of JB – his career aspects, and all the highs and lows JB faced in his life. If you happen to be a Belieber, we recommend you continue reading the article. Even if you do not follow Justin Bieber, we suggest you read the article as JB's life is an inspiration to many.
Discovering Justin Bieber
Raised by a single mother in Ontario, Canada, Justin Bieber learned to play the drums, the guitar, and other musical instruments at a very young age. Bieber's mother posted a video of Justin Bieber performing a local singing competition in which he placed second, on YouTube, for family and friends who could not attend the show.
Later, she also began uploading other homemade videos, in which Bieber sang popular R&B songs – these YouTube videos soon garnered a lot of attention and audience. Among those many viewers was a talent manager Scooter Braun, who invited Bieber to record demos in Atlanta.
During his time in Atlanta, Braun also introduced Bieber to R&B singer Usher. Impressed by Bieber's confidence and voice, Usher helped him sign a recording contract in 2008. In May 2009, Bieber released "One Time," a rhythmic buoyant puppy-love song co-created by Tricky Stewart and The-Dream.
The video of the single featured a cameo from Usher now has almost 664 million YouTube views. Later in 2009, Bieber also released a seven-track debut EP named My World, making Justin Bieber the first artist to have seven songs from a debut record chart on the Billboard Hot 100.
Being the Heartthrob and My World 2.0
By this time, Justin Bieber had already become a sensation in the music industry. His audience had dramatically expanded to house countless teenage girls who considered Justin a heartthrob. They would have posters of him hanging in their room, listen to Bieber on loop, cry at Bieber's concert, and sold over one million copies of the EP.
Justin Bieber then made his highly anticipated debut with his My World 2.0 that dropped in early 2010. The album was the perfect introduction for the growing star and marketed Bieber's clean-cut dream boy image very well. My World 2.0 debuted at number one on the Billboard album chart.
The yearningly heartfelt "Baby" featured a guest appearance from rapper Ludacris and several other artists, including Drake and Lil Twist. The song's official video became the first music video to amass over 500 million views on YouTube.
Justin Bieber: Never Say Never and Following Albums
In 2011, the Baby hitmaker released his autobiographical documentary film titled "Justin Bieber: Never Say Never." The 3-D part-biopic, the part-concert film, was directed by Step Up 3D director Jon M. Chu, which topped the box office with an estimated gross of $12.4 million on its opening day.
The movie sent flocks of Bieber fever-ridden school girls to the theatre in purple hoodies (Bieber's signature wear) and turned numerous non-Beliebers into converts. Earning $73 million in the United States alone, the movie still holds the highest-grossing concert film record.
Bieber maintained his visibility with albums like "Never Say Never: The Remixes" and "Under the Mistletoe" – both albums hit number one in the United States and Canada. "Under the Mistletoe" became a certified Double Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America for selling over 2 million copies.
His first-holiday album was also by a male artist that debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart. With the following albums, Bieber introduced a more mature sound, and by 2011, Justin Bieber was the name you could find literally everywhere. He was working the whole teen idol thing greatly, learning to surf on his wave of female fans, and simply killing the music industry.
Relationship with Selena Gomez
In 2012, Justin was already 18-year old – he had grown out of his trademark hairstyle and childish grin. Instead, at this time, he was rocking a perfectly tousled quiff and a bad boy persona that was only providing a finishing touch to his heartthrob status.
While maintaining a sweetheart image, Justin Bieber also broke millions of hearts when Justin Bieber and teen icon Selena Gomez were caught cuddling at IHOP (fast food pancake franchise) in 2010. The couple made their relationship official in February 2011, when they made their red carpet debut at Vanity Fair's Oscars party.
Coined the term "Jelena," the couple ensured they meltdown the entire world. From helicopter rides and pregnancy rumors to renting an entire stadium – the couple experienced everything in their relationship. Yes, you heard it right! Justin Bieber rented out the entire Staples Center for a dinner-and-a-movie night.
Believe and the Beginning of the Downfall
Following the success of previous albums, Justin released Believe in 2012, which featured more prominent elements of dance-pop and contemporary R&Bs. The album was well applauded by audiences and received favorable reviews from music critics. With the sales of over three million copies worldwide, Believe became the sixth best-selling album of 2012.
Believe was the teen idol's total reinvention and laid the foundation for gaining musical praise he deserved. With artists like Drake, Big Sean, Nicki Minaj, Jaden Smith, Ludacris, and several other fellow collaborators, Justin seemed to be flexing his contact list and proved that he could work well with any genre.
Outside the music world, Justin Bieber was entering his adulthood, and that is when he began landing himself in some serious troubles – his personal life began to get publicly messy. His on-and-off relationship with Selena Gomez is just one small element of his harsh life.
He became more rebellious, started doing stupid teenage things; Justin Bieber kind of fell into the trap of being a "child star." The musician had several run-ins with the law, including several reckless driving cases, driving under the influence of alcohol, smoking weed, and fighting with the paparazzi.
2015 Purpose: Bieber's Best Version Is Yet to Come
2015 was the year of Justin Bieber's rebirth, and it would not be wrong to say that the best version of the star was yet to come. Bieber seemed to turn over a new leaf both professionally and personally – he showed the world that he is serious about the music again.
He also explained how he is grateful to his fans for the life they had given him, and most importantly, he was ready to become the Justin Bieber he wants to see himself become – he had found the "Purpose" of his life. And that is when the "Purpose: The Movement" his fourth studio happened, which surely was his best work yet.
He slipped into various genres and rocked them very well - Justin Bieber pulled the strings of EDM (Where Are You Now feat. Diplo and Skrillex). Not just a couple of tracks hitting the charts, Purpose's every song reflected a well-executed matured version of the singer – he had learned from his mistakes, and it seemed he was apologetic for every single one of them.
Collaborations with Other Artists and 2020 Changes
Purpose was a massive success, and realizing the speed he was catching, Justin Bieber decided and announced that he was taking a break from music. To slow down, Justin even canceled the rest of his Purpose World Tour in 2015. JB got involved in music only when he was asked to jump onto other artists' songs.
In 2017, he teamed up with Puerto Rican singers Daddy Yankee and Luis Fonsi to create a remix version of their song "Despacito." The remix version of the song boosted its original version, pushing its YouTube views to 7.20 billion.
In between 2016 and 2017, he featured in several music tracks and provided his vocals to songs like DJ Khaled's "I'm the One," "No Brainer," Ed Sheeran's "I Don't Care," and Dan + Shay's "10,000 Hours." In 2019, Justin Bieber officially married his supermodel girlfriend, Hailey Baldwin, after an intense two-year break-up.
Following his marriage, Justin Bieber announced his official musical comeback, and after five long years, JB dropped his first solo single, "Yummy." This was the first single off his fifth studio album, "Changes," which was followed by other releases including "Intentions" featuring Quavo, "Get Me" featuring Kehlani, "Intentions," and "Holy."
The Bottom Line
As a new decade begins, it seems like Justin Bieber has finally won the struggle against himself. Starting as a teenage heartthrob, JB today is a married and bankable man who has seen all kinds of highs and lows in his life. And, we have been with the star to witness every moment of his life, and we are not about to stop now.
