|
By Melissa (Age 24, USA)
Justin Bieber is something of an enigma. He’s quite the trend for starters. Not in a small sense either. Twitter has him in top trending topics, Funnyordie.com switched the name of the website to Bieberordie.com on April 1st, Conan is engaged in a twitter battle with him, he’s asked out (and got shot down) Chelsea Lately, is the youngest male artist to chart at #1 since Stevie Wonder in 1963, has hordes of screaming tween girl fans, and is beloved by nearly every member of Disney Channel’s roster. Basically, even if you aren’t a Belieber (his fans’ nickname) you’ve still heard of Justin Bieber. Here’s where the story changes. For all of us who haven’t joined the Bieber frenzy, he’s just another Disney type teen. Wrong. First off, Justin’s a good singer. More than just a decent voice too, he really is good. Time of course will tell if he keeps it through puberty. Second, he’s smart. Justin knows his audience and its safe to say his fans are eating out of his hand. (More on this later). Finally, (and this is the big deal) Justin isn’t signed to a teeny bopper pop label. He’s signed with Usher and his pop/R&B record isn’t quite as kid-friendly as some might think. Oh, he’s not sleazy or anything and certainly a good listening choice. But his songs are definitely mature for a sixteen year old. Sweet crushes and changing the world have been left to other teen stars. This combination is leading Justin to the next logical step—world domination.
You think I’m joking, don’t you? Don’t be so sure. An appearance in Long Beach had to be canceled in November after 3000 fans had to be broken up by 35 police units. In a few days of my writing this he’ll perform in Australia—behind glass for his own protection. So let’s take a minute and look at how a kid from Canada decided to show the Jonas Brothers what it really looks like to be the biggest thing since the Beatles.
I’d like to tell you a story of how Justin grew up but he’s still doing that. Even so, he does have a story. These days, artists tend to gather a fan base on myspace and then push for record deals, needing to prove they’ll be able to sell albums. The days of being ‘discovered’ are in the past. Justin managed to bridge the two. He was born in Stratford, Ontario, where lived most of his childhood with his mom. Justin is nothing if not a hard worker. After placing 2nd in a singing competition, he went to work learning the drums, guitar, piano, and trumpet. Then, when he was 13, he started putting videos on YouTube. Now Justin and his mom only did this because youtube is a great way for family and friends to see performances. Many people do this same thing. But people started paying attention to the little kid from Canada and his popularity grew enmasse. Scooter Braun was one of those who saw the videos and immediately called Justin to set up an audition with Usher (who owns his own small label). Within weeks, (in Oct 2008, just a year after he started posting videos) he was signed to Island records and moving to Atlanta, Georgia to start his career. Not bad for a 13 year old.
It was about 7 months later that Justin released his first single, “One Time” in July and it was an instant hit. Since then his debut album “My World” released in November 2009 went platinum which gave him the highest debut sales for an artist that year. He is also the first artist to have seven tracks off his debut album make it onto Billboard’s Hot 100. These days Justin has quite the life. He’s performed on many shows from The Ellen DeGeneres Show to Good Morning America. He participated in both the remake of “Wavin Flag” and “We Are the World” (songs recorded to benefit Haiti earthquake victims). And he’s performed twice for President Obama. (I’m betting the Obama girls had some influence there). Even his appearance on Saturday Night Live was met with good reviews, even if you weren’t a fan of his musical style. Time will tell if Justin sticks around. He’s got the talent and the voice but puberty has killed many a young star. Either way, this is one singer that’s worth taking note of. Justin Bieber is a talented singer. Will you be a Belieber?
|
