By Cammy Thomas
As this year’s Coachella king took up his mantle on the Indio deserts main stage as headline act, his performance was one of the most polarising. Die-hard fans termed his performance intimate and noted Justin was “healing his inner child,” however the casual observer derided his week one performance terming it lacklustre, lazy, and were quick to point out the disparity between male and female performers. Whether you view Justin Bieber as the brat that was egg slinging and graffiti spraying alongside Chris Brown, the troubled adult battling demons of the past, or a Bonafide pop maestro and you’re still in the strong grip of ‘Bieber fever’, one thing is undeniable, this is a complex man, with those complexities illustrated within his music. Hot on the heels of Justin Bieber’s celebrated week 2 Coachella performance, the world was and still is, gripped by Michael mania as the biopic ‘Michael’ is on track to be the first billion dollar earning music biopic. Witnessing Michael Jackson’s singles and albums shooting back up the global charts to sit at No.1, whilst Justin Bieber sits underneath him at No.2, Just maybe these two artists from completely different generations have more in common than first glance would have you believe!
RnB Risings
As a fully-fledged adult in my twenties by the time Bieber fever whipped tweens into a world-wide frenzy, I had never paid attention to the pudding bowl esque floppy haired tweeny bopper. That all changed with the release of 2012’s ‘Boyfriend’, a pop song with RnB overtures and fluttery falsettos. The floppy hair of tween was suddenly replaced by a crisp quiff of teen, we also had a signature phrase whispered throughout the song by the Biebs, which made its way into 2010’s popular slang – “Swag” / ” Swaggy”. I distinctly remember raising an eyebrow and asking myself, ‘What happened to HIM.’ Nearly 15 years later, I have answered my own question whilst researching this piece. Justin Bieber decided to return to his beloved RnB roots, which he claims raised him. During an interview at 14, in which he declared he wanted to move away from pop and make more RnB, citing Michael Jackson and Usher as big inspirations for his love of the genre to a slightly puzzled journalist, when you consider it was RnB that sparked Justin’s musical creativity, it makes complete sense he decided to sign with celebrated RnB aficionado, Usher. The release of ‘Boyfriend’ not only signified a musical transition with deeper explorations into his passion for RnB and genuine appreciation for Hip Hop culture, it also saw myself, RnB lovers, and ‘urban’ culture watchers, make a conscious effort to train one eye on this newly emerging era, lest we miss the next unexpected surprise!
Justin Bieber’s RnB rolodex and our introduction to ‘Jaquavious Bieber’
Journals’ Journey:
By the time ‘Journals’ slowly but surely bubbled up to the surface (emphasis on the slowly, as one single per week was released over a 10 week period, before they were combined as a compilation album released on Christmas day 2013), mainstream media’s view of Justin Bieber was that of ire and irritation, he was deep in his brat era…on the surface. Looking back with the gift of 20/20 hindsight via a 2026 lens strengthened with grace, he was experiencing growing pains and potentially processing trauma. However, the harsh judgements of yesteryear were unrelenting in their criticisms of his various antics. Die-hard pop fans were becoming restless with him, as he leaned further towards his childhood love of RnB music peppered with Hip hop culture, eventually prompting a seething reaction from Sharon Osbourne as she scathingly opined – “Justin Bieber should stop trying to be black”, I distinctly remember in between blasting my Grime and Hip Hop tunes non-stop, watching all of this unfold, still with one eye firmly trained on the Biebs, with abject fascination and bemusement and thinking – Well, it looks like their perfect lil pop puppet does not want to play along anymore! Little did I know I had stumbled upon a partial truth. ‘Journals’ signified Justin’s entrance into grown and sultry RnB vocals, the songs explored themes of heartbreak, yearning, and regret delivered with emotive vocals, displaying a new depth and range to his maturing voice. We got sweeping falsettos, and seductive spoken word intros, heard on most RnB albums at the time. This new tortured lover persona was backed with atmospheric, smoky, down tempo productions, echoing synths, layered backing vocals, and a newfound sensuality to Justin’s lyrics. The production felt slick with studio polish in places, but the vocals were sincere, smooth, and expressed with a truth regarding his conflicting emotions, which saved the album from veering into cheesy territory. Justin’s record label gave minimal promotion to the release, as they appeared to be dissatisfied with his move away from pop, viewing an RnB album as a financial risk. Despite the pushback, Justin forged ahead and prevailed. In commercial terms, the album was deemed a flop. However, something unexpected the record label did not foresee, emerged.
Each single release from ‘Journals’, in particular the drawl, sexual synths, and sleepy kicks and snares of ‘Heartbreaker’, the layered, pitched up female background vocals and continuous rhythmic guitar lick of ‘All that matters’, and my favourite release from the album, ‘Confident’ which I fondly term a ‘pop-raganese’ fusion owing to its reggae-lite bass, fused with oriental instrumentation, accompanied by a music video heavily influenced by Japanese culture, complete with Justin Bieber’s smooth vocals, saw these three songs become and remain smash hits with RnB fans, and were firmly embraced by Black and POC communities world-wide. Due to his first foray into the RnB genre with the release of ‘Journals,’ suddenly there was an influx of memes declaring Justin Bieber Jaquavious Demarion Bieber! Urban music commentators began to fondly refer to him as “Light skin Bieber” (a nickname we still use in 2026 when referring specifically to his RnB releases), some Black communities boldly declared that Justin was the recipient of a lifelong invitation to “The cookout”, such was the impact of his newly RnB and Hip Hop adjacent era, further cemented with a co-sign from so called king of RnB (at that time) R.kelly, whom Justin duetted with on the memorable ‘PYD’ on the album. It was an interesting dichotomy indeed, here was this bubble gum, tweeny bopper pop puppet, veering towards RnB, which was rejected by large sections of his Belieber fanbase, whilst being simultaneously embraced by the ‘urban’ music community, attracting a brand-new audience to his music. It is still one of the most interesting trajectories in modern popular music, and it’s a gamble which paid off…13 years later! With the passage of time Justin Bieber’s ‘Journals’ compilation, although dated in places with a very thin layer of cheese, has marinated, and is widely celebrated as a cult classic, being hailed as a defining album in Justin Bieber’s career. To many RnB fans, the album has earned the accolade of the best body of work he has released during his 19 year career.
Cyclical ‘SWAG I’:
As the years rolled by, RnB fans began calling for the release of another pure RnB album from Justin Bieber as a follow up to ‘Journals.’ Over the last 13 years we’ve been thrown paltry pieces of pure RnB on the EDM / dance heavy ‘Purpose’ (2015) album, on the brilliant tracks ‘No Pressure’ and ‘No sense’. Next on the RnB roster were tracks ‘Habitual,’ ‘Intentions’ and ‘Yummy’ on the 2020 album, ‘Changes’, embedded within a majority pop album. Notably the latter two tracks stood out stylistically as Justin skilfully deployed his RnB vocal in a style synonymous with Hip Hop, as he delivered his lyrics in a double time flow. (Interestingly, Ariana Grande also explored an RnB-Hip hop hybrid vocal delivery on her track ‘7 rings’ during this period). By the time album ‘Justice’ was released in 2021, it did not take long for those craving the RnB brilliance of ‘Journals’ to realise we were still on RnB rations, as unlike the two preceding albums; there was only one RnB/pop crumb on the track ‘Peaches’. By the time it was announced a new album titled ‘SWAG’ was on its way, those of us who were by now ravenous for a return to the soulful RnB delivered on ‘Journals,’ this signalled a return to Justin Bieber’s ‘light skin era.’ While mainstream music pundits were scratching their heads regarding the album title, we RnB lovers knew instantly it was a call back to an era where Justin immersed and ingratiated himself with ‘urban’ music, dance, and style, attributes Justin defined as “Swag” on his debut RnB single ‘Boyfriend’. To Justin, ‘Swag” was a way of life he had embodied in his younger years, which he seemingly wanted to revisit. People invested in RnBieber were abuzz with anticipation, would this be ‘Journals’ part 2? Which rappers will be featured? Are we really getting a dedicated full length RnB project after being drip fed over the last 12 years? The answer is a resounding yes and no! ‘SWAG’ could very easily have been titled the conjuring of Michael Jackson because I presumed that’s exactly what had occurred on the opening track ‘All I Can Take.’ By Justin’s admission he is a Michael Jackson fanatic and studied his craft, and this track demonstrates all his years of studying the king of pop’s vocal style has paid off, as it’s truly uncanny how accurately Justin has mastered the exaggerated breaths, hiccups, and ad libs unique to MJ. The instrumentation harks back to 1980’s RnB synth-pop, with the opening lyrics “These symptoms of my sensitivity, feels personal when no one’s listening”, we know we’re in for some soul baring.
Thematically, as brilliant as ‘Journals’ was, the album was polished with studio sheen and represented a teenager expressing himself as he begins his journey into manhood, whilst simultaneously shedding the clean-cut pop image. ‘SWAG’ is Justin stripped bare and vulnerable, it’s a portrait of a mature man exploring his emotions regarding fame, faith, and finding grounding as a husband and father; expressed against a backdrop of low to mid-tempo RnB which alternates between lone acoustic guitars or nostalgic 1980’s synths, giving the tracks an earthy and organic feel. Tracks such as ‘YUKON’ lead with a sparse acoustic guitar and it is not until this particular track is pitched down to its normal tone instead of the near chipmunk pitched album version, you hear the soul and texture in Justin’s vocal, which is simply stunning. The intimacy of minimal instrumentation and Justin’s raspy emotive vocals are utilised throughout the album on tracks such as ‘The Things You Do,’ ‘Butterflies,’ ‘Zuma’s House,’ with the introduction of driving drums and low-key electric guitar strums on ‘Daises.’ Justin is at his introspective best here, allowing the maturity in his vocals to glide over the simplistic grooves where his thoughts have space to breathe, whilst being fully absorbed by the listener. ‘Walking Away’, a declaration of devotion to his wife whilst acknowledging the struggles they’ve overcome, follows the same formula of low key driving drums and muted guitar allowing the earnestness and honesty within the lyrics to be felt – “…Gave you a ring, made you a promise, I told you I’d change, it’s just human nature, these growing pains, baby I ain’t walking away”, the lyrics are received on a visceral level echoing the intentional raw honesty of which they are sung. Elsewhere on ‘SWAG’ sit a trio of synth led RnB love songs ‘Go Baby,’ ‘The Way it is,’ and ‘Sweet Spot,’ these songs are Justin’s one-man cheerleading squad honouring his wife’s accomplishments and reaffirming his devotion to her. The trio of RnB songs embody the 80’s and 90’s iterations of the genre, as all three songs are sweet and sugary, with just enough desperation in the note perfect vocal, which was a prominent feature of RnB ballads from this time, a la Boyz II men. ‘SWAG’s standouts and my personal favourites, showcase pure RnB, gospel choirs (‘Glory Memo Voice Note’ and ‘Forgiveness’), with hints of pop where a smooth RnB vocal continues to dominate. ‘First Place’ is a fresh, uplifting, feel good song complete with rhythmic hi-hats, dreamy pianos, and a steady double time drum pattern, Justin’s vocals here along with the musical equivalent of a strong dose of vitamin B12, is beautiful, as he allows his flawless falsetto range to fly making the listener feel as though they are floating along on the shimmery strains of the song. The piano riff on the intro and outro is undoubtedly reminiscent of Michael Jackson’s ‘Human Nature.’ The opening lackadaisical guitar licks of ‘Devotion’ are hypnotic and stirring, but nothing could have prepared me for the D’Angelo of it all on Justin’s most mature and sensual vocal on the entire album. Upon first listen to ‘Devotion’ my jaw dropped, as I did not recognise the soulful Canadian crooner drifting from my speakers, featured artist Dijon only serves to heighten the raw emotion and intimacy of the track. ‘Devotion’ further cements the fact Justin Bieber’s voice belongs on RnB, like maple syrup belongs on pancakes! When Justin’s vocals of longing, punctuated with background Michael Jackson yelps, intertwined with the lush synths and ‘heartbeat’ drums of penultimate track ‘Too Long’ began, I sat up and exclaimed “Who in the Jodeci, Dru Hill and Guy IS this person”, such is the perfection of the most RnB faithful track on the album, and has been on constant repeat for near to a year on my playlist. The song is gloriously delectable as it sweeps you away on memories bliss for the saccharine RnB of the 1990’s.
The MJ inspiration is striking throughout ‘SWAG’, aside from Justin Bieber and Michael Jackson, beginning their careers at early ages, surprisingly both artists have been forced to navigate the public’s perception of how they view their own identities, with Michael Jackson accused throughout his lifetime of wanting to be a white man, and Justin Bieber becoming the inverse of this paradigm, and being constantly accused of wanting to be black/acting black. Justin tackles this perception via comedian Druski aka Dru-ika.K (If you know you know)! providing some light relief and charisma on SWAG interludes as Justin Bieber’s pseudo counsellor and cigar pusher! On the interlude ‘Soulful,’ Druski tells Justin he has the soul of a Black man and asks if he is sure he’s only 2% black. Admittedly this does come off as farcical, especially as Justin answers with a coy “Thank you” as if he himself appears to be embarrassed by Druski’s over the top proclamations. Nonetheless, it is a unique way to address the hindrance of being forced into a box by the masses when you did not consent to be placed within such restrictive confines in the first place.
END OF PART 1
Photo Credits: Journals cover art – Maejor Ali, Island Records, Def jam recordings, SWAG I & SWAG 2 cover art – Renell Medrano,Def jam recordings, ILH Productions, Baby Bieber and MJ – Billboard magazine, Quiff and tatts ‘Journals’ era – The Hollywood Reporter, Vest and Beanie current era – Cassy Athena/Getty Images, Family values are ‘All that matters’ 😉 B&W pic – Renell Madrano
*WATCH JUSTIN BIEBER’S CAPTIVATING, NOTE PERFECT PERFORMANCE OF ‘YUKON’ AT GRAMMY’S 2026 *
Dine On Grime / Munch on music 