Our temperatures are rising because we’ve got a fresh case of Bieber fever. 

 

Justin Bieber treated Beliebers at midnight this morning when he dropped his new album titled “Justice”. The hot release comes just one year after his last album, “Changes”, unfortunately released in February of last year and buried under the heavy news of a global pandemic, social injustice and a publicly contested presidential election. Fortunately for us, Bieber was not dissuaded. Unbeknownst to fans, the Canadian-born singer was getting creative over quarantine and crafting up this latest record that snapshots the state of the world and his personal triumphs since his last musical release.

Despite the news of loss, tragedy and turbulence over the past year, Bieber hopes to bring joy to his fans through the way he knows best. “My objective in making this album was to provide comfort to the listener,” said Bieber in a virtual press conference with British Vogue. “I know a lot of people have been isolated, but music is really an outlet to bring people together.”

With age comes maturity. The new album comes with a new grown up sound, too. Besides the usual themes of love and relationships, the former teen heartthrob delves into politics, mental health and his faith. The 27-year old’s highly publicized marriage to model Hailey (née Baldwin) is spotlighted on “Unstable”, which features upcoming Australian rapper, The Kid LAROI. The lyrics read like a heartfelt letter — an acknowledgement of his wife’s commitment to him throughout his mental health struggles: “I tried to scare you, scare you away / Showed you the door, you adored me anyway / When I was broken in pieces / You were my peace of mind”.

Lifelong listeners will also be pleased to hear the Bieber-esque sound they fell in love with years ago. The singer’s trademark R&B fused pop comes through on more lighthearted tracks like “Peaches”, which comes with an eyecatching neon music video released to coincide with the midnight album drop.

Seamless transitions are chock full on the new album, flawlessly interweaving accounts of social movements and interpersonal relationships. A prime example of the Bieber’s production expertise comes mid-album. “MLK Interlude”, a 1:44 snippet of the Civil Rights leader’s 1957 speech that urges listeners to stand up for their personal convictions and risk losing it all, smoothly flows into track, “Die for You”, an exposé of Bieber’s devotion to his wife. “Justice” harmoniously fuses societal struggles and personal plights in a dialogue of macro and micro level proportions. 

 

“I named it Justice because there’s so much injustice in this world and there has been since the beginning of time,” stated Bieber on his choice for the album title. “My name [Justin] actually means justice, so there’s that. I’m really honoured to play a small part and be able to make music that inspires and can uplift people in this time.”

 

Listeners stormed Twitter to sing praises of the unexpected yet much welcomed new music.

#JusticeTheAlbum me right now @justinbieber ??? pic.twitter.com/RaBorOIhYz

— agus (@finelinegirl01) March 19, 2021

 

i got 99 problems and justin bieber's new album #justice just solved all of them

— tara misses lily (@sinsofbieber) March 19, 2021

As pop music should be, the album is fun and exploratory yet serious so as not to disregard the real life implications during an era of continued social strife and political unrest. “It was important for me to not only talk about the lovey-dovey stuff but to also talk about some of the struggles [and think about] what people are going through at this time,” Bieber reasoned. “A lot of people have lost jobs, lost loved ones — their whole lives have been turned around. It’s caused a lot of instability. So I hope [Justice] can provide some comfort or stability.”

 

And we think it will, Justin.

 

Listen to “Justice” by Justin Bieber, out now.