Justin Bieber is in pursuit of honesty

Justin Bieber has been the subject of gossip since he was 15. But after a series of vulnerable social media posts, altercations with the paparazzi and his clean break from longtime manager Scooter Braun, fans and media alike have been speculating even more on the Canadian pop star's life and mental health.

Then this past weekend, Bieber dropped a new album, Swag. The album itself was a surprise — it received almost no advanced publicity — and the music was also surprisingly experimental rather than pop. Plus, the songs on Swag openly react to the public scrutiny the star has faced lately, painting a fuller picture of Bieber's private life. 

Today on Commotion, host Elamin Abdelmahmoud speaks with music journalists Emilie Hanskamp, Natalie Harmsen and Reanna Cruz to discuss Swag and what Bieber is trying to tell us about himself on it. 

We've included some highlights below, edited for length and clarity. For the full discussion, listen and follow Commotion with Elamin Abdelmahmoud on your favourite podcast player.

Elamin: Usually, when Justin Bieber's dropping an album, it's an event, you see the videos coming out, there's a whole pre-release thing. The fact that this surprise album came out — it's not like a Beyoncé surprise rollout, where the vinyl was ready, the merch was ready, everything was ready and then it arrived and it's here. He dropped this and then he's posting pictures from vacation and there were maybe a couple of billboards. Talk to me about the rollout of this album, Natalie. How are you feeling about it?

Natalie: I was pleasantly surprised by it because it's been four years since Justice. It's been a minute, he's been gone. People have been speculating when he's going to make a comeback. Every year on New Year's Eve, I'm like, "This is going to be the year, guys, for the new Justin Bieber album." I'm not even a big Justin Bieber fan, but it's just been something I feel that's kind of in the cultural zeitgeist, like when is he going to return? 

So I think the fact that he is someone who has come from this pop machine and has made this really left turn of: "You know what? You're not going to get a lead single from me. I'm not going to be teasing things on TikTok. I'm not going to go the route that I did with Yummy, where I was promoting the hell out of that song and telling my fans to go stream it and begging to get it to number one." So to me, this really signifies that he is putting out an album with songs that he really wants to make. "This is the kind of music that I want to try on and see if it works for me, I don't really care if you like it or not" is the messaging that I'm getting with this rollout, so I think it's just mirroring that narrative that we're getting.

Elamin: When I see this rollout, what's clear for me, Emilie, is that it is not a Scooter Braun rollout. So Bieber's been managed the entirety of his career by Scooter Braun, and then last week, he agreed to pay Scooter $31 million to settle [tour disputes], and they have not worked together for some time. And then you see this album rollout and the fact that there's no Scooter on this. How do you see that showing up in this moment that Bieber's in?  

Emilie: We are hearing some sources coming out who are saying things like, "This is the first album where Scooter Braun is not essentially breathing down Justin's neck." And I think the result of that is an album that you listen through that isn't desperately trying to land on a hit. And I don't say that as a criticism, as someone who maybe hasn't been the biggest fan or connector of Justin Bieber's music in the past. This is the first album where I'm like, "OK, I feel like it's getting closer and on the right path." And I feel it's because he isn't desperately trying to land on that Scooter Braun hit. 

And I think it's also why you look at the album cover and it's not his face on it, where all of his other [albums] — Journals aside — it's on his face. It's almost like he is trying to position himself out of the frame in a literal sense. Reanna talked about even at production level, it being more in the background versus the foreground, in terms of the album covering his image and how he wants to centre that or not centre that. So I think that we're getting closer and closer to an honest Bieber, or the capital T truth of who Bieber is as an artist. I just don't know that we've landed at the destination yet, but I think he's on the right track. 

Elamin: The few images that you do see, Reanna, you see Bieber a little bit to the side of the frame, way out of focus. And behind him, you see Haley Bieber holding their kid because he just became a dad last year. And you go like, "That's a pretty Mr. Morale [a Kendrick Lamar album] kind of cover." But there is something to be said about this record attempting to change the narrative of who Justin Bieber is, or maybe reintroduce who he is. How do you see this record maybe successfully doing that?

Reanna: It's doing that pretty well, I would say. I feel like the last hits for Justin Bieber to reach public consciousness were Yummy and Holy, and both of those are kind of rote pop hits, they feel disposable. Even Holy is reaching for something grand, but it doesn't really land and doesn't stick the landing. 

This feels like a push for real artistry. And I agree that it's a step in the right direction for establishing who Justin Bieber is, what he wants to sound like and what he wants to do. And I think this album serves as a piece of content that switches the perspective on everything that's been going on in his life recently. Because on social media, he's been what we call "crashing out," just posting whatever. And you listen to the album, and he's like, "I actually do love my wife, guys. Like, I love my kid. We're going to get through this. I haven't been doing so well, but you know what? I'm OK." And I think music can really serve as a supplemental element to what's going on in somebody's life, obviously. And you listen to Swag and you're like, "Oh, OK, I'm getting the full picture of Justin Bieber, not just what I see on social media."

You can listen to the full discussion from today's show on CBC Listen or on our podcast, Commotion with Elamin Abdelmahmoud, available wherever you get your podcasts.

Panel produced by Stuart Berman.