Entertainment

Justin Bieber releases surprise new album

Canadian pop star Justin Bieber released his seventh album, Swag, on Friday, after teasing the release by posting several posters of billboards in various cities on Instagram the day before.

Swag's release comes after Canadian pop star posted billboard images on Instagram

A man poses in a suit.
Justin Bieber, pictured at the Met Gala in New York in September 2021, took to Instagram on Thursday to tease his new album, Swag, which was released on Friday. (Mario Anzuoni/Reuters)

Justin Bieber's surprise album has struck a chord with fans but failed to wow some critics.

The Canadian pop star released his seventh studio album, Swag, on Friday, after teasing the release by posting several posters of billboards in various cities on Instagram the day before. It's his first in four years.

Reviews of the album, a relatively stripped-down R&B-centred affair, have been mostly lukewarm, with a few exceptions.

A three-star review in the Guardian praised opening track All I Can Take, and says the album as a whole is "gorgeously produced" but weighted down by "inane" lyrics.

A two-star review in the Telegraph said Daisies has "song of the summer vibes," but most of the album feels "undercooked," describing it as "confused and messy."

Rolling Stone gave the album four stars, lauding the singer for covering a wide range of musical ground. "Swag definitely makes it clear that Bieber's got issues — his issues have issues," reviewer Rob Sheffield wrote. "But he channels it all into some of the most genuinely creative and wide-ranging music of his life."

With 21 tracks clocking in at 51 minutes, Swag bucks pop trends toward shorter releases.

It features numerous collaborations and covers such lyrical themes as marriage, fame and fatherhood.

Billboard wrote that "this is Bieber as we've never really heard him before — stripped of most of his usual big pop trappings," adding the album might disappoint fans looking for pop hits like Sorry and Peaches, but those who vibed with his more subdued albums Journals and Changes will be "elated."

Bieber was signed to a record deal at age 14 and became one of the best-selling pop musicians of this century, with a string of hits dating back to 2009, including songs like Baby and Love Yourself.

All six of his albums have topped the Canadian charts, including his most recent, 2021's Justice.

But fans have been concerned about the 31-year-old in recent years.

He sold the rights to his catalogue of music in 2022, cancelled a tour due to health concerns in 2023 and parted ways with his management team last year.

In March, he wrote on Instagram about imposter syndrome and "feeling unworthy" of success.

In recent days, he's been fending off fan speculation about problems in his marriage to model Hailey Bieber, with whom he announced the birth of their first child, Jack Blues Bieber, last August.

The track list is: All I Can Take, Daisies, Yukon, Go Baby, Things You Do, Butterflies, Way It Is, First Place, Soulful, Walking Away, Glory Voice Memo, Devotion, Dadz Love, Therapy Session, Sweet Spot, 405, Swag, Zuma House, Too Long and Forgiveness

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Kevin Maimann

Digital Writer

Kevin Maimann is a senior writer for CBC News based in Edmonton. He has covered a wide range of topics for publications including VICE, the Toronto Star, Xtra Magazine and the Edmonton Journal. You can reach Kevin by email at kevin.maimann@cbc.ca.