Media Text Review: Purpose Justin Bieber

****- Billboard "Justin Bieber proves his growth."

Said to be the reborn of the musical sensation that is Justin Bieber. And I couldn’t agree more. Through years and years of controversy and court cases was the birth of the new Justin Bieber. Hey, he’s not for everyone, but thanks to this album the majority that hated him has now turned to the minority.

Released in November 2015, Bieber already had 2 #1 singles on his record. Where Are U Now released in the previous year 2014 by producers Diplo and Skrillex featured Bieber which significantly introduced him to his new venture in the industry. From Pop phenomenon came top of the electronic dance music charts. This new sound gave Bieber a brand new, unfamiliar audience. No longer were his fans categorised as “12-year-old girls.” Anyone who had a liking for a beat drop could consider themselves a “belieber.”

In late July 2015 came the social media countdown of his iconic hit What Do You Mean.Speaking exclusively on On Air With Ryan Seacrest Bieber officially announced his new single. Throughout the next 4 weeks until August 28^th when the said single would drop on Spotify and Apple Music, the industry’s biggest stars including Kanye West(who produced Purpose – but we’ll get to that later), The Weeknd, Shawn Mendes & Fifth Harmony. All completely different artists which makes you question, is WDYM going to interest Kanye’s Rap audience, The Weeknd’s RnB audience, Shawn Mendes’s acoustic pop audience or 5H’s fierce, feminine audience? Will it follow in WAUN’s dance footsteps or will it show the return to Bieber’s famous pop background? Thankfully it was the first option and I firmly believe if he chose to return to his old sound, it wouldn’t have been broke the record for most streamed song and he wouldn’t have achieved his first #1 in the UK and Australia, both great achievements.

After the high praise Bieber received from his #1 single came the next overwhelming unexpected success of Sorry. The past 3 years for Bieber had been a rollercoaster that seemed only to drop further and further. Now, matured and remorseful, he addresses his mistakes and asks for forgiveness making you think, how could you not admire this transformation? However lyrics such as “missing more than just your body” only makes you wonder is he sorry to his loyal (*cough* me *cough*) fans or to his famous ex-girlfriend Selena Gomez. On and off for 4 years, one could only imagine part of his highly anticipated album will address the troublesome relationship. The meaning behind this single is irrelevant however when you take into consideration how much this did for Bieber’s new cleansed reputation. Released not even 8 weeks after his previous smash hit WDYM – that was still top of the charts, Sorry soared into the charts better than anyone ever predicted, making those witnessing his relentless success question,when will it end? Will it end? Spoiler; it hasn’t. Those doubtful of his success during WAUN had the excuse that he was featured on a Diplo/Skrillex single – both critically acclaimed producers. Now, though, Bieber is producing and writing these #1 hits by himself, shocking everybody a single at a time. The next single is bigger than the previous and when Sorry was released, we could hardly fathom how he was ever going to top it due to the mass of its success. That was before Love Yourself was released.

There are many significant milestones in life that is just impossible to forget, for example: Where were you when The Beatles split up? Where were you when Robbie Williams went solo? Or my personal favourite; “Where were you when you first heard Love Yourself?” I, one of the many, can proudly claim I was listening live to Apple Music: Zane Lowe’s Beats 1 radio show. On November 9^th, 4 days before the release of Purpose, Bieber premiered two - yes TWO­­, songs that were on his latest record. Initially, he intended only to premier Love Yourself. When I first heard the soft, acoustic feel of the guitar I could only reminisce on the 2013 release of Believe: Acoustic. Being a fan since 2009, my first memory of Bieber was him strumming a guitar without any DJ’s or beats. Just him and his guitar. Hearing the first instrumental, I caught a glimpse of old school Bieber. Knowing it was co-wrote by Ed Sheeran left me no doubts that it was going to be anything less than a lyrical masterpiece. Having said I was a fan since 2009, I witnessed the birth of the famous power couple Jelena. Being a young, envious teenage girl, I was nothing less than smug when I realised Love Yourself was a diss track, to who was left to the imagination. The famous line that had me falling off my couch being “My mama don’t like you and she likes everyone.” One line giving millions of people an insight of what appeared to be a toxic relationship. One line giving this upcoming album not only attention at the industry level but now global media level. This reaction was shared worldwide. Shortly after, The Feeling featuring Indie superstar Halsey was premiered, once again widening the audience that Bieber now gathered. “Am I in love with you or am I in love with the feeling” hinted at his famous high key relationship with Selena Gomez. The question being raised, of what genre is this album going to be? Who is it going to appeal to? The genius idea to release such an iconic track widened the audience to those who would be willing to buy this album in 4 days. Even Ed Sheeran fans were impressed, the significance to that being 6 months ago Sheeran fans and Bieber fans were on total opposite ends of the spectrum. Love Yourself reached #1 for 8 weeks in 32 countries. At one point, Love Yourself held the #1 spot on the UK charts, Sorry held the #2 spot and What Do You Mean held the #3 spot. Something that hadn’t been done since Elvis Presley…iconic.

You’re probably wondering why I have chosen to review an album only to review 4 singles. I’m not only reviewing the album as it was released, I’m reviewing the build up to it and highlighting why exactly it achieved so much success. It wasn’t overnight.

I previously mentioned that Kanye West produced Purpose, known for his auto tuned sound effects. He also had help from RnB producer Jason Boyd formerly known as Poo Bear. Earlier I questioned what audience Bieber was going to attract based on the artists he chose to include in his social media project for What Do You Mean. Even though Kanye doesn’t feature on the album, his RnB/Hip Hop sound is clearly evident from features by rappers Travis Scott on “No Sense”, Nas on “We Are” and Big Sean on “No Pressure” - a rapper whom had already featured on one of Bieber’s biggest hits As Long As You Love Me. Although the record has an overwhelming RnB vibe, the EDM sentiment is still too strong. Not mentioning the three singles What Do You Mean, Where Are U Now and Sorry, Purpose still includes other EDM tracks including I’ll Show You –  a track that gives an insight on Bieber’s troubled past with lines like “Life’s not easy, I’m not made out of steel. Don’t forget that I’m human, don’t forget that I’m real.” “They want me to be perfect, they don’t even know that I’m hurting.” “My life is a movie and everyone is watching.” Although these EDM tracks are credible for their contagious beat, the lyrical sentiment behind them is unmissable – all tracks written by Bieber conveys that everything he’s saying holds meaning to his roller coaster of a life. My personal favourite being Children with lines like “Look at all the children we can change.” This line striking me as it shows the changed behaviour and mindset of Bieber. No longer is he the arrogant and selfish teenage boy who has gone off the rails. There is an underline of desperation in this line. He’s asking to be the change to children because he was also one of those children who needed to be changed. This whole record is a personal response to his experiences in the past years. They’re even hidden in EDM tracks disguised by strong beats. “Where are you now that I need you? I can’t find you anywhere.” A cry for help. “Let me redeem myself tonight” A cry for help. “I just need one more shot at forgiveness” A cry for help. The unexpected turning point of this record though, is the number of ballads it has. Life Is Worth Living expresses his realisation that he has found his purpose during his almost suicide point in his life – pun intended. Purpose expresses how he found his right path and how thankful he is. Including these ballads was a turning point in the album because throughout the other tracks he has hidden these cries for help by disguising them with infectious beats. No one cares what he's trying to say because they're only interested in the feel good rhythm. Only carefully listening intently to the other tracks would you know the sadness he is trying to convey. However, placing these ballads on the record shows how Bieber wants those who are to blame for his struggles to know how much he has been hurting.

That is why I have chosen to review this album specifically. This is the most honest record he has produced and one of the most honest records I have heard. Somehow he has managed to write about his depression and still turn it into something that has broken streaming records. That is why I’ve written over 1000 words because there is so much to write about.

By Tess Penman

5 stars *****