Justin Bieber’s new album hits charts

     On March 19 pop sensation Justin Bieber released his new R&B album Justice to the public.  This is Bieber’s sixth studio album. Bieber stated “This is me doing a small part. My part. I want to continue the conversation of what justice looks like so we can continue to heal.” The album is following up on the year of the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and many more Black Americans that took part in fueling nationwide protests and conversations about systemic racism. This release was Bieber playing his small part in any type of justice.

     In the new debut Bieber included a Martin Luther King interlude which sparked some controversy according to Billboard.com, but despite the judgement from some listeners, it still landed him number one on the Billboard 100. In response to the critics Bieber made a comment that the reason he included MLK’s speech was to “amplify” the late civil rights leader’s “incredibly, touching speech.” Using the speech helped carry his message which was focusing on his wife, model Hailey Baldwin Bieber, and, more opaquely, God.

     Student reactions to the new album were different for everyone. Chloe Mcartor, senior, commented “Ever since his album Purpose Justin Bieber has put his thoughts and feelings into his music rather than making what he thought the public wanted to hear. Justice was his expression of a breakthrough in his life through his faith, wife, and new hope. His slower ballads at the beginning of the album turned more upbeat after the MLK interlude developing a story.”

     When discussing the new album to reporters Bieber made a comment when talking about his first track, “I named it Justice because there is so much injustice in this world and there has been since the beginning of time […] My name [Justin] means justice, so there’s that. I’m really honored to play a small part and be able to make music that inspires and can uplift people in this time.” The new release has many meanings for the star, but he focuses on advocating the injustices in the world today and doing his part to spread activism on systematic racism.