Justin Bieber is all grown up now. He turned 18 on March 1. Therefore, the young star dares to show off his tough side taking a punch for Complex’s 10th Anniversary Issue. With more than 12 million albums sold worldwide, a documentary raking over $98 million at the box office, and a gorgeous girlfriend, Justin Bieber is definitely the ultimate teen sensation.
In the interview with Complex magazine, Bieber opens up and dishes on his family, growing up in the public eye, his relationship with Selena Gomez, and many more. “There’s no way to hide the relationship completely, because then it would be unfair to us. It’s like, ‘You take this car, and I’ll take this car, and then we’ll meet up at the spot. Then, you go in this door, I’ll go in this door. We’ll end up crossing ways. You get back in this car. We’ll cross over, do a James Bond. You go through the kitchen. I’ll go through the back area. Then we’ll meet in the dressing room and see each other.’ At that point, it’s not even a relationship. You’re just hiding from everyone. That’s unfair and unhealthy, man,” he explains.
On rapping and the critics following his Biggie freestyle, Bieber says that, “I just rap for fun. It’s nothing to take seriously. On my new album, I’m going to do a little bit of rapping.” He then reveals a set of bars from ‘Boyfriend,’ a song recorded for his new album ‘Believe.’ “Tell me what you like, dear/Tell me what you don’t/I could be your Buzz Lightyear/Fly across the globe/You don’t even need to fight, dear/You already know/I can make you shine bright/Like you’re laying in the snow/Burr.”
Scooter Braun, Justin’s manager, dishes on Bieber’s upcoming A-list collaborators for his new album. “We’re talking to Benny Blanco, Bei Maejor, Mike Posner,” Braun says. “We’re going to work with Pharrell…and Bruno Mars. He’s going in with Drake and 40 next week.” Growing up can be totally different when you are famous. Braun says that Justin wishes for a more ordinary life. “He doesn’t like being famous. He struggles with not being normal. I’m constantly telling him, ‘You’re not normal, and since you’re living an extraordinary life, I’m holding you to extraordinary standards,’” he says.
On paparazzi, Justin told Complex that, “I’ll be covering my face and it pisses me off so much when people say, ‘Get over it, Justin. You’re famous. People are going to take your picture. Suck it up, you’re rich…’ It’s like, ‘Yo, I just got off an eight-hour flight. I’m tired and my eyes have bags under them. I’m not trying to take pictures. I’m not going to come to your house, wake you up, and start snapping your picture.’”
Speaking about that one time when he flipped off reporters and his responsibility as a role model, Justin admits that, “I probably shouldn’t have done that. It was what it was. I’m not hiding from anyone. I am who I am, and I’m not perfect. I don’t want to give these kids the wrong impression. If they learn that from me, that’s not good.”
Justin’s mother had him when she was 17, and shortly after, his parents split. “They did the best they could, but it was tough for them. They had to work on their relationship, and trying to raise a kid through that was hard. It made me stronger. There’s a lot of people that I know who wouldn’t be able to handle the position that I’m in now, because it’s too much pressure,” the teen idol confesses in his interview.
In the cover story, Justin also reacts to all the rumors about inhaling helium to help him hit high notes and taking drugs to help him stay young. “Yeah, I’m actually a 40-year-old man in disguise,” he says with a smile. When asked about a recent V magazine shoot in which critics thought he looked feminine, Bieber seems coolly uninterested. “Every guy has feminine qualities. You’re raised by your mother and father, and I was raised mostly by my mother. I think the pictures turned out good—so whatever,” he says.
In his interview, We can also discover Bieber’s competitive side. “There’s no point in doing this if I’m not going to be the best. I give up a personal life. I give up my friends and family to pursue what I love and to make my fans happy. Why would I give up so much to be just another singer,” he says. Moreover, he admits he sets the bar high for himself. “When I release my fragrance, I want it to be the number-one fragrance; I don’t want it to be the ninth-best-selling fragrance. My Christmas album went double-platinum worldwide. Christmas albums don’t do that, and that still wasn’t good enough for me,” he told Complex.
As for his music, Justin says that, “I’m ready. I feel like it’s my responsibility to be the greatest I can be. If I start making terrible music, I don’t expect people to like me. If I’m making great music and there’s no reason for people to dislike me, that’s when it’s going to make me upset. People just need to take a chance and listen. If they don’t want to take a chance, then I don’t know. That’s going to be the biggest problem, to make them feel like it’s cool for them to like my music.”
Read Justin’s full interview in the April/Mary 2020 issue of Complex Magazine.
Photos courtesy of Complex Magazine