On March 19th, 2021 Justin Bieber released his sixth studio album, Justice, featuring several singles that had already been released: “Holy,” “Lonely,” “Anyone,” “Hold On,” and “Peaches.” Bieber’s manager, Scooter Braun, came up with the strategy of releasing these songs prior to the release of the full album back in June 2020. 

The meaning behind the lyrics and music videos of each of these songs are packed with creativity; from using makeup to cover up all of his tattoos in “Anyone” to featuring Jacob Tremblay as a younger version of himself in “Lonely.” 

Bieber’s album features a host of other musicians, including Benny Blanco, Khalid, Chance the Rapper, the Kid Laroi, and several others. Justice is the follow-up album to Changes, released on Valentine’s Day,  February 14th 2020, which also featured a variety of artists including Quavo, Post Malone, and Travis Scott.

The title of the album and its contents have spiked controversy on Twitter and the internet as a whole. For instance, some of the tracks feature clips of Martin Luther King Jr’s speeches, despite the fact that the album revolves almost entirely around the themes of love and marriage. Critics are saying that it seems unfair and insensitive for Bieber to write songs about his wife with lyrics that are completely irrelevant to MLK’s activism and fight for justice. Along with this, Beiber’s choice to title the album Justice misled his fans to believe that the album is about the fight for equality. 

The Insider stated, “What’s baffling — and somewhat embarrassing — is that Bieber spends exactly zero seconds on this album ‘standing up for justice in his own words” and that “the album has nothing to do with civil rights. Sampling the activist is performative.”

MLK Jr’s daughter, Bernice King, co-signed the album and tweeted, “Thank you, @justinbieber, for your support, in honor of #Justice, of @TheKingCenter’s work and of our #BeLove campaign.” While it’s fortunate that MLK Jr’s own child appreciates Bieber’s contributions to the music industry, it is quite clear that the majority of his album does not meet expectations. Furthermore, Bieber himself never even uses the word ‘justice’ in the entirety of the album.

Bieber donated money to a variety of social justice organizations preceding the release and encouraged his audience to do the same. He vocalized that the title of his album came from his desire to uplift and inspire people in a world that is filled with deep-rooted injustices. Unfortunately, these actions don’t explain the connection between his love songs and the subject the title suggests.

Despite the backlash about the contents of the album, many praise the plethora of genres he incorporated in the album. These include R&B, dance-pop, country, pop-rock, hyper-pop, and many other distinct and specific styles. The album is available anywhere you stream music and we encourage you to listen for yourself and form your own opinions on Justin’s newest work.