Justin Bieber has made an emotional plea for the music industry to be made ‘safer’ and ‘more honest.’
The Baby hitmaker, 31, was catapulted to fame as a child star and spent his formative years in the spotlight, touring the world and releasing several award-winning singles.
However, the pop icon suffered numerous troubles, including an arrest on suspicion of driving under the influence that led to him being convicted of a reckless driving charge in 2014, as well as intense speculation over his mental health this year and social media activity.
Now, the singer is adamant he wasn’t properly protected as he was growing up and has called for more measures to protect budding stars.
In a series of posts on Instagram, Bieber credited his Christian faith with helping him through his pain.
‘I grew up in a system that rewarded my gift but didn’t always protect my soul,’ he began.
‘There were moments I felt used, rushed, shaped into something I didn’t fully choose. That kind of pressure leaves wounds you don’t see on stage. I’ve carried anger, I’ve asked God why.
‘But Jesus keeps meeting me in the middle of the pain – not excusing what hurt me but teaching me how not to become bitter.’
He added: ‘I’m not speaking as a victim still bleeding – I’m speaking as someone restored. Because I’m healed, I can forgive. Not to pretend injustice didn’t happen, but so it doesn’t keep living through me.’
Bieber went on to declare he wants to see real changes in the music industry, adding: ‘I don’t want revenge. I want redemption. I don’t want to destroy the industry. I want it transformed.
‘What happened to me was real but it doesn’t get the final word. Jesus didn’t help me cope, he restored my identity. I’m not a product. I’m not what the industry demanded. I’m a son.’
The Peaches singer said he is ‘healed’ and ‘can forgive’, saying he can do so not to ‘excuse injustice’ but to ‘make sure it doesn’t keep reproducing itself through him.’
‘I don’t want to burn the music industry down. I want to see it made new – safer, more honest, more human,’ he said.
Bieber returned to music this year, releasing his albums Swag and Swag II, but he has since admitted he’s reluctant to tour again because he doesn’t want to spend too much time away from his wife, Hailey, and their young son, Jack.
In the singer’s Halloween Twitch livestream, the two-time Grammy Award winner explained: ‘Touring takes so much out of you, and I’ve done it since I was a kid.
‘Even the idea of touring sounds super daunting. I always start out really loving it, and then it gets to a point where I am super burnt out.’
However, the Beauty and the Beat singer wants to choose a location where he can perform for two nights.
The star, who is headlining the music and arts festival Coachella in 2026, said: ‘I really wanna do spot-date where I pick a city and do a couple of shows and not commit to a whole two years.’
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