What Happened to Justin Bieber Bestie Lil Twist?
Justin Bieber and Lil Twist in 2012. (Photo: Getty Images)
Justin Bieber is gearing up for his Purpose tour — getting those tank tops pressed and rosary bead necklaces polished! — which kicks off on March 9. He’ll be traveling lighter than in recent years because his entourage has thinned out a lil’.
A few years back, the singer didn’t go anywhere without rapper Lil Twist (real name: Christopher Moore). The fellas, who have been friends since at least 2010, referred to themselves as “best friends” and “brothers” and the bond seemed strong. As Bieber’s star rose, Twist — and later Lil Za as well — was by his side on vacations, at parties, at home, and was lucky enough to have access to his fancy fleet of cars, though his driving skills left something to be desired.
Lil Twist in 2014. (Photo: FilmMagic.com)
Earlier this week though, Lil Twist sent Bieber “luv” on his birthday in the form of an Instagram post. The accompanying photo of them was old though, making it seem that their friendship is old news as well. There were nearly 70 comments on the pic, but none came from Bieber himself. And if the Lil Wayne protégé was invited to Bieber’s birthday bash, held in a Bel-Air mansion over the weekend, Twist didn’t post any photos of it on social media as invited guests like Diddy did.
After a lot of headline-making drama — for instance, Twist was driving the singer’s Ferrari in 2013 when a paparazzo was struck by a car and killed trying to snap a photo of who he thought was Bieber being pulled over by police on a Los Angeles freeway — we started seeing less of the guys together in 2014. That was the year of Bieber’s DUI arrest, when his L.A. home was raided by police, and other legal stuff that certainly hurt Bieber’s reputation. In Jan. 2015, the guys released a song together, “Intertwine,” but nothing much came out of it.
Perhaps it was a swan song. That year, Bieber went on to do an apology tour to win back some of the fans he lost with his antics. However, Twist’s antics didn’t end. In March 2015, he was charged with six felonies for allegedly breaking into Disney Channel alum Kyle Massey’s home, beating up his brother, and stealing several items, including a Rolex. Twist, who pleaded not guilty, faces more than 20 years if convicted.
Twist out with his mentor, Lil Wayne. (Photo: Getty Images)
Professionally, Twist is still trying to break through in the music biz. Signed to Lil Wayne’s Young Money Records since way back in 2007, he’s currently along on Wayne’s Dedication tour. He was in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, on Tuesday and will be in Bloomington, Indiana, for the show tonight.
In January, Twist released The Golden Child 2, a mixtape of 14 songs including “LA Traffic” and “UFO.” Beyond his social media accounts though, it’s hard to track down additional info on Twist’s career. The news section on his website hasn’t been updated since Dec. 2013 and emails to Cash Money Records haven’t been returned. However, it seems that the reality show Lil Twist and Lil Za tried to sell to MTV never amounted to anything.
Bieber and Twist performing back in 2012. (Photo: Getty Images)
There is no shortage of people interested in playing the role of Justin Bieber’s sidekick these days. Beyond stalwarts like Scooter Braun, Ryan Good, and Alfredo Flores, Hailey Baldwin seems to have an on-again, off-again line in there. Even mom of three Kourtney Kardashian, who was linked to him earlier this year has Bieber fever. She attended his birthday bash.
He’s moved on from Lil to bigger things.
