Nepo Baby of the Week: Hailey Bieber’s Pregnancy Is PR Gold for Justin

Hailey and Justin Bieber’s baby might not have left the womb yet, but it’s already learning the ropes of influencer marketing. True to form, the Biebers’ baby announcement doubled as a promotional exercise; Justin teased a soft, folksy new song about how he’s “starting to be open” over a video of himself kissing a baby bump-bearing Hailey. You know what they say: It’s never to early to learn the family business, and so far, Baby Bieber is getting a master class in self-publicizing.

Fans have suspected that Hailey Bieber might be pregnant since, well, long before she probably actually got pregnant. Now that the big moment is finally here, everyone who’s been waiting on Baby Bieber—heir/heiress to Hailey’s Rhode skin-care fortune, as well as the songwriting legacy that gave us such soul-rending beats as “Yummy”—will surely be pleased to see the fanfare that’s accompanied this unborn infant’s unveiling. Both parents-to-be posted the same video to their Instagram grids, showing themselves kissing in a grassy field (in front of what looks like some kind of officiant?) while Hailey gently stroked her bump. The mother-to-be wore a lacy white dress, sunglasses, and a veil, while her man sported… a furry black jacket and a fitted baseball cap. In other words, the vibes are incongruous as hell, as always.

From the generic guitar-strumming in the beginning, one might mistakenly think that the Biebers chose to accompany their announcement video with royalty-free stock audio. But then, a familiar voice starts crooning, “I’m starting to be open.” Could this new personal chapter in Justin Bieber’s life also launch a new sound? I guess we’ll just have to wait for that new album he’s been teasing for a while.

From the outside, the past few months have seemed like a tumultuous time for the Biebers. In March, Hailey’s father, actor Stephen Baldwin, shared an Instagram post from All Things Possible Ministries founder Victor Marx that called on Christians everywhere to “offer a little prayer” for the Biebers. In his caption, Marx wrote, “There are special challenges that folks in high visibility positions face and also the enemy doesn’t want them to draw closer to Jesus. So often regardless of the material things or the accolades they often face spiritual warfare that intense and seeks to ship-wreck their faith, marriage and life in general [sic].” OK...

That post did little to dispel fans’ suspicions that something might be wrong with the couple—a narrative that seemed to grow out of Hailey archiving a number of romantic posts of herself with Justin. In late April, Justin sparked concern among fans when he posted photos of himself crying with no caption. In retrospect, perhaps those were tears of joy?

According to a source who spoke with People, the Biebers already have the “perfect” name picked out for their baby and already begun to decorate the nursery. The couple has not announced their baby’s gender, but fans have naturally started to guess based on so-called “clues” like the color of Bieber’s hat in the announcement video. A representative for the couple told NBC News that Hailey is a little more than six months pregnant.

“They have both been very emotional about it. They feel so blessed,” the source told the magazine. “They’ve also felt very protective of the baby from the moment they found out. They shared with family and close friends early on. It was very important for them to keep it quiet and just enjoy [it] for as long as possible before they publicly confirmed.”

Now that the baby is confirmed, what will be next? An Architectural Digest tour of the nursery? A Rhode diaper cream product launch? An exclusive in Vogue about what might be the most star-studded baby shower of all time? All we know is, the night that kid is born, Justin will wanna show them off (aye-aye-aye). Because if there’s one thing a billion could’ve never bought, it’s the opportunity for a daddy-oriented rebrand.

Check out our past Nepo Babies of the Week.

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