Justin Bieber Really Wants You to Know He's Grown Up
Peter Hapak/Men’s Health
Tween singer turned convict, Justin Bieber has maybe, finally “grown up.” Or at least, he’s doing everything in his God given power to reinvent himself after a pretty tumultuous year: in 2014 he was arrested twice and faced multiple lawsuits (one for having his 300 pound body guard put a paparazzo in a chokehold). But this year, he’s shown a more mature side, starting with a sexy Calvin Klein ad, where Biebs stripped down with model Lara Stone to sell some underwear. And now he’s baring all again, this time for the cover of Men’s Health. The issue is called “The Reinvention Issue,” and Bieber talks about becoming a man. He tells the magazine that “this has really been a big year for me, as far as figuring stuff out. This is almost like a full 180 from how I was. Yesterday—a year from yesterday—I was in jail.”
Like his Calvin Klein ad, which faced major scrutiny from people arguing that the images were photoshopped, giving Biebs’ bulge and biceps an extra inch—or two—he looks a little different on his Men’s Health cover. The pop star says: “You know, I’m just getting bigger, man… I love the fact that I got in shape for the past two years, and I’m finally getting recognition for it.”
Peter Hapak/Men’s Health
The issue, which hits newsstands on Tuesday, March 10, is already facing major criticism—from photoshop enhancements (part 2) to his supposed rehabilitation, which remains to be seen. But why do we insist on kicking Bieber while he’s trying to become a better man? This is perhaps what Men’s Health editor-in-chief Bill Phllips asks with the new cover: “Right here, right now, we’re calling a cease-fire. Will he actually turn his life around? Time and the paparazzi will tell. But if the first step is self-awareness, then Bieber has started down the right path.”
If this is true—that Bieber is on the path toward self-awareness and good health—maybe we can all finally stop hating on him. That is, if he allows us to.
We’ll see whether Bieber can handle the inevitable negative reception that meets his cover. Maybe, just maybe, he’s learned not to retaliate irrationally by bashing his dubious followers. Though, I have a feeling he’s already off to a rough start by calling his fans “fools” for thinking that this cover could be retouched.
Will Biebs strike out again? Time (and maybe another before-and-after gif) will tell…
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