I swear, I’m not even a Justin Bieber fan, but the way people treat him these days has turned me into some kind of late-in-life Bieber-defender. From where I sit, Justin was a really screwed up kid who did a lot of drugs, made a lot of mistakes and had a lot of toxic sexual/romantic relationships. In the past five years, he got clean-ish (he still smokes weed), he married Hailey Baldwin and he became a father. He’s also largely put his music career on the back-burner. He sold his catalogue for $200 million, he fired Scooter Braun and much of his management team, and he has shown zero interest in ever touring again. He’s had health problems and mental health problems, and he goes to therapy and he goes to church. Like… this is kind of a success story for a child star, you know? He’s doing what he wants, he spends tons of time with his wife and child and his priorities have changed away from the grind. But people keep trying to say that Justin is at a breaking point or that his behavior is especially wild these days. He’s just posting weird sh-t on Instagram!! The latest is this Hollywood Reporter story about Bieber’s “crisis of faith.” Some highlights:

He split from his team last year: Professionally, he separated from his longtime team last summer, joining a number of uber-successful musicians who self-manage, like Taylor Swift, Bruno Mars and Morgan Wallen. In taking the lead on his business affairs, the singer has enlisted a tight-knit crew of compatriots who share his resolve to chart a new direction. Many in his inner circle also share his faith, ascribing to the beliefs of Churchome, a nondenominational Christian community with an outpost in Beverly Hills that is run by 44-year-old pastor Judah Smith, who also serves as a spiritual adviser to Bieber.

He unfollowed a lot of people on IG: Concern for Bieber’s well-being turned into a full-on public discourse when, in January, he unfollowed a number of his former friends and associates — including Braun and deputy Allison Kaye (who, after running point on all things Bieber for the better part of two decades, resigned in January), Good (who was the best man at his wedding) and longtime security chief Kenny Hamilton (who shielded him from music industry vultures, bad actors and others, like accused sex trafficker Diddy, according to multiple people present at the time), among others.

THR relies heavily on “former team members”: “Seeing him disintegrate like this … it’s watching the embodiment of someone not living their purpose,” says one ex team member. “He’s lost. There’s no one protecting him because there’s no one there willing to say no to him. You say no, you get blown out.”

An insider says Bieber is just arty: “Artists are artists — they don’t look at the world the way you and I do,” says the insider, who laughs off the notion that Bieber is in distress. “He’s healthier than all of us — physically and mentally.”

Bieber on his own: “He’s managing himself through his own family office now, and there’s skepticism on if he can do it alone,” says Chris Anokute, a veteran music executive who’s worked extensively with Katy Perry. “He’s leaving home for the first time. He’s building a business without the team that took him here. I’m sure he’s feeling that pressure. But he can [do it]. At the end of the day, Justin Bieber is a star, and consumers still want Justin Bieber. … He’s showing a lot of courage and foresight on what the industry is going to look like in the future.”

How is he doing financially? While one might think that Bieber, who sat at the top of the pop heap for the better part of the 2010s, would be flush with cash, multiple insiders, who until recently were familiar with his finances, suggest he’s overstretched — real estate purchases and renovations (he owns six homes, including a $26 million estate in Beverly Hills’ exclusive Beverly Park neighborhood, a $16 million home in La Quinta, and a property in the tony Gozzer Ranch Golf and Lake Club in Idaho, where the Kardashian-Jenners are known to holiday) and destination vacations with friends are particularly taxing — even on the heels of a $200 million deal for the publishing rights to his catalog, executed in January 2023. (Bieber’s reps vigorously deny the assertion, telling THR, “Any source that is trying to sell you a story about alleged financial distress … either doesn’t understand the entertainment industry or, more likely, is trying to paint an unflattering portrait of Justin, which bears no resemblance to reality.”)

[From THR]

Here’s the thing – the conversations about “can he manage himself with an in-house team” presupposes that Bieber wants to make a musical comeback or have the same kind of career he had a decade ago. And I don’t think that’s what he wants at all? He’s obviously working on music and he’ll eventually release it, but stop thinking that he’s interested in going head-to-head with Taylor Swift or whatever? Because that’s just not what interests him at this point (imo).

Additionally, similar “unnamed sources” went to People Magazine to say that Justin is “facing a lot of different demons right now. He is making some really poor decisions lately, further impacting friendships, money, and business…People are worried about him.” Bieber seems especially upset with the broke-ass accusations, because his rep went to People Mag and said: “This is just clickbait stupidity based on unnamed — and clearly ill-informed — ‘sources,’ disappointed that they no longer work with Justin. As Justin forges his own way forward, these unnecessary stories and inaccurate assumptions will continue. But, they won’t deter him from staying committed to following the right path.”

Photos courtesy of Backgrid.