An old
soul is the last thing you would expect to find inside Justin Bieber.
But all it takes is one listen to the 15 year-old soul-singing
phenomenon to realize that he is light years ahead of his manufactured
pop peers.
After posting dozens of homemade videos on YouTube in 2007, where the
multi-talented Bieber put his impeccable spin on songs from artists
like Usher, Ne-Yo and Stevie Wonder, ...Justin racked up over 10,000,000 views
purely from word of mouth.
“I started singing about three years ago,” says the
Canadian native who grew up an only child in Stratford, Ontario.
“I entered a local singing competition called Stratford Idol. The
other people in the competition had been taking singing lessons and had
vocal coaches. I wasn’t taking it too seriously at the time, I
would just sing around the house. I was only 12 and I got second
place.”
In an effort to share his victory with his loved ones, Justin began
posting his performance footage online. “I put my singing videos
from the competition on YouTube so that my friends and family could
watch them,” he says. “But it turned out that other people
liked them and they started subscribing to them. That’s how my
manager found me. He saw me on YouTube and contacted my family and now
I’m signed!”
Seven months after Justin started posting his videos online, former So
So Def marketing executive Scooter Braun flew the then 13-year old
singer to Atlanta, GA to meet with his elite colleagues. As if
Justin’s natural singing talent wasn’t enough to impress
Scooter’s inner circle, Braun knew Bieber was also a self-taught
musician who plays the drums, guitar, piano and trumpet.
“Right when we flew into Atlanta, Scooter drove us to the studio
and Usher was there in the parking lot,” remembers Bieber.
“That was my first time ever being out of Canada so I went up to
him and was like, ‘Hey Usher, I love your songs, do you want me
to sing you one?’ He was like, ‘No little buddy, just come
inside, it’s cold out.’”
All it took was a short time online for Usher to realize he was in the
company of a future superstar. “A week later Usher flew me back
to Atlanta,” says Bieber. “I sang for him and his people
and he really wanted to sign me then and there but I still had a
meeting with Justin Timberlake who also wanted to sign me. It turned
out Usher’s deal was way better. He had L.A. Reid backing him up
and Scooter has alot of connections and is really smart. I always tease
Usher now and remind him he how he blew me off the first time we
met.”
In October of 2008, Justin Bieber officially signed to a joint venture
between Usher and Scooter Braun's new label RBMG and Island Records.
His debut album, My World is an intimate look into the mind of a
budding young renaissance man. With production from star hit men like
The Dream and Tricky Stewart who produced “Umbrella” for
Rihanna and Beyonce’s latest smash, “Single Ladies (Put A
Ring On It),” Justin has everything he needs to achieve pop
supremacy.
His first single, “One Time” produced by Tricky, is about
one of Justin’s favorite topics, puppy love. Usher joins Justin
on “First Dance” where the two share verses on a song that
Bieber describes as, “A slow groovy song that people can dance
to.” On the Midi-Mafia produced “Down to Earth”
Justin digs deep to talk about growing up. “Bigger” finds
the teenaged singer maturing at a steady rate, while motivating his
listeners to strive for their goals.
“I’m looking forward to influencing others in a positive
way,” says Justin. “My message is you can do anything if
you just put your mind to it. I grew up below the poverty line; I
didn’t have as much as other people did. I think it made me
stronger as a person it built my character. Now I have a 4.0 grade
point average and I want to go to college and just become a better
person.”
A virtually untapped well of natural artistic talent, Justin Bieber is
primed to be a solid force in music for many years to come. “I
think older people can appreciate my music because I really show my
heart when I sing, and it’s not corny,” he says. “I
think I can grow as an artist and my fans will grow with me.” And
just think, he’s just getting started.
(Source: Mastros's Facebook page)
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