Justin Bieber is arguably the biggest solo male act in the world. There are very few 18-year-olds who have to grow up, both personally and professionally, with the entire world watching. And with every step, and occasionally misstep, he makes there seems to be no shortage of headlines, buzz and attention.
Bieber touched on that recently. He got personal about celebrity life and heartbreak on his latest release, Believe Acoustic. And, two of the guys who worked with him on it, production team Da Internz, think Bieber is going about the transition in all the right ways.
"I think Justin is definitely on the verge of turning a corner," Ernest "Tuo" Clark told. "A lot of young acts have that problem transitioning from being a kid to an adult and kind of when they turn into an adult things fall off, but so far, I mean... Justin, the sky's the limit. He's one of the top pop dudes in the game."
While name-dropping Justin Timberlake is the easy comparison to make, the guys shrug that off. "It still different though, like we're in a new era, this is a new generation," Marcos "Kosine" Palacios said. "His sound is different and he has a different personality, so I think I can appreciate the fact that he's really kind of creating his own lane and his own destiny with what he's doing."
In addition to working with Da Internz on the track "I Would," he also wrote and produced the tune, "Nothing Like Us" all on his own. So, did he do a sound job without anyone backing him? "I feel like every generation needs that one, so I feel Justin is that one for the new generation," Tuo said. "On the track they said he wrote and produced, I was very impressed. I was very impressed with that."
Kos added that seeing him branch out in that way is "is a part of the transition," and the guys were honored to be two of the folks taking this latest step with Bieber.
"For us, this project is so huge because people know us more for our urban stuff [with Big Sean and Rihanna]. But, we, as producers, can go left to right and are versatile with our sound. So the fact that we were able to get this type of record on a Justin [album], Justin being the best... I remember Oprah [Winfrey] said it's the biggest interview since Michael Jackson," he said. "She said that in real life, so just to be a part of that and be able to bring a different sound to that project, it's crazy."
What's your favorite track from Bieber's new album? Tell us in the comments!