On Oct. 27, Justin Bieber shared a post to his Instagram account promising to release a new album before Christmas … under one condition: 20 million likes.
Bieber, who recently celebrated his marriage to wife Hailey Baldwin, teased at the new album saying he’s nearly done with it, but his fans’ support will make him work faster.
In early October, the singer shared a video on Instagram saying, “Album coming out this year. Another song coming out…soon.” So, while it’s not a shock that Bieber has been working on new music, fans were probably not expecting there to be a like quota that needed to be reached in order for them to hear it.
Nearly one week later, on Nov. 2, the Instagram post had over 10 million likes, so it’s looking like we might be getting Bieber Fever for Christmas this year.
While the news of a new JB album is exciting, you never really know what you’re going to get from him. In another Instagram post, the singer shared a blank background with ‘R&Bieber’ written on it, hinting at the genre of the upcoming album.
In anticipation of his fifth studio album, let’s take a trip down memory lane.
My World 2.0
Released in March 2010, the cover art for this album shows the young teenage heartthrob staring longingly into your soul. It’s hard to believe Justin was only 16 when this album was released! His first album is full of classic tunes that die-hard Beliebers grew up on. From “Baby” to “U Smile” to “Eenie Meenie (feat. Sean Kingston)”, “My World 2.0” helped launch Justin’s career and debuted at number one on the U.S. Billboard 200 albums chart, making him the youngest solo male artist to top the chart since Stevie Wonder in 1963.
Under the Mistletoe
Move over, Michael Bublé … Justin Bieber’s Christmas album was a gift nobody knew they needed. Between a mix of originals and remixed versions of traditional Christmas songs, “Under the Mistletoe” is sure to put anyone in the holiday spirit. Released in November 2011, this album showed Bieber’s devotion to Christianity and also his ability to weave the word “shawty” into any song he wants, even one about Christmas.
Believe
His voice dropped, his hair got even shorter and the 18-year-old Justin released what could be considered his coming-of-age album. Most notably, his new song “Boyfriend” had everyone falling in love with him — or at least singing along, because the song is really catchy. Although a lot of the songs on this album showed Justin’s maturity, tracks like “Beauty and a Beat (feat. Nicki Minaj)” reassured the world that the swaggy Justin we met in 2010 wasn’t quite gone yet.
Purpose
“Purpose” came after a period of confusion and misdirection for both Justin and his Beliebers. Released in November 2015, this album follows his January 2014 misdemeanor for vandalism and his arrest for driving under the influence and with an expired license. America’s teenage heartthrob was no longer — with a newfound purpose in life, songs like “Mark My Words” and “Life Is Worth Living” showed Justin’s remorse and his hope for better days to come.
R&BIEBER(?)
Despite having appeared with guest vocals on singles by artists like Billie Eilish, Ed Sheeran and DJ Khaled, Justin Bieber hasn’t come out with his own studio album since “Purpose”. Four years, one messy Jelena breakup and one wedding later, Bieber will soon be back again with his fifth album. Until then … we’ll be over here watching reruns of the “Never Say Never” movie and shuffling our favorite throwback JB.
