To Bieb or not to Bieb

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This article was published 13/03/2011 (5544 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Justin Bieber turned 17 last week, leaving him with three more years to be a teen. But the young superstar is already older than his years.

He is not just a teen idol, but also the object of adult fascination.

He not only festoons countless teen mags, but recently graced the cover of grown-up periodicals Vanity Fair (“Is this the adorable, inescapable face of 2011?”) and Rolling Stone (“Super boy”).

The kid is hot: fodder for atmospheric think-piece reportage with a titillating edge. The first megastar to arrive via YouTube and Twitter, he’s a devilish piece of work, with those perfect lips and bedroom eyes — and that hair!

But how long will it last?

Bieber’s world tour to promote his first movie, the faux doc Never Say Never, is reminiscent of Lonely Boy, the genuine 1962 NFB documentary about Paul Anka’s transition from teen idol (he was 16 when he came out of Ottawa in 1957 with the self-penned Diana) to playing the mob-ruled Copacabana nightclub.

Anka was able to survive the long bus tours and drug temptations on rock ‘n’ roll revues with a burning will to succeed in big-time showbiz, which he did after writing My Way for Frank Sinatra.

Permanently bronzed (he’ll turn 70 on July 30), he still performs the casino and concert-hall circuits.

Skeptics say Bieber has no talent — hey, they said Elvis had no talent, too — but he’s loaded with it, in a robotic way.

He’s been performing music since very early childhood, and knows all the tricks. He has an ingrained will to succeed. “I wanna win a Grammy,” he blurts, like he wants a piece of candy. (And when the relatively unknown jazz-oriented bassist-singer Esperanza Spalding upset him for best new artist, his legion of “Beliebers” defaced her website.)

Never Say Never is in the split-screen tradition of Elvis on Tour, except it chronicles a star’s ascent (as opposed to the King’s comeback).

Despite the Christian upbringing, there’s Bieber’s implicit sexuality: He’s a horny 17-year-old, holding hands with Selena Gomez in seemingly staged “private” moments, conquering the world, adored by millions.

“There’s a frenzy going on about Justin, and the frenzy is that he’s hot,” L.A. Reid, head of Island Def Jam, told Rolling Stone. “The girls just love him. They think he’s their boyfriend, that there’s a shot for them. Justin sold them a dream, and they are buying it hook, line and sinker.”

Then Justin slipped up in Rolling Stone, answering a question about abortion, a reality many of his fans have had, or will have, to face. “I really don’t believe in abortion. I think (an embryo) is a human. It’s like killing a baby.” What about in cases of rape? “Well, I think that’s just really sad, but everything happens for a reason. I don’t know how that would be a reason.” Then, instinctively trying to cover his tracks: “I guess I haven’t been in that position, so I wouldn’t be able to judge that.”

“Mr. Bieber sings to girls, yes, but he does not sing on their behalf,” harrumphed Jon Caramanica of The New York Times.

How long will he be able to get away with telling Vanity Fair, “I really don’t know why girls are acting that way. And you know what? I don’t think about it.”

He’s a natural stage hound, a quick study, oozing confidence. He’s terrific at basketball, tossing a three-pointer at a charity event with Scottie Pippen looking on. The kid’s got great moves, emulating his hero, Michael Jackson.

But you wonder if the teenage all-media, hip-hop automaton is headed for a crack-up. (He claims to get one day off per week.)

He kicked off a Jon Stewart show in a skit whereby they reversed roles, with Bieber playing the talk-show host with cool aplomb, after which Stewart cracked, “I’m sure he’s got people looking after his best interests.” Bieber’s not old enough to touch his fortune, but he’s loaded with gold cards.

And there he is in soft-porn mode in Vanity Fair, playing checkers in front of a vintage Pepsi bottle, his shirt unbuttoned to reveal a tender teen torso. (Tagline: “I’m not normal. I think differently — my mind is always racing. I’m just nuts.”)

Reid, who’s worked with Outkast, Pink, Rihanna, Kanye West, and Mariah Carey, says: “He’s got the hot face. But then this little kid, he’s sitting in my office, he’s playing guitar, he’s talkative, he’s charming, and I fell for him. I thought he was amazing. But I also saw beyond the first step. I think he’s the kid who (will) go beyond the teenage puppy-love thing; he’s the kid they will grow with. He’s special.”

Maybe what you see is what you get. You only get (imagined) hints of pressure-cooker discord that surrounds his family from small-town Stratford, Ont. Bieber’s challenge is also to survive the ambitions of his mother, Pattie Mallette, who admittedly had a wild youth, but eventually had a personal encounter with God; and his hustling agent Scooter Braun, who seems straight out of central casting. Bieber’s sex appeal crosses all age and gender groups; moms go nuts!

Is he a nervous breakdown waiting to happen?

As Lisa Robinson reports for VF: “He’s claustrophobic; he doesn’t like elevators. He isn’t exactly afraid of the dark, but doesn’t like it when there’s no light on when he’s trying to sleep. He gets headaches. Some days he’s just overwhelmed, and he’s told Scooter he just wishes he could ‘throw erasers at teachers’ heads.'”

For now, Bieber is fixed in the long tradition of teen pop idols; remember Bobby Rydell, Bobby Vee, Bobby Vinton, Bobby Sherman? (Only Bobby Darin’s talent transcended the genre, at least for the dreaded Bobbys). The Bieb’s talent is precocious, yet he seems to be naturally stage-bound.

If he’s given half a chance, will he manage to outgrow his current fame? Does he have artistic aspirations? Is he that talented? Will he develop? Does he care? Will we care? Or is he just another eventual 19th nervous breakdown?

— Postmedia News