Releasing his sixth studio album, “Justice”, Justin Bieber has done something few artists can say they’ve attempted. Justice dabbles in a different style of music that demonstrates Bieber’s expansive musical vocabulary. 

Bieber is accompanied by a talented line-up from Khalid, Chance the Rapper, the Kid Laroi, Dominic Fike, Daniel Caesar, Giveon, Beam, Burna Boy, to Benny Blanco. This album is a far cry from his debut albums. His personal and vocal maturity is reflected in the intimate and complex cadence in the 16 tracks. 

The world-renowned heartthrob still sings about love, but rather a selfless, relentless, and forgiving love. “Justice” is centered around its very namesake. Bieber emphasizes the need for compassion and upholding righteousness as a unifying theme in his lyrics. His album opens with the sampled voice of Martin Luther King Jr. saying “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere”. MLK Jr’s voice is threaded into the interlude with a sampled speech suggesting that conviction and passion are essential for living. 

Bieber’s smoothness in his voice throughout the album helps create the serenity and calmness aspect he seems motivated towards producing. He mastered the skill at changing the dynamic through his voice; from going from a very reposeful voice to an effortless and melodious falsetto.

“Die For You”, crowned at track 8, features singer Dominic Fike. The strong base line carries the song from beginning to end giving it a heavy nu-funk sound. There were numerous occasions when the two artists harmonized their voices for an ethereal experience. This is absolutely a track where listeners should use headphones to capture the full soundscape. The chorus reflects his relentless and selfless love, “I would walk through burning fire/Even if your kiss could kill me/You know I would die for you/Yeah, I would die for” which sounds as if he’s confessing to a lover. However, Bieber explained his inspiration was actually MLK Jr. who preached, “If you have never found something so dear and so precious to you that you will die for it, then you aren’t fit to live” which strongly influenced Bieber to produce music that made his listeners identify what causes they would passionately live or die for. 

“Ghost” is a quintessential Bieber hit with catchy beats and guitar riffs. has riled up much speculation amongst fans who argue for and against the song being about Bieber’s ex-lover Selena Gomez.  The falsetto-esque chorus sings “I want you to know that if I can’t be close to you/ I’ll settle for the ghost of you/ I miss you more than life” which emphasizes a sacrificial love. Bieber explains that given the pandemic people have been dealing with loss more than ever and this song is actually to help those with grief in a hopeful light.  

In conclusion the album was well written and very thought out. High expectations were placed towards this album and they were exceeded. Justice should be an album played in many people’s cars, gyms, and other public places to get everyone through the year. Not only Bieber fans will find themselves heavily gravitated towards his most recent album.