Journals - Justin Bieber’s love letter to R&B
It is just shy of eight years since the release of Justin Bieber's album, Journals. Journals represents the intersection of Justin’s evolution into the artist he is today and where music fans needed to evolve with his change in style. Even with Justin being one of the hugest global pop acts of our generation, R&B is undoubtedly a major inspiration for his artistic expression.
For me to talk about Journals the way I want to, I need to first discuss how Justin began his journey toward the R&B musician that he (and fans like myself) see him as. Make no mistake about it, Justin is no stranger to the sounds of R&B. If we take it a step further, one might say that he was cut-out for the genre. Before Justin was the phenomenon he is today, he was garnering tons of views on YouTube covering and performing some major R&B songs at the age of 13. It was these covers (one might argue maybe it was the R&B ones specifically) that eventually landed him a visit from Usher in his native London, Canada, where he was signed to a record and management deal.
Watching these specific covers, it is hard to ignore the inflection choices that Justin makes and the direction that he takes his vocal riffs. These liberties are what we would expect from someone who knows and studied the genre closely, who has listened to enough R&B to know where and how to take the original to a new and spirited place.
With Justin’s keen insight on the genre, it is no surprise that Usher made sure that he be surrounded by the genre’s top creatives starting with his debut EP, My World. On which, we can hear The-Dream's signature sound on songs like One Time. On the follow up, My World 2.0, we get recognizable vocal production from Johnta Austin on Never Let You Go and the R&B-kissed ballad style that is Nasri’s signature on Up. THIS. IS. R&B! Not to mention the game changing, smash song written by Christina Milian and The-Dream, Baby. Baby would see producers Tricky Stewart and The-Dream continue to build upon their in-demand fusion of R&B and pop, used to craft huge records for Rihanna (Umbrella) and Beyonce (Single Ladies).
Justin did not arrive to the more mature sound that we see on Journals overnight. From here, the R&B sound was weaved into each project that followed. Justin’s final predominantly teen-pop leaning project was 2012's Believe, which still had some straight up R&B songs on it (Boyfriend, Right Here, Die In Your Arms, and Catching Feelings). However, the real tee-up for Justin’s acceleration into an R&B artist was (oddly enough) his holiday album, Under the Mistletoe. This holiday album was released one year prior to Believe in 2011, which was the same year that would see Justin collaborate with Chris Brown. This was for Chris’s album F.A.M.E on a song called Next To You. This track was one of the first widely circulated songs where we got our first taste of Justin's changing voice. Justin carried an impressive rasp to his tone which was noticed and praised by music critics. Next To You (written by Chris Brown and Sevyn Streeter) was lauded by critics a standout from Chris’s album, mainly for how well Chris and Justin's voices blended on the track.
It seemed after this Justin was ready to push the R&B style over the line. While on tour for his Believe album, Justin began to write for Journals. This album marked the first time Justin connected with singer-songwriter-producer Poo Bear. Poo Bear would work with Justin on every project after this (except Justin’s gospel album) and play a major role in how Justin would define his sound and brand moving forward. I would argue that Poo Bear is at the center of what makes Journals the cult favorite that it is because this project in its entirety sounds so radically different from any of Justin’s previous works.
Now, Journals is an R&B album. Whether Justin is an R&B artist and whether his music and brand are considered "R&B" to music fans has been a topic of contestation. Justin has had some conflicts in the past as it relates to the direction that he looked to take in this style of music. In one instance, Justin publicly addressed the Recording Academy on social media when his album Changes was not recognized in the R&B category.
Before this, Justin came under fire when two videos of him using the N-word surfaced online. Although Justin was a child at the time the videos were filmed, it is impossible to avoid the question of how these actions align with someone who wants to create within and support this predominantly black genre of music.
Journals might just be Justin's most cohesive body of work. There is no identity crisis here, no genre-hopping, or surprise features. This album is brimful with adoration (All That Matters, Memphis), heartbreak (Heartbreaker, Bad Day, Flatline), affection (Swap It Out, Confident), sex (Hold Tight), forgiveness (Recovery, One Life, Change Me), and remorse (All Bad, Roller Coaster). Journals is a mosaic of emotions. A work that is built on sleek, modern music production, soulful melodies, and rich background vocals and layering. All of which, see Justin's matured vocal singing style take center stage.
To celebrate Valentine’s Day 2021 and give his sentimental body of work some shine, Justin did a live concert for TikTok where he performed a substantial part of the LP. Marking the first time he has performed this material live, Justin breathed new air into the songs and made some nice alterations for their live rendition. Continue reading for my song-by-song review of the performance (minus PYD 😊).
Justin opened with Change Me, a sincere ballad where he surrenders to loves demands hoping that it will make him a new man. This was a smart move, seeing as the song encapsulates the overall sentiment of the album. The simple piano melody sends my mind directly to those 90’s R&B references, that I am sure Justin is cognizant of too. The real star of this rendition is the arrangement. A full house of instrumentalists who really understood the assignment and helped Justin deliver. It would have been nice to see him take on some of those stellar background vocals, I think he had it in him. Maybe next time.
Next, Justin put on Heartbreaker and steadily took it to new levels from the original. He wasted no time changing the keys, took some new vocal runs, and fleshed out the ad-libs that demonstrate his growth vocally. The live arrangement striped away the contemporary production elements in favor of a more alternative sounds, which was interesting and unexpected.
Hearing the guitar melody from Recovery quietly emerge out of the silence was a dramatic shift. It is on this record that we see Justin flip the iconic melody from Craig David’s Fill Me In and by doing so, sent R&B fans into a frenzy. This live arrangement is another standout, nicely controlled during the second verse and then banging it out with the electric guitar at the end. It is here that I noticed the up-tempo’s might have been spared from the setlist to keep the mood on theme with Valentine’s Day. Not a bad thing. I am glad that Recovery made the setlist, the melodies are crazy!
Justin made Swap It Out sound so smooth in this performance. In the original version, Justin had a bit more grit on his voice and took it with another key. But this version is perfect, his breathing and ability to hold those runs over the chorus sound great.
Hearing Justin sing fan favorite, Hold Tight, now gives the song new meaning. With lines like “Them lips won’t let me go” and “That thing is swollen, You got me oh so in a trance”, it is hard to imagine what else he could be referring to. Justin really let loose on this one, giving us his best controlled vocal riffs and singing as if he knows what the song means to everyone out there listening.
The live version of One Life did not disappoint; Justin took the song to new places that carried me away from my own expectation of how it would sound. This is a good example of those moments during a concert where you want/expect to hear your favorite song just like the album, but you end up hearing a new arrangement. Sometimes it can disappoint. Not because it is bad, but because you wanted to hear your favorite song the way you know it. This was not the case here and Justin ended the track really connecting and pushing his vocals to deliver a soulful rendition of the song. The contrast between the current day Justin vocal and the youthful voice that laid those background vocals playing behind him was a neat characteristic of this one.
Bad Day came in strong from the beginning when it interpolated Ice Cube's Today Was A Good Day, which shares the same sample. This was probably Justin’s weakest vocal delivery because the notes here are high, and Justin is just not the same as when he cut the record. However, the belts and runs were as strong as ever. There was a noticeable uptick in the performance charisma here and it made me wish that more people would see Justin in this way.
There seems to be a deep connection between Justin and the lyrics for All Bad. Watching him work through the music and witnessing his stage presence, there was a certain energy to this performance. The lyrics reflect a man tortured by his own mind, questionable decisions, and a fast lifestyle that he admittedly succumbs to. Whether it be good or bad.
Confident is the only up-tempo song on the setlist and Justin held a surprisingly strong performance. I expected him to miss a lot of those notes and avoid making those vocal runs, but he did them ALL. For some reason, this track sped right by unlike the other songs.
All That Matters might slightly enter that “simp” territory that the internet tends to make fun of these days. With lines comparing a car that can’t drive without gas to how Justin feels about not having his girl nearby, it is hard to avoid such an association. But this wanes in comparison to just how much this song pours its heart out in pure admiration and adoration. Paired with a tight squeeze on his changing vocal cords during the time it was originally recorded, how can you not believe that Justin’s girl is all that matters to him? Present day Justin delivered with some impressive vocal runs and enjoyable belts that made me say DAMN!
With a record like Journals in his repertoire, Justin has made it clear that his haven is R&B music. It is evident throughout his career and is clear that the genre has never left his side. With recent collaborations with Summer Walker, WizKid, Beam, Kehlani, Bryson Tiller, Don Toliver, and Omah Lay, there is no doubt that Justin will continue to pursue this lane he has carved out.
