Justin Bieber returns with new album ‘Swag’
The singer cryptically announced the record — his first in four years — just hours before its release
By Larisha Paul
Justin Bieber is back. Just hours after cryptically teasing his comeback, the singer has released Swag, his first full-length LP in four years. Almost as if he wanted to make up for lost time, Bieber stuffed the record with 21 new songs, including collaborations with Gunna, Sexyy Red, and Cash Cobain.
A lot has changed for the 31-year-old since his last studio album, Justice, which arrived in 2021. He took a break from touring in 2022, cancelling the remaining 82 shows of the 131-date world tour he launched in support of the record. “After getting off stage, the exhaustion overtook me and I realized that I need to make my health the priority right now,” he said at the time. “So I’m going to take a break from touring for the time being. I’m going to be ok, but I need time to rest and get better.”
In the interim, Bieber welcomed his first child, Jack Blues Bieber, with wife Hailey Bieber in August 2024. Songs on Swag reflect the major life change, like the song ‘Dadz Love,’ which appears on the second half of the album.
Ahead of the album release, Bieber shared versions of the billboard images that he used to announce the album in cities across the world. In one, he faces the camera and Hailey stands in the background holding their child in a diaper. Other photos show Bieber playing with his baby and posing for pictures with Hailey, who also shared photos of several billboards to her own Instagram Story, featuring the word ‘Swag,’ and black-and-white images of Bieber with a buzzcut.
In the weeks and months preceding the record, Bieber has been hyper-active on Instagram, sharing candid posts that speak to his recent struggles with the paparazzi, his interpersonal relationships, and internal battles stemming from fame. In one recent upload, he responded to the people who “keep telling me to heal,” writing: “Don’t you think if I could have fixed myself I would have already? I know I’m broken. I know I have anger issues.”
He added: “I tried to do the work my whole life to be like the people who told me I needed to be fixed like them. And it just keeps making me more tired and more angry. The harder I try to grow, the more focussed on myself I am. Jesus is the only person who keeps me wanting to make my life about others. Because honestly I’m exhausted with thinking about myself lately aren’t you?”