Biographic - Sunday February 7, 2016 Comic Strip Licensing and Permissions

Transcript

He was just a star-struck teen who posted a video of his talent show performance online. Following a whirlwind, fairytale rise to stardom, Justin Beiber became one of the hottest stars in the pop firmament! Born in Canada, in London, Ontario on March 1, 1994, Justin Beiber taught himself to play piano, guitar trumpet and drums. He enjoyed his first success as a performer when he entered a local singing contest in 2006. Despite competing against kids who had trained with vocal coaches, Justin's natural ability shone through, and he earned second place. Justin and his mom began posting videos of him converting songs by the likes of Usher, Ne-Yo and Justin Timberlake online, so that friends and relatives could also see him. He quickly became a YouTube phenomenon, and those videos attracted hundreds of thousands of views... including some major movers and shakers in the music business. Manager Scott "Scooter" Braun took Justin under his managerial wing, and soon Usher and Justin Timberlake were involved in a bidding war to sign the youngster. Usher won out, and in the late 2008, 14-year-old Justin put pen to paper on a major label record deal. His debut album "My World 2.0" broke records before it was even released! Four pre-album singles, including the lead single "One Time" hit the charts, making Justin the first solo artist in History to have four Billboard top 40 hits before the release of a debut album. The album made Justin the youngest male solo act since Stevie Wonder in 1963 to top the U.S. charts. Subsequent releases, live shows and a 3-D concert movie made him a global superstar and moneymaking machine! His second studio album, the Christmas-themed "Under The Mistletoe." Debuted at No. 1 in the late 2011, selling 210,000 copies in the first week of release. 2012 marked a move away from teen-pop into more mature territory with the chart-topping album "Believe." He undertook a 150-date world tour to promote it and released an album of acoustic remixes. The tour formed the basis of the 2013 concert movie "Justin Bieber's Believe." The downside of growing up in the public eye is that every misstep is magnified. Justin's bad behavior, legal woes and brushes with the law ere extensively reported and helped create a widespread impression that his pop powers might be on the wane as his core audience outgrew him. He dispelled all such notions when 2015's "What Do You Mean" a move into "Tropical House" territory soared to the top of the charts to give him his first U.S. No. 1 Single!

Tags