Is Justin Bieber a Negative Influence?
March 7, 2013
While it probably is unreasonable to think that Justin Bieber was ever a really good influence, it seems like things have taken a turn for the worse in recent months. The Canadian pop star was always dogged by rumors about him being bratty but many people shrugged it off as him being a kid who, otherwise, seemed relatively benign.
When Justin started dating Selena Gomez, the duo seemed to set the bar for teenage romances. They were playful and youthful on the beach and during holidays with their families but sophisticated and supportive on the red carpet or at award shows.
Things began to change in recent months, however. The relationship between Bieber and the paparazzi has grown increasingly volatile (he’s been issued several tickets for speeding, engaged in countless confrontations and one photographer died right in front of Bieber’s vehicle), he was spotted smoking marijuana, has taken pictures of his bare bum and shirtless torso for Twitter and things have only degraded further since his split from Gomez.
Bieber’s one saving grace was always that he maintained a healthy relationship with his fans and, at the end of the day, was explanatory and apologetic with them. He emphasized his belief that they were more important than anything else. Now, it seems, he’s even starting to lose sight of the reason for his success.
At a London concert earlier this week, just days after what he called the “worst” birthday ever, he took the stage two hours later than scheduled, upsetting his young fans and their parents. In fact, the doors opened for that show at 6:30pm but he didn’t start performing until 10:38pm (he was planned to perform at 8:30pm after his opening acts). The sad part is that some of the kids had to leave early because it was way past their bedtime (some were reportedly falling asleep) but, more importantly, families had to leave to avoid missing the last train home. Of course, the young concertgoers started crying when they were forced to leave.
Emotions were understandably running high and the singer was promptly booed by fans when he did finally grace the stage. To add insult to injury, Bieber slashed his set list to compensate for being so late. People from the singer’s camp have downplayed the hype saying that he was only an hour later than planned.
When you have young fans, no amount of tardiness is acceptable. They have regular lives and have to go to school and their parents shell out big bucks to support their favorite entertainer. With his increasingly unpredictable behavior, message boards have erupted with chatter that this could be the beginning of his demise. Maybe the fame is going to his head but, hopefully, someone in his inner circle will help him get back on track before his train completely derails.
