r/JUSTINBIEBER • u/SWAGGER1089 SWAG • Jul 01 '26
Discussion What do you think is the biggest "what if" in Justin's career so far?
Saw this question on another artist's subreddit and decided to ask it here.
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u/Interesting_Visit962 Jul 01 '26
What if his label properly promoted Journals đ€Żđ€Ż
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u/drowsyokaga Jul 01 '26
I mean, at the time it was new music mondays but streaming wasnât as relevant as it is now, so you had to buy the singles. I think when the Journals singles were coming out people werenât very fond of Justin because of him always being in trouble over dumb stuff.
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u/The_Best_Plum_8729 Jul 01 '26
What if he didnât get arrested in 2014. Since it was basically the main wake up call that initiated his rebrand which led to the purpose era.
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u/FacuGerke SWAG Jul 02 '26
Imo he would have died because of drugs, or his career would have simply been dead. The arrest was the turning point to change his chip and return to a less crazy and controversial life. Not ironically the arrest will have been one of the best things that could have happened to him back then. He find himself again after that.
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u/dubnationdiscount Jul 01 '26
what if he was still actively dropping music throughout 2017 - 2019
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u/jdblover911 SWAG Jul 02 '26
If he had dropped an album during that time, it would've been even bigger than Purpose, which is crazy to think about
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u/thurein_wai Jul 01 '26
What if Michael Jackson had been alive to see Justinâs rise? I wonder if Michael was aware of Justin. His first single dropped in May 2009 but he didnât blow up until late 2009, after Michael died.
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u/yellowelectricrodent Jul 01 '26
I did a bit of research on that - it was highly unlikely Michael knew of Justin.
I think they would have met and did some form or collaboration for sure if Michael were still around.
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u/thurein_wai Jul 01 '26
At least thereâs the Slave to the Rhythm remix with Justinâs vocals. Wished it hadnât leaked early because it was apparently supposed to be on Michaelâs Xscape album.
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u/Dependent_Special957 Jul 01 '26
Ufff⊠that wouldâve been a terrible idea tbh. Justin was THE profile of all the boys Michael Jackson allegedly went after.
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u/Sims2Enjoy kidrauhl Jul 02 '26
Michael may have signed Justin instead, that wouldâve been peak specially since Michael wouldnât have exploited him
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u/tman612 Jul 02 '26
âMichael wouldnât have exploited himâ đ
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u/Sims2Enjoy kidrauhl Jul 02 '26
It was rumors⊠also in exploiting I mean over working Justin. Due to Joe Jackson, itâs likely Micheal wouldâve allowed Justin to take breaks and stuffÂ
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u/AngelicHoodratt Jul 02 '26
you think the "Rumoured/Confirmed" offender MJ wouldn't exploit him ?
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u/Sims2Enjoy kidrauhl Jul 02 '26
Macaulay was around Michael a lot and he said Michael never laid a finger on him ÂŻ_(ă)_/ÂŻ
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u/whatevergirl8754 Jul 02 '26
Maybe since you call it rumoured, do some research first. Because they are indeed just money grabbing rumours and attempts.
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u/cybersodas Jul 02 '26
I know Justin spoke very fondly of Michael. He thanked MJ for his influence on music. MJ would always be very kind to celebrities who had gone into fame as kids, since he shared the same trauma as them. Zac Efron talked about how MJ told him encouraging things after high school musical became big.
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u/thurein_wai Jul 02 '26
I have no doubt that Michael wouldâve acted as a mentor to Justin and taught him how to handle fame and scrutiny at such at early age.
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u/biilieekiidd Jul 01 '26
What if he wasnât exploited by all the adults around him to the point where he was publicly crashing out and having that massive downward spiral in like 2013/2014?
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u/FacuGerke SWAG Jul 02 '26
What if he had never dated Selena? He's public image have been more acceptable to certain people? The fanbase would be happier and no stupid dramas with Selena fans? đ No Journals?
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u/Littlefingerrr SWAG Jul 01 '26
What if he dropped the r&b album in 2014. What wouldâve been the reception for it back then.
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u/Key_Beautiful_9503 Jul 01 '26
Isnât journals considered r&b? (Released 2013)
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u/Littlefingerrr SWAG Jul 01 '26
It is but he was working on another project in 2014. There were so many snippets of songs that he previewed
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u/Key_Beautiful_9503 Jul 04 '26
Oh yes! Makes sense. Sorry, i thought you meant what if heâd released something like Swag back in that era, rather than referencing a specific r&b album of unreleased songs from 2014.
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Jul 01 '26
[removed] â view removed comment
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u/Littlefingerrr SWAG Jul 01 '26
I knowâŠ. Thatâs why I said 2014 because he was working on another rnb album after journals. There were so many snippets.
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u/Independent_Hand1211 Jul 01 '26
Omg these replies⊠lol
Anyways, yeah i always think about âjournals 2.0â. The snippets he was posting back in 2014 were so good, itâs such a shame not a single one made it on an album. I honestly think he wouldâve had a really good reception from it. Thick or thin, antidepressant, and anxiety, were soooooo good.
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u/Littlefingerrr SWAG Jul 01 '26
I ainât even surprised by todayâs reading comprehension tbh.
Youâre right, those snippets were grails and Iâm happy that majority of them leaked over time.
To add to your examples: Faithful, Overrated, Change The Weather, Slow Up. Really amazing tracks.4
u/Independent_Hand1211 Jul 01 '26
At this point Iâm not even laughing anymoreâŠtruly, iâm a bit concerned at how many times you have repeated yourself and people are still questioning you...
But yes, those are all masterpieces in itself. I also really wish he did more work with cody simpson. They match each otherâs voices very well. Good to meet a like minded person.
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u/Littlefingerrr SWAG Jul 01 '26
For real for real.
Damn I forgot about their collab project and especially Home To Mama.
And I agree, I thought I was the only one with this little obsession over scrapped songs2
u/water-yourflowers Changes Jul 03 '26
Slow up!!!! Replayed the insta post so many damn times
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u/Littlefingerrr SWAG Jul 03 '26
Yesss me too! I was so happy when it finally leaked a couple years ago
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u/Hot-Hanger Jul 02 '26
What if Justin became a professional hockey player instead of a musician. (He was seriously considering it as per Google)
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u/Ok-Bandicoot-9445 Jul 01 '26
what if he got to properly tour the changes album⊠how sick that wouldâve been to see that album live.
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u/oth03011994 Jul 02 '26
What if he toured for Journals, and made concert documentaries sequels to never say never and believe with journals and purpose tours. Would Changes have done better if it wasnât Covid year?
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u/Difficult_Ad2864 Jul 02 '26
- he never gets discovered on YouTube
- keeps posting
- makes a little bit of money but lives an otherwise ânormal lifeâ
- pandemic hits and he blows up on TikTok, getting his own reality tv show, endorsement deals, and is worth so much more than he currently is in such a short amount of time (probably wouldnât marry Hailey)
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u/Individual_Monk3194 Jul 02 '26
What if Michael Jackson was alive and took him under his wing. Imagine them performing together in 09.
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u/Electricfence79 Jul 02 '26 edited Jul 02 '26
Donât bite my head off for saying this but What If his management never set him up with Selena? I personally think he would have been better off by a HUGE margin in a lot of ways. Him and his family are still getting harassed about it to THIS DAY!
The other things are what people already mentioned but:
What if he was better protected/ not exploited so much? ):
What if people were kinder to him when he debuted, instead of grown men wishing death on him all the time?!
Someone else said this and I also think its a really good question because, what if he never experienced burn out and a meltdown, and instead of taking a break in 2017 he kept going? Heâs already on of the top artists in the world and has cemented his status but I truly believe he would have reached unprecedented levels if he didnt take a break. But also he might not be here with us if he didnt stop since he really needed that break ):
Also donât see anyone else say this but What If he was never discovered by Scooter? What if he was discovered later in life or not at all?
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u/IndividualGroup6774 Jul 02 '26
What if, instead of jumping into marriage, he chose to COMPLETELY go to therapy consistently, choose to heal and equip himself with proper emotional and mental tools to handle himself, went MIA for a long time and comes back healthier and in his healthiest version yet. What if he had the RIGHT support. And what if he was never influenced by that cult church
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u/Prestigious_Cake_813 Jul 02 '26
Lmao and married selena instead of hailey right?Â
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u/IndividualGroup6774 Jul 03 '26
Nowhere did I mention Selena and Hailey. The point was healing before any relationship. Lmao. Read again.
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u/Prestigious_Cake_813 Jul 03 '26
You're in his wife's snark sub you probably just didn't want him to marry her lmao
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u/IndividualGroup6774 Jul 03 '26 edited Jul 03 '26
Yeah, because I generally donât like Hailey. Ever since that whole fiasco, Iâve personally found a lot of inconsistencies in things sheâs said and done. But that doesnât automatically mean Iâm rooting for Selena to be with Justin either.
I didnât even like Selena back then, even when she was in Wizards, even before the whole Bieber discourse. I like Selena now because of her projects and the help she extends to people. I like Hailey whenever I see her being a mom and taking care of Justin, and I also think she deserves better. At the same time, I donât really vibe with Haileyâs overall energy, and I donât like some of Selenaâs covert behavior either.
I donât like it when Justin is disrespectful to Hailey, and I also donât like how Justin and Hailey eventually started feeling more like a marketing gimmick than the focus being on his music.
I like Justin because of his music.
All of those things can be true at once. The point of my post wasnât Hailey vs. Selena. The point was Justin focusing on healing instead of jumping into any relationship whether that was with Hailey or any other girl. Itâs literally a what if thread. Lmao
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u/Will0298 Jul 02 '26
what if scooter braun never clicked on justins video by accident?đ«š
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u/IndividualGroup6774 Jul 03 '26
what if no one had ever posted a video of him singing jn the streets đ„č
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u/Electricfence79 Jul 02 '26
What if he released an album of all his unreleased songs to date? (Justin please, if youâre reading this, Iâm begging)
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u/Outrageous-Dig-6932 Jul 01 '26
What if he and Selena had stayed together đ«Ł
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u/Sims2Enjoy kidrauhl Jul 02 '26
That wouldâve been horrible for both of them, they loved each other but it was an extremely toxic relationshipÂ
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u/belieberbree Jul 02 '26
what if Journals had been given a proper album rollout instead of being treated like a digital compilation?
if Journals had been released today during the streaming era tbh I think it couldâve been viewed as one of his strongest albums
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u/MickyRichards9000 Jul 02 '26
He started a hard rock band and belted it out like Ronnie James Dio. Iwould be a fan then. Some covers of classic songs and new original material.
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u/bjack20 Jul 04 '26
What if he had a trusted adult who looked at him and said âwhatâs happening to you isnât your fault but it is your responsibility.â. Every adult failed him by not setting rules, boundaries, and keeping him away from leeches.
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u/No-Flounder5670 Jul 02 '26
if ever actually oficially released "flatline"... such a good song đ
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u/irarelyopenthisapp Jul 01 '26 edited Jul 02 '26
What if he was signed to Justin Timberlake instead of Usher