Justin Bieber has been releasing banger after banger these days. Yes, “Purpose” was an unbelievable comeback album after a long hiatus, but his recent tracks have been even more incredible.

The thing about Justin Bieber is that you really never know what to expect from him as a person and as an artist. Whether it’s collaborating with music legend Chance the Rapper or working with various DJs to release singles, you never know what’s going to come next.

Take his most recent features, such as on “Deja Vu” by Post Malone. Many publications have compared the rhythmic track to Drake’s “Hotline Bling.” Bieber’s other recent appearance on DJ Snake’s “Let Me Love You” is a completely different sound, with more upbeat rhythms and higher vocals.

The point is, his persona is changing. As an artist he has become unpredictable, but in a respectable way. He can successfully master any kind of sound and collaborate with any kind of artist — and that is what I call talent.

On another note, let’s address something that has been at the forefront of the Beliebers’ minds for the past few weeks: his deleted Instagram account. On Aug. 16, Bieber deleted his Instagram account because he was receiving negative comments about his dating life.

Bieber had over a whopping 77 million followers on Instagram. The drama started after Bieber shared pictures with his new supposed girlfriend, Sofia Richie. It caused some beef between him and Selena Gomez when she commented, “If you can’t handle the hate then stop posting pictures with your girlfriend lol – it should be special between you two only.”

Bieber has never taken any sh*t from anyone. He was extremely bothered by the hate and decided to share and act on how he felt.

Bieber deleted his Instagram account a few months after he announced that he was done taking pictures with his fans in public: “It has gotten to the point that people won’t even say hi to me or recognize me as a human,” Bieber wrote, “I feel like a zoo animal, and I wanna be able to keep my sanity.”

Again, this goes with the new impulsive and unpredictable Bieber. He has been evolving and trying to stray away from the pre-pubescent Bieber we all knew and loved, but his deleted Instagram and no-pictures announcement is entirely new to fans.

He is really maturing and growing up as a person and in the music industry. From his 2010 swoopy hair and high voice, to his 2016 blonde hair and tattoos, he is almost unrecognizable.

All of these changes are shown through his music and new sounds. The slow jam of “Deja Vu” is incomparable to the extreme poppy beat in “Never Say Never” or “Love Me.” You can hear him mature more and more through each song he releases. This reflects his development through the years.

Bieber has and still is creating a new image and reputation for himself. Everyday it’s something new and unexpected, and I’m pumped to see what’s next.

Phoebe Smith is a junior public relations major. Her column appears weekly in Pulp. You can email her at phsmith@syr.edu or follow her on Twitter @phoebesmithh5.

Published on September 18, 2016 at 9:18 pm