Reviewed by: Gio Battaglia
Justin Bieber has just released his fifth studio album, “Changes,” this past Valentine’s Day. This is the fifth studio album from the singer and the first we have heard in 5 years, after what was the commercial success, “Purpose.” This album comes at a time in Bieber’s life when he is starting to show his adult life to the general public, with the album consisting of mostly upbeat love songs talking about the beauty of women. The lead single, “Yummy,” was a song that received mixed reviews from fans and audiences, but with tracks like “E.T.A.” and “Intentions,” with a feature from Quavo, Bieber is able to prove that he still has what it takes to write and craft songs with meaning, as well as songs that fans will sing along to and add to their playlists. Most, if not all, of the songs on this album contain repeating beats and hooks, which will create catchy songs that a listener would find hard to get out of their heads, but may turn off a listener from listening to this album in its entirety because it may start to have a sense of redundancy. Part of the album seems a little rushed, which could be due to the fact it is released shortly after the comeback of Bieber’s ex-relationship, Selena Gomez. While not referencing Gomez on the album in any way, fans speculate if more time was supposed to be put into this album, but it was pushed out to keep Bieber’s name in the media and not let the spotlight shine on Gomez for long. There have been things that fans have seen Bieber do during the start of the era that could be questionable, such as begging for streams, pushing music video and overloading with content. But that did not stop fans from listening to and buying the album and securing Bieber with a #1 on the Billboard 200. Overall, this album contains a number of steady hits that will have fans listening but does not have the impact that previous albums “Purpose” and “Believe” had. Hopefully we will get to see some live performances that get good critical reception and prove that Justin is still in this for the long run. RATE: 3/5