by Isabel Paterson ‘12

Justin Bieber’s first album entitled “My World 2.0” debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, selling 283,000 copies in its first week, and he became the youngest male act to top the chart since Stevie Wonder in 1963. He is worth an estimated $65.5 million. The Facebook group “I love Justin Bieber” has gotten more than 14 million “likes” and his official Facebook fan page has almost 21 million “likes.” The music video for Bieber’s hit “Baby” is currently ranked as the most viewed and most discussed YouTube video, with comments coming in every ten seconds.

For a pop star beloved by millions of screaming girls, the week of Valentine’s Day seems the perfect time to debut an autobiographical documentary. On February 11, “Justin Bieber: Never Say Never” (in 3D of course) came out for the world to see.

As sneak peaks of the documentary appeared, some undoubtedly jumped out of their seats upon hearing the news that their “future husband” would be appearing on the big screen, while others likely cringed at the mention of his name.

Bieber’s fame is hugely controversial. It seems that people’s opinions of the budding pop star are either at one end of the spectrum or the other; they either love Bieber or hate him. With both extremes, however, the crowd seems to base its opinion on much more than his voice. It’s that undeniable charm. That sweepy hair. Those puppy dog eyes. It can make one sick with lust or sick with disgust.

Facebook reveals countless fan pages (or rather anti-fan pages) displaying the same title of “I Hate Justin Bieber.” The majority of these pages consist of at least 5,000 members whom have “liked” it.

These diehard Bieber haters seem to disregard the fact that, as obsessive as teenage girls get over dreamy teen idols, they do move on, and quickly at that. Remember Dream Street? The Naked Brothers Band? The Click Five? Upbeat male artists with good looks tend to be paved over by new upbeat male artists with younger looks.

So what does the future hold for Bieber? As much as some of us may not want to admit it, the kid’s got talent. Yet, it’s very difficult for teen stars to break out of the adolescent roles that often define them. Playing on the strings of young tweens’ hearts is a definite seller for him, with lyrics like, “’Cause whenever you smile, I smile,” along with promises he has made saying, “I could date a fan. It just depends.” And his looks have surely also gotten him far.

People may protest that he has been overly made fun of for his lack of, well, manliness and for his prepubescent voice, but there is reason behind these jokes. What happens when he starts getting facial hair? Or when his voice matures and deepens? Will his fan base stay loyal? Perhaps, but the danger for Bieber is that boyishness is his main appeal. As Bieber starts to physically mature, his voice will change. He has been caught with a cracking voice in numerous instances and admitted in an interview that, “It cracks. Like every teenage boy, I’m dealing with it.” And as far as the looks go, who knows if they too will fade.

The full response to his newly released documentary may very well reveal whether or not Bieber will continue to thrive in the music business after puberty. Bieber claims in an interview that he believes eventually his audience will broaden and even include teen boys. It could happen. Who knows? Maybe he is the next Michael Jackson. Or maybe he will fade into the background. In order to survive through the pitch changes and the loss of loyal audience members to the next kid with fancy hair, Bieber must make some changes.

Undoubtedly there is a mass of people who will never pick up his CD in a store. However, for those who are in that middle ground, he needs to prove himself. Bieber’s best option would be to showcase his voice in a song that has more meaningful lyrics than syrupy accounts of puppy love. This will be one step toward showing that he is more than a pretty face.