Justin Bieber’s $10 Million Worship Session 

The first weekend of Coachella—the most popular music festival in the US—took place on April 10-12 and left influencers with plenty to post about. From Karol G’s mariachi band to Sabrina Carpenter’s Broadway-level production, many of the performances left a big impression. Perhaps the standout (or most divisive, depending on your perspective) came from “Baby” singer Justin Bieber.   

With a relatively simple stage set up, Bieber focused on audience interaction and put his personality on full display. He shared his MacBook screen with the stage screen and spent time watching his old music on YouTube and singing along with the crowd. Then he pulled up some of his iconic “memeable” moments and live reacted to them. Finally, he performed some songs from his new album, Swag.   

Bieber has been a public personality since he was 15, and he has been transparent about his struggles living in the spotlight. For years, he has proclaimed Christianity. While some people have questioned the authenticity of his faith, last weekend, on one of the biggest stages of his career, he performed several songs that pointing to Jesus. Bieber sang “Everything Hallelujah” (which can be found on Coachella’s official YouTube channel) which lists everything he is thankful for including his wife (Hailey), son (Jack), and even brushing his teeth.   

Then he sang “Glory Voice Memo.” In a moment that was recorded and shared by many angry audience members, he sang, “I reach out, singing glory, I’m singing glory to the King. I reach out singing glory to the most high.” Once he finished the song, he was overcome with emotion and held back tears of joy as much of his audience walked away in protest. His performance offered a stark contrast to some of the other shows on that same stage.  

Bieber’s life has largely unfolded before the public eye. At various points, that bright spotlight has not portrayed him favorably, with every mistake or stumble becoming headline news. But for one monumental night at Coachella, he created a beautiful moment. It’s rumored that Bieber was paid as much as $10 million for that show which undoubtedly brings pressures to perform certain songs or specific ways. Yet, he took time to turn his attention to God and that is something worth thinking about.