Here we go again. Just as it seemed like Justin Bieber's streak of bad press couldn't possibly get any worse, another video has emerged of the Canadian pop heartthrob using racist slurs.
The video reportedly comes from five years ago, when he was 14. In this short and extremely unflattering clip, Bieber sings his track "One Less Lonely Girl" with the titular phrase edited to include the N-word. He also sings lyrics about murder and joining the KKK.
According to TMZ, Bieber and his team support the video's release, since they want to own up to the mistake. According to the report, he had seen an online video that featured a similar parody, so he flipped on a camera and performed his own version.
The Biebs apparently apologized privately a number of years ago, admitting that it was a mistake, and his mentor Usher reportedly gave him a lesson on racism and why such slurs are hurtful. Since then, there have allegedly been attempts to extort him over the clip.
Use discretion before watching the video below.
This unsettling clip comes just a couple of days after a separate video from around the same time period emerged online, showing Bieber telling a tasteless, racist joke about African Americans and chainsaws. That clip also used the N-word, and Bieber issued a statement saying, "Five years ago I made a reckless and immature mistake, and I'm grateful to those close to me who helped me learn those lessons as a young man. Once again... I'm sorry."
This is just the latest in a series of PR disasters for the young singer. On July 7, his DUI trial in Miami will begin.
UPDATE: Following the latest video, Bieber issued the following apology to the British newspaper the Sun [via the Toronto Sun]:
"Facing my mistakes from years ago has been one of the hardest things I've ever dealt with. But I feel now that I need to take responsibility for those mistakes and not let them linger... At the end of the day I just need to step up and own what I did... Once again I am sorry for all those I have let down and offended... I just hope that the next 14-year-old kid who doesn't understand the power of these words does not make the same mistakes I made..."
The video reportedly comes from five years ago, when he was 14. In this short and extremely unflattering clip, Bieber sings his track "One Less Lonely Girl" with the titular phrase edited to include the N-word. He also sings lyrics about murder and joining the KKK.
According to TMZ, Bieber and his team support the video's release, since they want to own up to the mistake. According to the report, he had seen an online video that featured a similar parody, so he flipped on a camera and performed his own version.
The Biebs apparently apologized privately a number of years ago, admitting that it was a mistake, and his mentor Usher reportedly gave him a lesson on racism and why such slurs are hurtful. Since then, there have allegedly been attempts to extort him over the clip.
Use discretion before watching the video below.
This unsettling clip comes just a couple of days after a separate video from around the same time period emerged online, showing Bieber telling a tasteless, racist joke about African Americans and chainsaws. That clip also used the N-word, and Bieber issued a statement saying, "Five years ago I made a reckless and immature mistake, and I'm grateful to those close to me who helped me learn those lessons as a young man. Once again... I'm sorry."
This is just the latest in a series of PR disasters for the young singer. On July 7, his DUI trial in Miami will begin.
UPDATE: Following the latest video, Bieber issued the following apology to the British newspaper the Sun [via the Toronto Sun]:
"Facing my mistakes from years ago has been one of the hardest things I've ever dealt with. But I feel now that I need to take responsibility for those mistakes and not let them linger... At the end of the day I just need to step up and own what I did... Once again I am sorry for all those I have let down and offended... I just hope that the next 14-year-old kid who doesn't understand the power of these words does not make the same mistakes I made..."