Despite all of her eerie tunes that allude to teens sleeping with their friends’ fathers, Billie Eilish is a massive, massive Justin Bieber fan, so much so that her childhood bedroom was festooned with Believe-era Biebs posters all over the walls. The duo would go on to meet and collaborate following Eilish’s meteoric rise, and now, in a new interview with Apple Music, Bieber was reduced to tears as he relayed a message to her about the perils of achieving fame at a vulnerable age. “It was hard for me being that young and being in the industry and not knowing where to turn and everyone telling me they loved me and you know, just turning their back on you in a second,†he explained. “I just kind of let her do her thing and if she ever needs me I’m going to be here for her.â€
“I just want to protect her. I don’t want her to lose it,†Bieber, who’s dealt with numerous public breakdowns, added. “I don’t want her to go through anything I went through. I don’t wish that upon anybody. So yeah, if she ever needs me, I’m just a call away.†Last year, Bieber penned a thoughtful social media opus about the “unexplainable†effects of child stardom, and how his ups and downs can serve as a cautionary tale to others. “I became resentful, disrespectful to women, and angry,†he wrote. “I became distant to everyone who loved me and I was hiding behind a shell of a person that I had become.†He credits his slow recovery to the “extraordinary people who love me for me,†as well as his new wife, Hailey Bieber.