Rivalries are as much a part of the music as drums and electric guitars. Biggie vs. Tupac. Kanye vs. Taylor. Manson vs. everyone. And a relatively new rivalry, Justin Bieber vs The Weeknd.
There are some interesting similarities between the two artists, and some important differences as well. Which one is the better singer? Who is more popular?
Bieber vs. The Weeknd Musical Style
Both Justin Bieber and The Weeknd are hard to put into a genre category. Bieber began his career as a pop star. In recent years, he’s branched out into R&B, EDM, and even country.
The Weeknd’s music blends R&B, Pop, and techno. It’s an intriguing blend that gives an instantly recognizable sound. He grew up listening to Ethiopian music. In addition to that influence, you can hear Michael Jackson and R. Kelly.
Quick Facts
Let’s take a look at the stats of the two artists. Who comes out on top in a head-to-head comparison?
Justin Bieber
- Birth name: Justin Drew Bieber
- Born in London, Canada, on March 1, 1994
- 5′ 9″ tall
- 6 studio albums, 2 compilation albums, 44 singles
- Over 20 million albums and 645,000 singles sold
- 290 million Net worth
- 14 grammy nominations and two awards, 671 nominations and 290 wins
- 167 million followers on IG, 113 million Twitter followers,89 million Facebook fans
The Weeknd
- Birth Name: Abel Makkonen Tesfaye
- Born on February 16, 1990 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Height: 5′ 8″
- 4 Studio albums, 3 compilation albums, 51 singles,
- Sold 12.5 million albums, 83 million digital singles
- $100 million net worth
- Won 3 Grammys out of 10 Grammy nominations, Received 388 nominations and 132 wins
- 31 million IG followers, 12 million Twitter followers
Social Media Popularity
Bieber has 167 million IG followers while The Weeknd has 31 million. The Biebs has 113 million Twitter followers, while The Weeknd has 12 million.
It’s important to note that The Weeknd has been very reserved. He was hesitant to go public on social media. It added to his early success because it creates a sense of mystery. In this case, a lower number of followers might not indicate lower popularity.
The Weeknd shines on Youtube. He was streamed 4.8 billion times in 2020. Not quite enough to catch up to Biebs, known as the Youtube king, with 5.25 billion.
The Weeknd has been streamed 3 billion times on Spotify, making him one of the most-streamed Canadian artists. His album After Hours was the second most-streamed album worldwide.
Justin Bieber is the first artist to have 7 singles with more than a billion streams. It’s an impressive stat, finally pulling him out of a tie with Post Malone, who has six songs with one billion streams.
Youth and education
Bieber was born in Canada and eventually moved to California. He spent time with his grandparents when he wasn’t living with his mother. He seemed to have a fairly typical childhood.
The Weeknd was also born in Canada. He was born to Ethiopian parents who immigrated to Canada. His father left when he was very young.
Both artists dropped out of high school at a young age to pursue music.
Big break and Career Growth
Bieber signed with Def Jam at 12 years old, after being discovered on Youtube. Usher and Scooter Braun guided his early career. My World was a hit single. “Baby” was a single on the second album and was once the most-watched video on Youtube.
The Weeknd took a different route to success. His first album was House of Balloons, which he released as a free download. He released two more mixtapes.
In 2011 he worked with Drake on the album Take Care. He then released Trilogy, which had songs from the first 3 mixtapes. It went platinum, and a star was born.
Rivalries and Controversies
Grammy Controversy
Both artists took issue with the latest Grammy awards. Justin Bieber was in the pop category. He stated that his latest album was R&B, and was
The Weeknd received no nominations, despite having a very strong year. He played at the 2021 Super Bowl. He was the first artist to have a song spend an entire year in the Billboard Chart Top 10.
He stated that he would no longer release music to the Grammys for consideration, because of the secret committees. He’s not the first artist to state unhappiness with the secretive nature of Grammy awards and nominations. Both artists boycotted the awards.
The Justin Bieber and The Weeknd Selena Gomez Triangle
The latest Justin Bieber controversy involved his wife Hailey Bieber. Selena Gomez is Bieber’s ex. Fans noticed a video of Selena playing in the background of Justin’s computer. This caused some drama among fans. However, both Justin and Hailey called for fans to “grow up” and “stop reading so much into things”.
A breakup is hard no matter who you are, but it’s much more difficult as a celebrity. After the Bieber breakup, The Weeknd started dating Selena. The Weeknd had recently broken up with Hai
The two have traded disses in their music. A line from one Weeknd song believed to reference Bieber, mentions “tongue game”. Bieber stated The Weeknd’s music was “whack”. When asked what his favorite song was on an Instagram live stream, he said Starboy and started laughing.
Justin Bieber vs The Weeknd FAQs
Why does Justin Bieber dislike the Weeknd?
It seems that the animosity between the two artists is related to the Bieber and Selena breakup. It’s normal to not like someone who is dating your ex, celebrity or not.
Does the Weeknd actually take drugs?
He first spoke about his drug use in a 2015 issue of Rolling Stone. The singer stated that he never needed rehab, but did go through a period of frequent drug use.
He says that he still uses drugs to open his mind at times, but he’s always sober when performing. He’s found a balance while touring and seems well in control of his recreational use.
Did the Weeknd teach himself how to sing?’
The Weeknd had vocal training after he found success with his mixtapes. Ron Anderson who has coached many stars helped him none his natural talent.
Did Justin Bieber and The Weeknd do a song together?
Yes. They released a song titled “Trust Me”. It appears that their rivalry might have settled into camaraderie. Neither of them is dating Selena Gomez any longer, so this may play a part in the reconciliation.
Why does The Weeknd have such huge appeal among teenage girls?
There are several reasons girls love The Weeknd. His lyrics are steamy and often a relationship or emotionally focused. He’s attractive. His voice is smooth and has a great range.
He’s also low-key. He’s shy and avoided publicity for the first two years of his career. You’ll never see him in flashy clothing. His understated style and mystique make him more attractive to girls.
What exactly is going on between Bella Hadid and Selena Gomez?
Bella Hadid and Selena Gomez were friends, or at least amicable. Then The Weeknd started dating Bella. After their breakup, he was with Selena. They broke up, and he was once again spotted with Bella.
All the back and forth dating also resulted in following and unfollowing on Twitter and Instagram. In the last few years, long after they had both stopped dating The Weeknd, there is still some drama.
Bella liked a photo of Selena in 2019 and commented on it. Selena deleted the comment, causing new controversy. In 2020, Bella followed Gomez again, only to unfollow her a few hours later.
What’s really going on? It’s really anyone’s guess. However, it seems like they may still dislike each other because of their relationships with The Weeknd.