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‘Sorry:’ Justin Bieber’s New Single Is A Total Bop And The Dance Video Is Fire

By Page Mackinley
Published on: 22:59 PST, Oct 22, 2015

Justin Bieber’s new single “Sorry” is a major bop. M-A-J-O-R. It also comes over as a public and direct mea culpa to ex- girlfriend, Selena Gomez.

It’s kind of impossible not to bop to the Biebs’ new song. “Sorry” is that good, and the compelling dance video that dropped right after the across-radio premiere on Thursday afternoon — starring two of New Zealand’s already famous all-female, hip-hop dance crews: ReQuest, and Royal Family Mega Crew —- is the brilliant cherry on the 21-year-old superstar’s apology cake.

The colorfully-clad dancers twerk and pop sexy, fun, personality-strong choreography by Parris Goebel, who also directed and produced the dance video. Complex and the New Zealand Herald detail the crews’ background. TMZ reports the dance video is part of a 35-minute movie choreographed by Goebel which will feature songs from the singer’s upcoming album.

The mesmerizing video has already racked up over four million views in less than 24 hours. Even if the Biebs doesn’t appear in a music video for the song, this will more than suffice.

“Sorry” is the second cut from the unstoppable Justin Bieber’s insanely anticipated next album, Purpose, which is set to arrive November 13. The single became officially available for download at iTunes for free from midnight to those who pre-order his new album. It’s now streaming at Spotify and is currently No. 2 on the U.S. iTunes Singles Sales chart below One Direction’s “Home.”

Produced by Blood and Skrillex, and co-written by Bieber, Julia Michaels, and Justin Tranter, the island-drenched, club-ready, emotional dance juggernaut packs a pulsing dancehall beat and earworms in the form of a vocal and Casio-sounding brass motif. In short: it’s a complete banger.

So now, Bieber is 3-for-3. Back in February, before anyone could have predicted the double-platinum, critical acclaim to come, Jack U’s Diplo and Skrillex released the Skrillex and Diplo Present Jack U album. Bieber’s collaboration, co-written with Jason “Poo Bear” Boyd, slayed charts and ushered in the first wave of music to soundtrack the singer’s successful, redemptive comeback story, with the potent “Where Are U Now?”

Over 560 million streams, sales, and plaudits later, the EDM-pop hit was Bieber’s bittersweet push back to ex-girlfriend Selena Gomez’s desolate “The Heart Wants What It Wants,” which was released months before. But, that was then. In her Billboard cover story, the pop princess said she was “proud” of Justin’s journey, although she also revealed they no longer speak.

Regardless, the former lovebirds are still speaking to each other — and the world — through their music. Selena, first with her mature-sounding Revival album. Now, the Biebs is preparing to land what many are saying will be a (to date) career defining record. The credits certainly read that way, with Nas, Mike Dean, Ed Sheeran, Travi$ Scott, Big Sean, and last but not least, a strongly rumored Drake feature.

Selena Gomez Finally Over Justin Bieber

“Where” was encored by “What Do You Mean?” In a nutshell, Bieber told his unnamed lover, “Hey, that’s great babe. But, seriously, what do you actually mean?” The song suggested miscommunication played a role in the demise of Jelena. “Strong,” the former couple’s recently leaked duet echoes that theme.

Before getting into “Sorry,” we should say Michaels and Tranter have not confirmed or denied that the song is about the former sweethearts’ relationship and said it was just about making difficult apologies. The co-writers annotated the Bieber-verfied lyrics at Genius.

Of the inspiration behind the song, Michaels wrote, “We were just trying to capture that moment in a relationship or a particular moment in your life where you realize you made a mistake and you’re finally ready to admit it and apologize.”

Tranter added, “Truly saying sorry is never easy to do, and when you are you just hope it’s not too late.”

All that said, the lyrics speak for themselves.

It’s reasonable to see “Sorry” as Justin laying it on the line and apologizing for nameless wrongs or issues in an intimate relationship. At least one line, highlighted below, solidifies that speculation as correct.

“You gotta go and get angry at all of my honesty / You know I try but I don’t do well with apologies,” he begins. Later, he pleads, “I just need one more shot at forgiveness / I know you know that I made those mistakes maybe once or twice / By once or twice I mean maybe a couple a hundred times.”

“Yeah, is it too late now to say sorry / Because I’m missing more than just your body / Is it too late now to say sorry / Yeah I know, I know that I let you down / Is it too late to say I’m sorry now?” the heartthrob asks in the pre-chorus.

“I’ll go, I’ll go and then you go, you go out and spill the truth,” Justin sings in the second verse. It reads as a brave, powerful acknowledgement of his ex’s heartbreak, and she has spoken many times about their relationship.

However, in the same verse he also says that although he’ll take the blame if that’s what’s needed before he’s forgiven, he notes that responsibility lies with both in the relationship. “I’ll take every single piece of the blame if you want me to / But you know that there is no innocent one in this game for two,” he adds.

This appears to reflect Selena’s perspective. In a recent in-depth interview with Refinery29, she said of the romance, “We grew up together. We both made mistakes. That’s it.”

“Sorry” will be inevitably be dissected by media and fans alike. Such is the enduring interest in the ballad of Bieber and Gomez. There’s no doubting the single is a hit, with its irresistible beat and honest all-heart lyrics. Will it break records like the No. 1 smash, “What Do You Mean?” Time till tell.

Meanwhile, after counting down the last three hours to the rollout of his new single on Twitter, the Biebs retweeted posts and invited fans to make their own dance videos to the track. He subsequently went on something of an Instagram spree. And, why not?

To buy “Sorry,” click the iTunes link.

https://instagram.com/p/9LODPCgvk7/?taken-by=justinbieber

https://instagram.com/p/9LOqCrgvl5/?taken-by=justinbieber

https://instagram.com/p/9LKK1zAvv6/?taken-by=justinbieber

https://instagram.com/p/9LaxCNgvnl/?taken-by=justinbieber

[Images via Universal Music Group]

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