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Justin Bieber Cries At Purpose Show, Selena Gomez Bitterly Crumples ‘Marry Justin’ Sign

By Page Mackinley
Published on: 23:44 PST, May 8, 2016

Justin Bieber is an emotional artist. The superstar cried onstage while singing “Purpose” during his Purpose World Tour concert at Philadelphia’s Wells Fargo Arena in Pennsylvania on Saturday night.

During his shows, the Canadian performs his album title song just before the finale and usually holds hands with fans standing in the pit. It’s a typically emotive moment, as the song is about the Biebs’ “relationship with God and newfound purpose in life” and also a thank you to Beliebers for their support during his past troubles.

After news of his breakdown spread on Twitter, thousands of Justin Bieber fans trended “YouGiveUsPurposeJustin” in the early hours of Sunday, along with messages of support, concern, and speculation over the reason (s) for his tears.

Watch clips of the Biebs crying as he sings “Purpose” below.

One fan who attended Justin’s show later tweeted, “He didn’t even hold anyone’s hand, he just sat in front of my pit the whole time and sang then started CRYING!”

So, what’s going on? A possible insight into his current state of mind came via the JustinBieberCrew.com fan site, who tweeted that a concertgoer claimed that at one point Justin told the 17,000-strong audience, “I’m still going through a journey.”

Online chatter reveals plenty of Selena Gomez fans believe (or maybe, want to believe) that Bieber’s tears were a result of (possibly) hearing his former girlfriend’s brand new track “Feel Me” which she debuted during the Friday opening night of her Revival Tour.

The song’s seemingly bitter lyrics (“I won’t be caught up in the middle / Through your highs and your lows / Baby, ‘long as you’re not with me, you’ll always be alone”) may or may not be about Bieber, but the odds say they are.

As for Beliebers, they appear to fall into three camps: Those who think Justin was crying because “Purpose” is a meaningful song to him, those who think he felt low because of the depression he previously revealed he suffers from, and those who think it’s a waste of time trying to second-guess a stranger’s feelings.

The speculation prompted some fans to muse thoughtfully about depression.

Some didn’t.

Justin explicitly talked about his depression during an interview with Ryan Seacrest last July. He later opened up to the U.K.’s NME magazine.

“I just want people to know I’m human,” the singer told NME. “I’m struggling just to get through the days. I think a lot of people are. You get lonely, you know, when you’re on the road. People see the glam and the amazing stuff, but they don’t know the other side. This life can rip you apart.”

The “Sorry” singer goes on to admit he deals with depression “all the time” and said he feels “isolated” by fame.

“You’re in your hotel room and there are fans all around, paparazzi following you everywhere, and it gets intense,” he continued. “When you can’t go anywhere or do anything alone you get depressed. I would not wish this upon anyone.”

Before those interviews, signs that Bieber was dealing with anxiety first surfaced in Rolling Stone’s 2011 interview with the singer, with manager Scooter Braun chiming in. In that piece, Braun told journalist Vanessa Grigoriadis that “Once, after an Orlando show, he started crying. ‘Justin sat down and told me he didn’t like being famous.'”

Further signs that fame was chafing Bieber were evident during his acting out period from 2013-14. Following his arrest on suspicion of DUI in January 2014, a toxicology report revealed a trace element of marijuana and Xanax. The latter is used in the treatment of anxiety. In addition, a police report at the time stated that during his arrest the Biebs told officers he took anti-anxiety meds when he feels “closed in.”

That was then. Towards the end of 2014 and since, Bieber has worked hard on himself to turn his life around. For the most part, he has done so, with the help of his faith and mentors. Amid the gossip, only Justin Bieber knows whether his tears during his show were over “Purpose’s” poignant lyrics, his complex relationship with Gomez, or part of his depression — or something else entirely.

For Selena’s part, she clearly isn’t crying over her former teen relationship. Hot on the heels of debuting her shade track on day one of her Revival Tour, the songstress crumpled up a sign onstage which read “Marry Justin Please” during her second show in Fresno after spotting a fan holding it in the audience.

Meanwhile, Bieber’s Sunday’s concert in Philadelphia saw the pop icon in evidently better spirits. He even got the crowd to help him shout-out his mother, Pattie Mallette, for Mothers’ Day. Nice touch.

[Photo by Jeff Kravitz/Getty Images]

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