Justin Bieber may be under investigation for battery, but it seems he hasn’t lost his sense of humor. The singer played a joke on TMZ to mark April Fools’ day — and it was a corker.
The embattled pop star posted a message on his Twitter account that appeared to give his 36.9 million followers a phone number to call to speak to him.
Bieber wrote: “As promised taking all fan phone calls TODAY at (888) 847 9869. Talk to u soon!”
The 19-year-old even upped the ante a short while, tweeting : “Did everyone call me yet?”
But, and here’s the clever bit, the telephone number wasn’t a direct line to Bieber but a divert to TMZ’s hot story tip line .
The “As Long As You Love Me” singer eventually deleted the tweet but not before his belieber army took screen-grabs and passed it through the Internet.
It’s likely many fans — and possibly a few media outlets — called the number, which could slam the gossip website with hefty charges.
Because the telephone number is toll-free, TMZ will end up paying the price for all the people that called in.
As April Fools’ pranks go, it’s right up there.
It’s also no surprise why Bieber played the joke on the website.
TMZ break news. It’s what they do and they do it very well. But, if you’re the person who the website is focusing on, you’re probably not their biggest fan.
The website, who famously broke the news that Michael Jackson has died, also broke the battery allegation story that now has Bieber in the crosshairs of the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department.
TMZ have diligently stayed ahead of the Bieber alleged battery story and also appear to be keeping tabs on the coming and goings at his Calabasas, California mansion.
The only question now is who will have the last laugh?
[ Image via Jaguar PS / Shutterstock.com ]