Justin Bieber’s Believe world tour now brings him to the East Coast for shows in New Jersey and the Big Apple.
On Monday, the shirtless, 19-year-old hit the mean streets of New York to take in the shops, sights and sounds.
Accompanied by a few friends and his bodyguards, Bieber was decked out in fairly, serious bling for an afternoon walkabout.
The singer wore a gold, pharaoh medallion chain teamed with black three-quarter sweat pants and black high top sneakers with gold detail.
The pop star was accosted several times by fans, but from pictures tweeted he seemed content to stop and pose for snaps.
Later that Monday, Bieber and his crew made their way to Catch, a swanky restaurant cum club in the meatpacking district of the city.
In a video — here— showing the group’s entrance, paparazzi can be heard calling out comments. One onlooker told the singer to “stay black,” and may have been referring to Sharon Osbourne’s recent provocative remarks that Bieber is “lost” and “doesn’t realize he’s white and not black.”
But lost or not, Team Bieber is dealing with one big problem head on. Following the spit storm that kicked off last week after TMZ posted pictures accusing the pop star of spitting on his fans from his hotel balcony in Toronto, a rep has now slammed that claim.
Bieber Meeting His Fans In NYC on July 29
“Justin didn’t spit on anyone. No fans were below the balcony,” the rep told US magazine .
The spokesperson explained:”TMZ superimposed photos of the fans next to Justin on a completely different balcony to make it appear like he was spitting on fans when he wasn’t.”
“In fact, earlier in the day, Justin bought his fans hot chocolate and played them some of his new music. Justin loves his fans.”
TMZ maintain there were fans below the balcony at the time Bieber was spitting. They also point to the fact that Justin posted a picture of his fans below his hotel balcony that day.
But, in addition to the rep’s muscular statement, simple, logical reasoning based on the time Bieber posted his Instagram video of fans at his hotel and the later time the spitting shots were snapped — swings a hall pass for the “Baby” singer.
While he didn’t address the drama directly on his social media accounts, it is noticeable that Bieber has since been more attentive to his Beliebers on his Twitter and Instagram accounts.
I’m a lucky guy. #MyBeliebers — Justin Bieber (@justinbieber) July 30, 2013
The Singer Instagrammed The Picture Below With The Message “Beliebers Are Everything”
Meanwhile, Toronto wasn’t the only trouble spot for the star. Although Bieber was not on board at the time, one of the Believe tour buses was searched by customs and border officers on Sunday.
The bus was pulled over for checks at the US-Canada border as it attempted to enter Detroit.
Drug paraphernalia and marijuana were found on the bus after a sniffer dog search then a second search by officers.
While the bus driver was issued with a citation, he and the passengers were quickly allowed to go on their way and no further charges will be brought.
It’s the second time illegal substances have been found on a Believe tour bus.
In April, Swedish police found drugs and a stun gun after searching an empty tour bus outside Stockholm’s Globen Arena.
The case was closed shortly afterwards.
Rounding off Bieber’s dramatic few days — not to mention a red rose and a certain Selena Gomez — Germany has also come knocking.
It appears the former monkey-owning teen still owes an estimated $6,500 to Munich customs after they placed the monkey in a shelter due to Bieber’s inability to produce travel documentation for it in March.
The monkey, known as Mally, eventually became the property of Germany and has since been re-homed in Serengeti Park in Hodenhagen.
Bieber reportedly also owes a further $1,500 to the Federal Agency for Nature Conservation for Mally’s care and has just seven days to pay it.
Still, reports from Newark’s Prudential Center where the teen star played the first of a two-night run on Tuesday revealed the usual rapturous crowds and even a prepubescent Bieber Bride.
The shirtless one will also perform at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center this Friday.
[ Image via Just Jared ]