Justin Bieber is taking a break from promo-ing his Purpose album, but that hasn’t stopped Bieber fans from bonding over the superstar on social media, posting throwbacks shots from the infamous side-swept fringe era and taking the time to wish happy birthday to Justin’s younger brother Jaxon, who turned six recently.
Birthdays in the Bieber family can be a teary affair, as this footage – which can be found on Justin’s father Jeremy Bieber’s Youtube – shows.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GADIiP1pRI
The video opens pleasantly enough, with just a hint of brotherly combat as adorable Jaxon Bieber – Justin’s half-brother – threatens to punch Justin and throw the Purpose hunk in the pool. “I love you” responds the Canadian superstar with loving restraint and tenderness, before the crowd breaks into “Happy Birthday”.
Lusty social media commenters expressed their appreciation for the glimpse of Justin’s chest when Jaxon balls his fist around the fabric of his brother’s singlet. Fans also enjoyed hearing the beautiful tone in Justin’s voice when he begins singing “Happy Birthday,” as well as the vibrato vocal flourish the superstar adds after he sings his brother’s name.
The video ends not with a punch or shove into the pool but with a shock for Jaxon, whose face is plunged into the sticky frosting of his own birthday cake at 1:02. The family is seen posing for a photograph when father Jeremy Bieber – who has his hand locked near Jaxon’s neck as he keeps up the pretense of embracing his son for a photo – shoves the four-year-old’s head down into the cake. Jaxon raises his head to reveal a white-frosting mustache, then bursts into tears.
“Ok, I deserve that,” admits Jeremy Bieber as Jaxon hurls a small object at him. “You got your face in the cake” adds the former professional wrestler and father-of-three, whose aggressive spirit, highly physical approach and shock tactics have evidently colored his approach to child-rearing rather than simply remaining in the fighting ring.
The extraordinary footage continues with Justin turning to the camera and saying “he did it to me too!”. The superstar raises his palms with a “what will be, will be” look of resignation on his face.
A photographer then passes the shot of humbled Jaxon Bieber for Justin to appraise. “It’s funny!” says the superstar to Jaxon as younger sister Jazmyn trills “can I see?!”
Bieber manager Scooter Braun also sticks his head in and makes an effort to calm the still-wailing Jaxon, saying “Justin did it to me on my birthday too!”
Justin and Jeremy continue to soothe the four-year-old, asking why he is crying so much.”Cos you wrecked it!” Jaxon says, gesturing at the cake. This is probably an attempt by the cute four-year-old to save face – Jaxon would have us believe that he was not upset or shocked, he was appalled by his father’s stupidity and cake-ruining antics.
The video ends on a note of resolution, with Jazmyn and Jaxon plunging their faces willfully into the cake and emerging with faces full of icing.
The footage started doing the rounds on social media on November 21, when Jaxon Bieber celebrated his birthday. Bieber fans took the opportunity to remind the cute 6 year-old about the incident.
Poor @JaxonBieber on his 4th bday ?? @JeremyBieber @justinbieber @JazmynBieber #HappyBirthdayJaxonBieber pic.twitter.com/Ct1FetLCh8
— Jaxon Bieber News (@SupportJaxon) November 20, 2015
Happiest Birthday to my amazing son @JaxonBieber aka the sizzler. You make me smile everyday. I love you!
— Jeremy Bieber (@JeremyBieber) November 20, 2015
Jeremy Bieber, who was declared a DILF (“dad I’d like to f***”) by MusicFix , and who has been less-flatteringly painted as an animal-abuser, woman-beater, hotel-room trasher and moocher off his famous son Justin’s money (as reported by the aptly-named Defamer ), made headlines recently when singer-actress Bette Midler called Jeremy Bieber a “deadbeat” following the proud father’s weigh-in on Penisgate . “What do you feed that thing?” Jeremy tweeted after he saw the uncensored pictures of his son Justin’s privates, as reported by Hollywood Life.
Justin responded to Midler’s criticism with what may have been either genuine ignorance or masterful passive-aggressiveness, claiming he did not know who the singer was. “Who is this Britt Meddler?” said Justin.
Cruel, or just a bit of a laugh? The Bieber birthday footage has re-surfaced at a time when the BBC is exploring online shaming as a parental disciplinary tactic.
“[I]n an era when many young people live their lives on the internet, the internet also gives parents entirely new shaming possibilities. There’s recently been a spate of videos where parents have taken to social media to embarrass or humiliate their wayward youth.”
An anti-shaming video by a man named Wayman Gresham has gone viral , according to People .
“I’ve gone on Facebook and many times I’ve seen this kind of punishment, cutting off the hair or a child being embarrassed one way or another. There is no legitimate reason for humiliating your child, there is no legitimate reason for snatching their dignity away. I wouldn’t dare call these parents ‘bad parents’ because they made bad mistakes. Nevertheless, to get on Facebook and humiliate your child like this, it’s not for the benefit of the child. The overall message is, we could all do better as parents.”
As for the Biebers, Justin appears to look up to his fiery father, even sharing many of the same tattoos. Justin and Jeremy reportedly went to a parlor together to get matching Hebrew-influenced tattoos some years ago.
Justin Bieber’s thrill-seeking tendencies, aggressive streak and fondness for physical risks is also well-documented.
Was “Britt Meddler” onto something or is this harmless roughhousing by the robust Bieber family? Let us know.
[Photo by Pablo Cuadra/Getty Images]