When Justin Bieber Revealed What Made Him Cry as He Dipped Into His Childhood Memories

In the latest music video for Lonely , Justin Bieber’s collaboration with Benny Blanco, the poignant visual unfolds with 17-year-old actor Jacob Tremblay stepping into the role of a young Bieber during his teen idol days. In a poignant homage to the Boyfriend hitmaker’s initial foray into pop stardom, the music video showcases Tremblay in the iconic JB attire—white pants, a white denim jacket, a purple hoodie, and the distinctive Bieber swoop, per PEOPLE .

As the heart-wrenching lyrics narrate Bieber’s journey, Tremblay, portraying the young musician, gazes into a mirror in an empty dressing room. The visual narrative takes a melancholic turn as Tremblay steps onto a deserted stage, encircled by numerous unoccupied seats, portraying the solitude that frequently accompanies celebrity life. The video does justice to his experience with fame and life in general.

The emotional impact of the song is reflected in the real-life Bieber, now an adult, sitting in the audience with a melancholic expression. Bieber had openly tweeted the difficulty he went through while listening to the track that led to recalling certain testing chapters of his life. He lauded Tremblay’s enactment in the music video and acknowledged the portrayal with immense gratitude. Tremblay, known for his award-winning role in Room , mirrors Justin’s iconic look from 2010 in the artwork, sitting alone in a backstage area.

The lyrics delve into the isolating aspects of fame, with Justin singing in the pre-chorus, “What if you had it all but nobody to call? Maybe then you’d know me / ‘Cause I’ve had everything / But no one’s listening / And that’s just f***ing lonely.” Lonely follows Justin’s recent release, Holy , marking a return to new music since his album Changes in February. “Everybody knows my past now/Like my house was always made of glass/And maybe that’s the price you pay/For the money and fame at an early age,” Bieber croons. “And everybody saw me sick/And it felt like no one gave a shit/They criticized the things I did/As an idiot kid.”

Teaming up again with Blanco, their collaboration on Love Yourself being a prior success, Justin’s latest track delves into the emotional toll of fame. Posting the music video on his Instagram , Bieber wrote, “Lonely is out now with @ itsbennyblanco . When he and @ finneas showed me this song to be honest it was hard to listen to considering how tough it was to get through some of these chapters,” he admitted. “I went into the studio and sang through it which wasn’t easy but started to really see the importance of telling this story!” The video resonated with his fans as they loved his raw vulnerability through the music and wished him well for future projects back in 2020.