A MacBook, a YouTube Premium subscription, and a microphone on the country’s largest stage: the ideal recipe for a Justin Bieber Coachella performance.
Stripped back, no gimmicks, no autotune, no dancers, just a bright orange hoodie and unlimited access to the internet, Bieber took fans on a journey through his extensive digital footprint.
From playing the iconic “Baby” and honoring #1 Bielieber Billie Eilish for “One Less Lonely Girl” to performing his most recent work off of SWAG and SWAG II, it wasn’t clocking to us that behind his simple performance, he was standing on years of business.
Bieberchella Wrapped
The “Company” singer gained attention for both his sets as he scrolled through his catalog and travelled with fans through memory lane. From bringing out Big Sean and SZA to sing “As Long As You Love Me” and “Snooze,” respectively, to duetting with The Kid LAROI on their 2021 single, “STAY,” and Dijon for “DEVOTION” and “I THINK YOU’RE SPECIAL,” both weekends celebrated everything “up, down, and between” Bieber’s extensive career.
Celebrities across the internet supported the pop singer, including Lizzo, observing, “I watched a popstar who grew up in front of the world fully transcend into his artistry… I watched someone who gave us his all, his whole life, finally nourish himself.”
While on stage with him, Big Sean shared, “You taught all of us to believe in ourselves… I’m so proud; I’ve seen a lot of the things you’ve gone through. In a world where everyone is trying to take over the world, you give over the world. Never once have you turned into them.”
Other artists took a comedic approach, with Zara Larsson joking that he’s her “dream blunt rotation” and Katy Perry noting, “Thank God he has [YouTube] premium. I don’t wanna see no ads.”
Despite the praise, critiques also surfaced, comparing his set to those of his fellow headliners, Sabrina Carpenter and Karol G. Both women brought elaborate sets, intricate choreography, and stunning outfit changes.
If either artist came out with a laptop and a bare stage, the discourse would be heinous, staining their career with labels such as “lazy” and “unprofessional”; the uproar would’ve been catastrophic, leading the internet to burst into flames, revealing the Gates of Hell itself…
However — and a strong one at that — this isn’t out of the ordinary, as Bieber’s recent performances have been of the same format. Take the 2026 GRAMMYs, where he walked on stage with nothing but underwear, a piano, and a guitar to perform “YUKON.”
Another strong “however:” He’s. Justin. Bieber.
Focusing on intimacy rather than spectacle, his bare Coachella set wasn’t due to poor planning; it was as strategic and groundbreaking as Sabrinawood and Karolchella.
Nothing about his performance was an accident. From the internet lagging during Weekend One’s set to the doomscrolling, a source told Entertainment Tonight, “Justin didn’t actually choose songs spontaneously… it was all intentional.”
Financial RuiN
As Bieber said during Weekend Two, “I was just a kid who liked to sing… that’s all it was.”
After posting YouTube videos of himself covering hits from the likes of Justin Timberlake, Stevie Wonder, and Michael Jackson, the “Never Say Never” singer became an internet sensation. Signed by Usher shortly after, “Bieber Fever” was inescapable as his discography fueled the late 2000s and 2010s.
Fast forward many years later, Bieber was reportedly broke; across his entire career, Bieber made between $500 million and $1 billion, yet with his debts, that money disappeared.
The Hollywood Reporter alleged that he owed $20 million to tour promoter AEG after cancelling his 2022 Justice World Tour due to his Ramsay Hunt Syndrome diagnosis. AEG provided the pop singer $40 million in advance for the tour, but he was unable to pay them back.
Additionally, it’s reported that Bieber owed Scooter Braun and his record label, HYBE America, a total of $31.5 million: $26 million to HYBE and $5.5 million to Braun for allegedly being underpaid as his manager.
A representative of the “Somebody to Love” performer denied the allegations to US Weekly in April 2025, stating, “This is just clickbait stupidity based on unnamed — and clearly ill-informed — ‘sources’ disappointed that they no longer work with Justin. As Justin forges his own way forward, these unnecessary stories and inaccurate assumptions will continue. But they won’t deter him from staying committed to following the right path.”
With the amounts of debt he incurred, Bieber became the youngest artist to sell his entire discography for a whopping $200 million in December 2022 to Hipnosis Songs Capital.
The deal included the rights to 290 songs and his share of the master recordings. TMZ wrote off his entire career, labeling it as “near financial collapse.”
a 21st-Century Comeback
In 2025, Bieber dropped SWAG: no album rollout, no marketing, just a simple surprise drop that not only debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 but launched 16 tracks into the Billboard Hot 100, with “DAISIES” leading at No. 2., and nominations for several GRAMMY awards.
SWAG II followed shortly after, once again released without a manager, agent, music videos, or promotional material.
Both albums are significant to his career because he owns 100% of them: 100% of the earnings, 100% of the masters, 100% of the creative freedom, 100% of the music. According to a source close to the “YUKON” singer, “This is the most pure version of Justin we’ve ever seen musically.”
When it came time for his Coachella performance, Bieber garnered a $10 million deal for both weekends, with each performance costing $5 million. Earning more than Ariana Grande, Bad Bunny, Lady Gaga, and Beyoncé’s fee of $8 million, he became the highest payout in Coachella’s history, and he kept every cent.
With all that being said, playing his nostalgic hits from YouTube wasn’t a sign of ill preparation, but a way to maintain his integrity. By streaming the songs off YouTube, Hipnosis Songs Capital isn’t making a dime off his catalog; he owns his fame.
Essentially being a pioneer of influencer culture, Bieber is not only performing for those at the festival but also for those watching from their computer screens. From looking into the camera while he sings to the strategic use of close-up shots as he navigates through his MacBook, he pays homage to the fans who patiently waited for his next cover.
As he clicked through his embarrassing moments in front of the paparazzi, such as his run-in with a glass door in 2010, to his infamous “It’s not clocking to you that I’m standing on business” meme, he was displaying his evolution as an artist and a human.
His entire life was recorded, perceived, commented on, scrutinized, and praised; he gave us a free set of binoculars, and we watched every second.
His stripped-back set was a risk worth taking because after the many years of the narrative fighting him, he finally owns it.
Bieberchella isn’t just a comeback; it’s a reclaiming of identity.
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