I can only guess that Scooter Braun–last seen via Twitter in Paris–has a huge garage somewhere stuffed with “Believe (Acoustic).” His client, Justin Bieber, incredibly sold 211,000 copies of this new album, an “acoustic” version of the same album he released last year called “Believe.” The result is a number 1, and actually a bigger sale than the original (and to an adult’s ear, unlistenable) “Believe.”
But I can’t fight these kids, or the marketing know-how of these people at Universal Music who see what buttons this kid is pushing. I really thought by now tween girls would be done with him. But Bieber–despite drug scandals, car problems, PR stunts with girlfriends, his mother backing anti-abortion videos–hangs in there.
He has no education, no sleeves, and Anne Murray’s look from 1974. And still the girls want him. He’s not remotely dangerous. But he does have the androgynous qualities that Michael Jackson exuded during the post-Thriller part of his career. Maybe that’s what these young girls are seeing–the non-threat. But he’s a sales threat, that’s for sure. Will “Believe (Acoustic)” have legs? Remains to be seen. But if you can get 200,000 people to buy the same thing, essentially, twice, hey–not bad. And Bieber will sell more this weekend when he appears on “Saturday Night Live,” no doubt.
