Justin Bieber’s long-awaited return to music may have been a gift to fans, but behind the scenes, it came at a cost to his marriage with Hailey Bieber.
According to a source close to the couple, the emotional and mental weight of Justin’s creative process while working on his seventh studio album, Swag, became a serious point of tension in their relationship.
“The intense focus and emotional toll of creating new music had put a strain on their marriage,” the insider revealed.
The news came after several reports on the 31-year-old singer spiraling mental health, with troubles in his inner circle, firings, debt, substance dependence, and disturbing past experiences taking their toll.
Justin Bieber’s focus on his successful new album apparently caused troubles in his marriage
According to the source, Bieber became “completely consumed and shut everything else out” while working in the studio: the only place where he felt safe.
This pattern of behavior reportedly left his wife feeling sidelined.
Hailey has allegedly stood by her husband through this difficult stretch, described by insiders as being “very patient” amid his emotional and mental turbulence.
That includes enduring moments when Bieber was reportedly distant and consumed by the pressure to produce his first studio album in four years.
“There’s still work to be done in their marriage,” the insider clarified, “but they’re in a much better place.”
Swag’s warm reception reportedly helped more than just Bieber’s mood, it may have also marked a crucial financial turning point for the artist, whose career had been stalled by nearly three years of monetary woes.
According to multiple reports, Justin Bieber was previously unable to repay a staggering $31.5 million debt owed to his former manager Scooter Braun’s company, Hybe, which had covered the fallout from his canceled 2022 Justice World Tour.
The tour’s abrupt cancellation left Bieber responsible for repaying a $26 million advance paid by concert promoter AEG, along with approximately $5.5 million in unpaid commissions to Braun.
Hailey was instrumental in defusing the situation, as she sold her skincare brand Rhode to e.l.f Beauty in a $1 billion deal. Bieber, who owns a stake in the company, is set to receive a $50 million payout.
The successful album launch presents more than a creative victory, it positions Bieber to reassert control over his financial future
To celebrate the album’s release and their son Jack Blues’ upcoming first birthday, the couple retreated to their favorite vacation spot in Idaho, where they’ve reportedly reconnected as a family.
Bieber’s newfound peace comes after a difficult year for his mental health.
Earlier, Justin admitted to feeling broken and overwhelmed in a raw series of Instagram Stories, shared just days after he berated paparazzi in Malibu during an explosive 11-minute outburst.
“People keep telling me to heal. Don’t you think if I could have fixed myself I would have already? I know I have anger issues,” he wrote at the time.
The post confirmed what fans had long suspected: that Bieber, behind the scenes, was spiraling. His confessions revealed unresolved trauma and exhaustion with constantly feeling unworthy and, as he put it, “like a fraud.”
“It made me feel sneaky, like, damn, if they only knew my thoughts. How judgmental I am, how selfish I really am. They wouldn’t be saying this,” he wrote in March.
Compounding the issue was a renewed spotlight on Bieber’s childhood after the September 2024 arrest of Sean “Diddy” Combs.
Old footage of Bieber, then a minor, interacting with Combs began to circulate, leading many fans to revisit videos showing the singer being inappropriately touched or harassed by older celebrities.
Bieber is emerging from a complex year marked by divorce rumors and intense speculation about his mental health
At the same time, in recent months, Bieber’s inner circle also underwent dramatic changes.
The artist reportedly fired a number of staff, from assistants to security personnel, in what insiders called a “firing spree.” Sources connected the measures to the singer’s aforementioned debt to Scooter Braun, and framed it as an attempt to regain control over his situation.
During that time, communications between the singer and his representatives became muddled, particularly around the topic of his sobriety.
While Bieber’s PR team repeatedly claimed he is clean and committed to focusing on his family, the singer directly contradicted them.
The discrepancy confused his fans, who started to worry that the singer’s emotional state had become dangerously unstable.
Despite this, Hailey has stood firm in her public support. At the time, she had to constantly dismiss rumors about their marriage being in trouble.
“Well, I thought after seven years it would’ve ended already, and it hasn’t,” she said about the persistent divorce speculation.
“You would think after having a child, people would maybe move on, chill out a little bit, but no.”
“Better get it together.” Bieber’s behavior has eroded his public image
