So just what is going on with the Bieber marriage?
Rumors of turbulence for Justin and Hailey Bieber have been running riot ever since the singer appeared to briefly ‘unfollow’ his wife on Instagram in late January.
He quickly jumped online to claim he had been ‘hacked’ – but then other signs of private strife became more difficult to explain away.
A recent trip to New York City together – along with their 6-month-old baby boy, Jack Blues – was seen by some as particularly alarming.
Justin, 30, was papped in freezing winter temperatures variously looking gaunt and at other times shirtless (apparently he was having spa treatments).
Meanwhile, model Hailey, 28, was rarely seen with him. And on one occasion, the couple even dined separately at the same restaurant in West Village – with Justin arriving around 45 minutes after his wife had left.
Rumors of turbulence for Justin and Hailey Bieber have been running riot ever since the singer appeared to briefly ‘unfollow’ his wife on Instagram in late January.
Justin, 30, was papped in freezing winter temperatures variously looking gaunt and at other times shirtless (apparently he was having spa treatments).
Then on Tuesday, Justin shared bleary-eyed footage to his Instagram of him seemingly on-board a plane and rapping about getting high (‘I fly high like a magpie, I go high like I’m that guy’). Some concerned fans branded the bizarre clip ‘desperate’ and ‘sad’.
Now insiders have spoken to the Daily Mail to provide an intimate insight into the couple’s 6-year marriage.
Of course, there has been the much-publicized fallout surrounding Justin’s former musical mentor, Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs – who was arrested last September for a string of heinous sex crimes, which he denies, including trafficking, racketeering and transportation to engage in prostitution.
As a rising teen star, Justin was partly taken under the mogul’s wing. And, in November 2009, the then 15-year-old spent an infamous 48-hour period with Diddy while seemingly unsupervised.
‘[Justin] is so disturbed by the Diddy news and is unwilling to process it or discuss it, so he has shut off,’ an insider told the Daily Mail.
But then there’s the rather more complicated spectre of Justin’s ex-girlfriend and fellow global popstar, Selena Gomez.
The 32-year-old songstress – who enjoyed an on-and-off romance with Justin between 2010 and 2018 – got engaged to producer Benny Blanco, 36, in December.
Justin, a source now says, had ‘mixed feelings’ about the news, and not least because he used to consider Blanco – who has produced several of Bieber’s songs, including the 2016 hit ‘Cold Water’ – to be one of his ‘closest friends’.
‘[Justin] confided in Benny about his heartbreak over Selena,’ the source added. ‘In a way, Justin felt betrayed [over the engagement], even though he knew he had no right to feel that way.’
Meanwhile, insiders claim Hailey has also been dealing with her own ‘struggles’ since becoming a mother last August, which have – perhaps inevitably – put a strain on their marriage.
‘She has been struggling with the emotional turmoil that many women experience after having a baby,’ a source alleged. ‘Justin has been bearing the brunt of it.’
But that is, perhaps, only one side of the story. For other insiders place more of the blame on Justin, claiming his alleged ‘loose cannon’ behavior has impacted their relationship.
‘Hailey loves him madly but he’s a loose cannon,’ a source told the Daily Mail. ‘Some of her friends have advised her to go it alone and leave him.’
Earlier this month, following that rather strange New York trip, another insider claimed that Hailey was ‘deeply concerned’ and didn’t know ‘where to turn [for] help’.
Then there’s the rather more complicated specter of Justin’s ex-girlfriend and fellow global popstar, Selena Gomez (pictured here with her fiancé Benny Blanco).
That news came just days after Justin had cut a worrying figure while supporting Hailey at the Los Angeles launch of a pop-up for her makeup brand Rhode.
Footage showed Justin – wearing a beanie hat, sunglasses and clothes that swamped his slim figure – shifting his weight awkwardly, itching his thighs and grinning uncontrollably.
Following that event, Justin shared an Instagram post with pictures of him and Hailey beaming happily and hugging.
‘Congrats baby on your beautiful @rhode pop up,’ he gushed.
Hailey’s Instagram post after the event – containing 11 photos – didn’t included a single snap of her husband.
Whatever meaning – if any – fans deduce from that, and whatever the truth of their relationship, it seems the Biebers are not yet ready to publicly air their dirty laundry.
