Justin Bieber sparked fallout rumours after fans noticed his Instagram account was no longer following long-time mentor Usher.
The Baby hitmaker has been staying out of the spotlight in recent years, living a more private life with his wife Hailey Bieber in California.
Justin, now 30, was discovered when he was only 13 years old after posting videos singing covers on YouTube.
He was scouted by manager Scooter Braun before being introduced to Usher — and in turn, introduced to the OMG singer’s own mentor, Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs.
He signed to label RBMG and released his debut in 2009, within a year he was the biggest pop star on the planet.
Almost two decades on, Justin appears to have quietly cut ties with his former mentor Usher, 46, so we look back on their close 17-year friendship.
2008: Usher first meets 13-year-old Justin
Usher didn’t discover Justin but he was there early on in the Yummy singer’s career, having been brought on board immediately by Scooter.
In an interview with Howard Stern in 2016, Usher revealed: ‘I’d heard about Justin through the grapevine because people were talking about him.
‘And I said to him, “Why don’t you set up a meeting between me and your manager? I’d love to meet with you and do this in a formal setting.”‘
He has said on numerous occasions he just really loved the Canadian’s voice and could see huge potential in the young star.
More than a meeting was set up as Usher and Scooter then entered a bidding war to sign the youngster, beating Justin Timberlake to the punch.
The newly formed RBMG Records — a collaboration between the duo — then released Justin’s debut album in 2009.
Usher also featured on My World with song First Dance and has since released numerous tracks with his protégé.
2009: Justin spends 48 hours in Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ custody
When he was 13 years old, Usher lived with his mentor Diddy and called it a ‘wild’ and ‘crazy’ time. Years later, he offered the same experience to Justin.
A resurfaced video clip shows Diddy with his sports car and promising the Sorry hitmaker he can drive the vehicle once he turns 16.
‘You ever seen the movie 48 Hrs? Right now [Justin is] having 48 hours with Diddy, him and his boy,’ the rapper told the camera.
‘They’re having the times of their lives, like where we hanging out and what we’re doing we can’t really disclose. But it’s definitely a 15-year-old’s dream.’
He continued: ‘I have been given custody of him. You know, he’s signed to Usher and I had legal guardianship of Usher when he did his first album. I did Usher’s first album.’
2011: Justin performs with Usher at the Grammys
Thanks to his huge debut album and a little help from his influential mentor, Justin secured a spot performing at the Grammys in 2011.
Along with the performance, he was nominated for best new artist and best pop vocal album, although he didn’t win either.
He opened with a rendition of Baby before being joined by Jaden Smith — who was also pursuing music — for Never Say Never.
The set was closed with Usher walking out to sing OMG with Justin, with the latter saying he ‘had a great night’ as he ‘got to perform with [his] mentor’.
Usher also won a Grammy that evening for best male R&B vocals with Justin celebrating by jumping onto his back.
2014: Usher chastises Justin for getting a DUI
After years in the spotlight, 19-year-old Justin began to fall into the often-seen child star pattern of erratic behaviour.
He was (famously) arrested for driving while under the influence and has since said he was ‘hurting, unhappy, angry and misled’.
While Justin stayed quiet at the time about everything he was feeling, Usher weighed in on the DUI and their dynamic now the singer was older.
‘Our relationship is more man-to-man now,’ he told Billboard at the time. ‘He’s making his own decisions and it’s important to show support.
‘I can say I’m not happy with all the choices my friend has made, but I’m supportive of him. I try my hardest to give as much positive reinforcement as I can.
‘I’ll punch him in the chest when I need to, and give him a hug and kiss when I need to. It’s more than just mentoring. I love the kid.’
2019: Justin marries Hailey with Usher serenading them
While most of the information about the pair has come from Usher, the love was clearly mutual as Usher was invited to Justin’s wedding.
Snaps from the event show both the Love In This Club hitmaker and Scooter posing and smiling at the event.
In one picture, Justin even kissed his manager on the cheek while Usher serenaded him as he cut the cake with his new wife.
There weren’t any pictures of the pair together but we can’t blame Justin for getting swept up in the magic of the day with his new bride.
2020: Usher speaks about ‘pressure’ on his friend
When Justin released Changes, still under his label RBMG, Usher did not feature but did congratulate him during an interview with Extra.
This was the Where Are U Now hitmaker’s first album in five years after getting his life back in order after his DUI and other troubles.
‘It’s very hard. You don’t understand the pressure,’ Usher explained of Justin’s mental state.
He continued: ‘It just seems like, “Oh, it’s so great to have these lights and these cameras and all of these people staring at you.” It’s such a beautiful thing, but the pressures that come with that and the reality of how hard it is to live under that type of scrutiny is a lot.
‘The fact that he has been able to manage to make it back, to put out another album, and share yet another piece of his life.’
2022: Justin suffers from shock health turn
A shocking update came in 2022 when Justin was diagnosed with ‘very scary and random’ Ramsay Hunt syndrome.
He cancelled a string of tour dates before revealing his facial paralysis in a worrying video, with wife Hailey giving updates on his health.
Usher was said to be by his side during this time, which he confirmed to ExtraTV, saying that Justin had ‘taken the world on a journey’ with him.
‘I am happy that I was at the beginning of and I am still a part of to this day, as a friend,’ the rapper said.
‘He is doing great. Seeing him on vacation, we managed to hang out with each other, and I think that whatever he may be experiencing right now it’s actually really great to see that he has the support from his fans and his family.’
2025: Justin is no longer following Usher on Instagram
Fans noticed that Justin was no longer following his long-time mentor on Instagram, although it is unknown whether he actually followed him in the first place.
He is also no longer following manager Scooter after reports two years ago he was looking to ‘extract himself’ from the ongoing contract — although Scooter had deactivated his account.
Usher still follows Justin on Instagram and neither has commented on the situation publicly.
Justin is said to be ‘thrown’ by his close friends in the industry being connected to Diddy, after the allegations against him.
‘Bieber is so disturbed by the Diddy news and is unwilling to process it or discuss it so he has shut off,’ an insider said to the DailyMail.
They added: ‘Justin hasn’t been responding on this since the home raids [on Diddy’s mansions]. He’s not going to.’
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