Justin Bieber performed a pair of songs to open the 2016 iHeartRadio Music Awards on Sunday night.
But while viewers seemed to like the artist’s rendition of “Company,” few could say the same about the look he debuted while singing this track.
Oh, yes, those are dreadlocks atop Bieber’s head.
The general consensus on the Internet soon after Justin showed off this new hairstyle wasn’t simply that it’s ugly… but that it’s a tad racist, as well.
“Justin Bieber got dreads *culture appropriation deep sigh*,” wrote @IktGuy, while @jawnita added by way of consternation:
“is justin bieber… tryna do white dreads…”
Celebrities trying out dreadlocks have been pretty always gone badly.
At the Academy Awards in 2015, Zendaya walked the red carpet with them and was then on the receiving end of a (mostly racist) rant by Giulianna Rancic.
That same year, Kylie Jenner wore dreads in a spread for Teen Vogue, got heavily criticized for the style and then found Bieber coming to her defense.
“Guys leave her alone, we’re all trying to figure it out and she happens to be under a microscope!” Justin wrote of Kylie at the time.
”I’m the first to know this. But saying she’s being racist because she has her hair in braids is ridiculous.
“Lets focus on the bigger picture and instead of fighting over something stupid let’s do something about equality, but it doesn’t start here blasting a 17-year-old kid for wearing braids smh.”
He makes a good point.
But he also looks SO stupid in the photos above, don’t you think?
Sound off below: What do you think of Justin Bieber in dreadlocks?