Do you know what (and please don’t hate on me too much for saying this) but I have a fair amount of respect for Justin Bieber.
Not so much for his music (though “Sorry” is a pretty en pointe pop tune), or the fact he commands an almost cult-like ‘Beliebers’ fanbase or the fact I don’t understand what he is saying most of the time (though that latter one might be more to do with my advancing age).
However, the man has broken free from the shackles of that no doubt intense ‘paparazzi’ obsession and has spoken openly and humbly about his struggles with mental health and addiction.
Granted, these stanzas don’t have a huge amount to do with motorcycling but it ensures we won’t look at his upcoming collaboration with Piaggio for a special edition of its iconic Vespa with quite so much eye-rolling ‘celeb bandwagon jumping’ feeling.
In fact, Bieber - still only 27 - has established something of a love for all things two wheel (though we’ll gloss over the slightly embarrassing video of him stalling a motorcycle while being hunted down by said paparazzo… actually, that's a lie, CLICK HERE), with the timeless style of the Vespa his particular fancy.
It means Bieber, who isn’t exactly hard up with his 150,000,000 record sales globally, is the ideal candidate for Vespa to launch a new model in honour of the Canadian chanteur.
"My fans know how much I love the sport: skateboarding, hockey, basketball, BMX,” he said. “I've always been attracted to that mix of style, grace and speed. I'm thrilled to give my touch to the iconic Vespa design.”
If you’re interested, the yellow machine he is seen riding here is a Sean Wetherspoon limited edition with his own ‘Vespa Bieber’ getting its world debut early in 2022.
