Pop star Justin Bieber has officially dropped his seventh studio album, Swag, mere hours after revealing its presence and tracklist.
The new album contains 21 songs and boasts an eclectic array of guest vocalists, such as Gunna, Sexyy Red, Druski, Dijon, Lil B, Cash Cobain, Eddie Benjamin, and gospel vocalist Marvin Winans, who shows up for the final track "Forgiveness," a reworking of the worship tune "Lord, I Lift Your Name on High."
Production work on Swag was done by Bieber himself along with a team of skilled artists including Carter Lang, Dylan Wiggins, Daniel Caesar, mk.gee, Daniel Chetrit, Knox Fortune, and others, reports Variety.
Prior to the surprise release of the album, fans started speculating when they saw mysterious billboards in Iceland, Atlanta, and Los Angeles that had a picture of Bieber with the term "Swag." The artist later proved the campaign real by posting the billboards on his Instagram.
Soon afterward, Bieber uploaded a Times Square video in New York City with a 20-song tracklist, fueling further anticipation among fans. He even uploaded behind-the-scenes photos, likely taken during the album cover shoot, with sweet moments spent with his son Jack Blues and wife Hailey Bieber.
Signs of an upcoming musical chapter had been making the rounds for months, as Bieber posted studio pictures on social media every now and then. He was said to be holding jam sessions in his Los Angeles residence, where collaborators like Carter Lang, Eddie Benjamin, and DJ Tay James were seen visiting.
Swag is Bieber's first full-length album since Justice in 2021, which reached number one on the Billboard 200 and spawned hit singles such as "Anyone," "Hold On," and chart-topper "Peaches" with Daniel Caesar and Giveon.
After the success of Justice, Bieber launched the Justice World Tour in early 2022. Although the tour was planned until March 2023, he had to make the hard choice to cut it short in September 2022 to prioritize his health, ultimately canceling the rest of the dates.
Once again, with Swag, Bieber is back in the limelight—initiating a fresh chapter in music that fuses introspection, experimentation, and stardom.
