The Atlantic

The Real Message Behind Justin Bieber’s Drug Confession

The onetime child star is telling himself that he’s not alone in his struggles—and that his fans aren’t either.
Source: Ritzau Scanpix Denmark

“Have u noticed the statistics of child stars and the outcome of their life?” That’s what Justin Bieber asked in a remarkable Instagram post addressing his drug use, among other things. The truth is that there actually aren’t many rigorous studies on famous kids, because “it would be tricky to corral them all into some university lab to fill out questionnaires,” as my colleague Olga Khazan wrote in a 2014 health story. Anyone watching the news has a sense of the outcomes Bieber is referring to, though. The who became seems endless. Bieber himself is on it.

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