Justin Bieber felt compelled to change his priorities so he did not become “another statistic of young musicians” who ended up “not making it”.
The Canadian pop star, 27, reflected on his fame in an interview with Billboard ahead of the release of his sixth studio album Justice, which is set to arrive later this month.
Bieber has previously spoken about how at his lowest point he used drugs to distract himself from his worsening mental health issues and the pressures of international stardom.
Speaking to the magazine about how he turned his life around through religion and therapy, he said: “I just changed my priorities so that I didn’t (become) another statistic of young musicians that ended up, like, not making it.
“There was a time where I really did have my identity wrapped up in my career, but I really do have an overflow of feeling like my purpose is to use my music to inspire.”
He added: “I can talk about that part of my life and not feel like, ‘Oh, man. I was such a bad person,’ because I’m not that person anymore.
“I also have done the work to know why I was making those decisions. I know where that pain was coming from, that caused me to act the way I was acting.”
Bieber said he had not yet watched Framing Britney Spears, a recent New York Times documentary about the pop star’s public unravelling in 2007, but said he intended to.
In November, he questioned why his fifth album Changes had been nominated in a pop category at the Grammy Awards, instead of in the R&B bracket.
“It can definitely get frustrating,” he said.
“They’re humans, and they can’t get it all right every time.”
Justice also features the singles Holy, Lonely and Anyone.
Bieber previously said he made the album “to continue the conversation of what justice looks like so we can continue to heal”.
The album includes songs featuring artists Chance The Rapper and Benny Blanco.
Justice is set to be released on March 19.