Justin Bieber 'Could've Died' In 2013: Scooter Braun

• comments
• 
• 

Justin Bieber's manager Scooter Braun had fears the Canadian singer and heartthrob was going to die in 2013. It wasn't until the singer snapped back to reality that Braun stepped up and steered the 21-year-old's career on track.

Speaking exclusively with The New York Times, Braun revealed that Bieber's concerning behavior and tumultuous past that landed him in jail in January 2014 was just a small part of what's really happening to the young star. "It was far worse than people realize," said Braun. "But it's a hard thing to watch someone you care and genuinely love go through that."

Back in July 2013, Bieber was caught on video pissing in a mop bucket inside a restaurant while he was heard hurling expletives against former U.S. President Bill Clinton, per TMZ. Some months later, he was seen exiting a brothel in Brazil, where he allegedly "partied with 30 women," per Daily Mail.

In January 2014, the "Where Are U Now" hit maker was arrested for drunk driving and his mug shot went viral on the Internet, per CNN. A neighbor in Los Angeles also reported the singer for egging his property and Bieber was charged with vandalism, per ABC7.

These incidents plagued Bieber's manager who admitted he wasn't doing a great job taking care of his talent then. When Bieber wanted to go on a tour, Braun said his concerns grew. "I honestly at that time felt, if he toured, he could die."

So, he made changes. "As I started to see it going in the wrong direction, I started to prepare," Braun said. "I put deals in place where he was protected for the long run. And I started to prepare my company to scale, because I was not going to let him work."

Soon, Braun worked on rebranding his talent but also said Bieber himself was willing to change. "It wasn't until something happened that it clicked for him [Bieber]. He made the conscious decision as a young man: 'I need to make a change in my own life.'"

The manager then dedicated six months of work to help the singer redeem himself. "I looked at Robert Downey Jr. and all these people that when they asked for redemption, people gave it to them," Braun said.

These days, Braun is only glad that the struggles for Bieber are over but did not detail what exactly happened to the young star during those years. "When he [Bieber] is ready, he will tell what he was going through."