Justin Bieber, who later won Male Artist of the Year and two other awards, opened the 2016 iHeartRadio Music Awards on Sunday in Los Angeles with an acoustic rendition of “Love Yourself,” before a dynamic, debut television performance of his new single “Company.”
The Biebs took to stage rocking a new (for him) dreadlock hairstyle, a New York Rangers jersey, and a maxi-size red jacket, grey sweatpants shorts over blue ripped jeans, zip-up high tops, and a gold chain, for a 90’s-leaning look. Inevitably, there’s since been a lot of media and fan discussion online about Bieber’s locks, a lot of it grossly misinformed .
Justin Bieber’s dreadlocks may have overshadowed his performance https://t.co/f55XmQQ7T7 pic.twitter.com/cwXSbswHZq
— Daily Mail Celebrity (@DailyMailCeleb) April 4, 2016
Accompanying himself on acoustic guitar, the 22-year-old delivered a solid take on “Love Yourself,” which turned into an a capella half way through.
Justin then segued into “Company” with a lineup of dancers. The Biebs pulled off some smooth vocal runs and danced up close and personal with a fan at one point after walking through the enthusiastically screaming crowd.
Watch his spot on the video below.
The night was to bring three awards for the Canadian: Male Artist of the Year, Dance Song of the Year alongside Jack Ü’s Skrillex (who wasn’t at the iHeartRadio Music Awards ) and Diplo (who was) for their previously Grammy-winning “Where Are Ü Now.” Justin’s Beliebers also won the Best Fan Army award, which triggered a protest from the other fandoms. The aggrieved subsequently sent the hashtag #IFakeAwards to the top of trending topics on Twitter overnight in the U.S.
During their acceptance for Best Song, Diplo did all the talking as they were presented with their award by rapper Big Sean. The producer-DJ thanked everyone involved with the song, noting Justin for “taking a chance” on him and Skrillex.
At the end of his speech, the Biebs simply said “Diplo,” to which the crowd cheered.
The three best friends that anyone could have @justinbieber @diplo @bigsean pic.twitter.com/lh2yP4Er03
— iHeartRadio (@iHeartRadio) April 4, 2016
Rolling on to the Male Artist of the Year award . Justin triumphed in a category against Luke Bryan, Sam Smith, Ed Sheeran, and The Weeknd. The Biebs kept it short and sweet while accepting. He thanked his team, his family, Beliebers, and God.
“First of all I want to thank iHeart. I want to thank my wonderful manager, Scooter [Braun] . I want to thank my family at home. I really miss my little brother and sister. They’re growing up so fast,” he began.
“Most of all I want to thank my fans. You guys have been sticking by me 100 percent. You guys are unbelievable,” Bieber went on. “And God. I’ve experienced some tough times, I think all of us do. But it’s about just our growth and learning, and that’s it.”
Watch the moment below.
Thank you @JustinBieber ! Congrats on Male Artist of The Year! #iHeartAwards . https://t.co/4um9aDlyVK
— iHeartRadio (@iHeartRadio) April 4, 2016
Muscular voting by Beliebers won the Best Fan Army award, which was introduced by Z100 New York veteran host Elvis Duran and Real 92.3 host Kurt “Big Boy” Alexander.
Ashley, a representative from JustinBieberCrew, one of the biggest Justin Bieber fan sites on the block, spoke for Beliebers everywhere after the announcement was made. “We did it!” She enthused, when asked for her reaction to the win.
Congratulations to @JBCrewDotCom and all the #Beliebers on winning the @TacoBell #BestFanArmy at the #iHeartAwards ! https://t.co/wDso0aH6v1
— iHeartRadio (@iHeartRadio) April 4, 2016
At the end of the Jason Derulo-hosted show, Bieber, like other iHeartRadio Music Award winners , had some fun posing with his awards in the press room.
Bieber didn’t just win big at the iHeartRadio Music Awards. He also added to his Pop Album of the Year award at the 2016 Junos by winning the fan-voted Fan Choice Award.
The Weeknd & Justin Bieber win big at the 2016 #JUNOS https://t.co/X17MYzQ41B pic.twitter.com/Qmmr8Jki9l
— billboard (@billboard) April 4, 2016
The Juno Awards are the Canadian equivalent of the Grammys and took place in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, the same night as the iHeart awards. The heartthrob accepted the Junos fan award via a pre-recorded video, during which he told Beliebers he loved them.
Post-iHeartRadio Music Awards, Justin took to Twitter to express appreciation for his wins. “Great night at #iheart and #junos. Thanks to everyone who has supported me. Back on #PurposeTour tomorrow,” he wrote, adding, “It’s me,” since most are aware it usually isn’t.
The singer then tweeted a crowd shot from the night. On Monday, he Instagrammed a slew of pics.
Thank you pic.twitter.com/Z736ZrsmKy
— Justin Bieber (@justinbieber) April 4, 2016
As for other performances, Zayn , Demi Lovato, Brad Paisley, Fetty Wap, Iggy Azalea, Meghan Trainor , and more were on hand. Taylor Swift , her beau Calvin Harris, Selena Gomez, Maroon 5, Adele, Twenty One Pilots, and more were among the winners. Click the link for the full iHeartRadio Music Awards 2016 winners list .
Meanwhile, Bieber brings his Purpose World Tour to the Pepsi Center in Denver on Monday in support of his acclaimed new album, Purpose . Enjoy the selection of clips from the iHeartRadio Music Awards after the jump.
[Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images]
