Justin Bieber was blown away by Usher at the Super Bowl LVIII halftime show in Las Vegas on February 11. Justin, 29, was in the stadium with wife Hailey Bieber and witnessed his former mentor’s electric performance. The next day, Justin — who was rumored to be joining Usher, 45, on the stage, but ultimately did not — took to Instagram to praise the “Yeah!” singer.
“LOVE YOU MY BROTHER. NOONE CAN SING AND DANCE THE WAY YOU DO. LOVE YOU FROM THE DEPTHS OF MY HEART,” Justin wrote alongside a photo from Usher’s performance.
Usher took the whole stadium by storm as he brought Alicia Keys, Lil Jon, Ludacris, and H.E.R. onto the stage for surprise performances. Two days before the Super Bowl, TMZ reported that Usher “reached out to” Justin about performing in the halftime show. Sources told the publication that the singers “talked directly to each other” about the Super Bowl plans, which sadly didn’t come to fruition.
Usher mentored Justin when the “Baby” singer was a teenager during the early years of his career, and they’ve remained close are all this time. Usher talked about his friendship with Justin during an appearance on Howard Stern‘s radio show in 2016.
“He’s like a child to me, so I don’t necessarily feel like it’s business, you know what I’m saying? I feel like I’m talking to someone who has had hardships,” Usher said. “If your child ever has difficulties, every person who’s listening to this s—t right now understands that nobody’s perfect. You’re gonna have moments. And if he does, I can only show him the reality of what has happened … of course we’ve had stern talks.”
In 2022, Usher revealed to Extra that he’s been there for Justin during the latter star’s battle with Ramsay Hunt syndrome. Justin has not performed in several years and even cancelled his Justice World Tour because of the disease.
“As an artist, I think we are all going to experience some things that people may not necessarily understand. I think [Justin] has obviously taken the world on a journey,” Usher said. “I am happy that I was at the beginning of and I am still a part of to this day, as a friend. Whatever he may be experiencing right now, it’s actually really great to see that he has the support from his fans and his family.”
Justin first shared his Ramsay Hunt Syndrome diagnosis in June 2022. He postponed his tour dates to focus on his mental health in September 2022, before cancelling the rest of the shows in February 2023. The “Peaches” singer also suffers from Lyme disease.