Justin Bieber has used part of his recently-released Next Chapter documentary to help shine a spotlight on emerging Australian artist Eddie Benjamin, offering the young musician advice and encouragement along the way.
Released to YouTube late last month, the 25-minute documentary sees Bieber following up January’s Seasons as he shows how he has learnt and grown over the year that has been, while offering insights into who he is and what is set to come next.
However, between discussions of his friendship with Chance the Rapper, or how he had experienced thoughts of suicide, a notable part of the documentary sees Bieber focusing his attention on Benjamin, who at just age 18, is based in Los Angeles and is poised to take on the world of music.
“You said to me, I want to have Eddie Benjamin be a part of this, because he’s the next generation, and I wish I had a mentor,” director Michael D. Ratner explains to Bieber before the two artists sit down for a candid discussion, and an acoustic duet of Bieber’s “That Should Be Me”.
While Benjamin asks Bieber about how he dealt with the pressure of being a young artist, the Canadian musician triumphs as a mentor when Benjamin asks how he managed to deal with opinions and differences in creative choices.
“There’s going to be people who come around who just want to take, take, take, take, take,” Bieber explained. “And if you’re looking at the people who are just taking, you don’t want to listen to their opinion. You’ve got to listen to people who are feeding into your life and giving you.
“I would just encourage you to listen to those people, because you have so much ahead of you, bro. I’m so excited to watch your journey. I’m so excited to watch you blossom into this incredible artist.”
Though it remains to be seen just how Eddie Benjamin’s career is set to flourish and grow in the future, it’s clear that with such a prominent endorsement from Justin Bieber, things are only just getting started for the young Australian artist.
