On the most recent episode of Donald Glover's fantastic new show, Atlanta, Justin Bieber showed up. It wasn't actually Bieber, of course, but it was perhaps one of the most interesting moments of Atlanta so far. As part of Glover's commentary on the incessant whitewashing found particularly in Hollywood, Justin Bieber is portrayed by a black actor in the Atlanta universe. As it turns out, Atlanta's Bieber makes music himself, and it's pretty good, too.
His real name is Austin Crute, and he released a self-produced mixtape called PLAY this past summer. While it doesn't sound like Bieber's music itself, it does toy with the idea of pop across its eight tracks. Blending hip-hop, R&B, and pop, PLAY is a solid debut project, thanks in no small part to the excellent single "Data." The 20-year-old singer-rapper-actor is originally from Atlanta, and currently attends NYU's Clive Davis Institute, somehow finding time to appear in a critically acclaimed show and release his debut project.
Listen to the project below.
