It seemed to many as if, following years of unsavory, dangerous or just plain rude behavior marked by an arrest, promiscuity and drug use, Justin Bieber had turned over a new leaf last year when he re-dedicated himself to his Christian faith in the wake of cancelling his "Purpose" world tour.
Then he got engaged to model Hailey Baldwin, 21, in July barely a month after they rekindled a previously on-off and, by many accounts, casual romance — and married her in a civil ceremony at a New York City courthouse in September reportedly without a prenup in place.
He also started exhibiting certain behavior this summer — like crying in Central Park, busking outside Buckingham Palace and acting jittery and shaking while talking to fans on the street in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where he and father-in-law Stephen Baldwin went to CityFest, a Christian music event — that sources who spoke to Page Six think show Justin, 24, is becoming unhinged.
"I think has an ongoing identity crisis," one insider who's worked with Justin's team told the New York Post's gossip column.
One of Hailey's friends who claims he used to party with Justin back in 2014 and 2015 told Page Six he thinks Justin has substituted one "obsessive habit" — hard partying — for another.
"He found restitution through his religion and his faith and that's where he became super-addicted to churches," Hailey's friend explained. "He's super into church [and] Bible study [now] and that's [long been] Hailey's thing as well." In July 2017, Justin abruptly canceled his "Purpose" world tour and not long after, publicly rededicated himself to his faith.
Justin and Hailey went public with their romance the first time in 2016 but split several months later. Justin famously spent time with a variety of other women and ultimately went back to first love Selena Gomez in late 2017 after years of toxic back-and-forth.
Hailey was devastated, her friend told Page Six. "She was super-obsessed with him. Justin was trying to get back with Selena and [Hailey] couldn't get over that. She wouldn't talk to other guys, wouldn't date other guys, wouldn't give other guys the time of day," said her friend. "She wanted to [put] it super-out there how religious she was, I think, just so it would hook [Justin]."
She also started stepping out with younger Canadian pop star Shawn Mendes, including at the 2018 Met Gala in May, though insisted they were just friends. After splitting with Selena for the last time in the spring, Justin reconnected with Hailey in June.
At least one of Justin's friends, tattoo artist JonBoy, thinks Justin and Hailey are a great match and doesn't seem to think they moved too fast.
"I've sat through a lot of Justin's ex-girlfriends and whatnot, and I'm like, 'Man, I don't know.' But with [Hailey], I always knew," JonBoy told the New York Post's gossip column. "They are the same person. They are just silly. They listen to the same music, they are into the same [clothing] brands. I just feel like they are meant for each other."
After he tattooed the couple ahead of their engagement this summer, "Justin was like, 'Let's pray together.' It was a beautiful moment," JonBoy added. The artist also said he finds himself "out of nowhere, praying for [Hailey and Justin]… I'm sure it's not easy for them."