Justin Bieber

One Time belongs to the first phase, arriving with My World in 2009. The youthful tone is central to the record, but the construction is already precise: clean rhythmic phrasing, a direct refrain and a chorus that gives the listener very little work to do.

It makes a useful counterpart to Boyfriend, from Believe in 2012. Boyfriend lowers the temperature. Its sparse opening and close vocal leave more space around the rhythm, with the arrangement gradually opening out. The shift is audible in the performance itself, without needing a story from outside the music.

Believe brought R&B and rap collaborators into a wider pop setting. As Long as You Love Me, featuring Big Sean, and Beauty and a Beat, featuring Nicki Minaj, show how different guests could be accommodated without losing the album’s central voice.

The strongest moments balance polished production with a phrase that feels small enough to remember after one hearing. Bieber’s lighter tone can sit above a busy track, but it can also make a sparse arrangement feel complete. That flexibility became increasingly useful as electronic production moved closer to the centre of his records.

Purpose arrived in 2015 with What Do You Mean? and Sorry. Both organise themselves around clipped rhythmic figures and compact vocal hooks. The production leaves little pockets of air, allowing a breath or a repeated fragment to become part of the percussion.

The distance from One Time to those songs is considerable. What connects them is the attention to the listener’s first few seconds: a recognisable vocal colour, an immediate rhythmic invitation, and a refrain that feels easy before its construction becomes apparent.