Justin Bieber realizes he's growing up but the "Baby" singer, who turns 18 in March, says he's not going to "conform."
"People need to know I'm not a kid anymore. But at the end of the day, I'm not completely grown up. I'm still learning. I'm going to grow up how I grow up," Bieber told V magazine for their spring issue. "I'm not going to try to conform to what people want me to be or go out there and start partying, have people see me with alcohol. I want to do it at my own pace."
The young singer also said that as his music evolves, he's going to mimic Michael Jackson and keep his lyrics clean.
"There're some artists that [parents won't] let their kids go and see because they think they're a bad influence. I want to be able to do what Michael did -- he always sang clean lyrics -- and it was always that little kids loved Michael and grandparents loved Michael," he said. "I don't want to start singing about things like sex, drugs, and swearing. I'm into love, and maybe I'll get more into making love when I'm older. But I want to be someone who is respected by everybody."
The 17-year-old singer, who is currently dating actress and singer Selena Gomez, was recently spotted sporting a new tattoo on his calf of Jesus.
The art is not Bieber's first foray into tattoos. He also has Jesus' name written in Hebrew on his rib cage and a bird tattoo on his left hip, which matches one of his father's tattoos.
"I'm a Christian, I believe in God, I believe that Jesus died on a cross for my sins," Bieber told The Associated Press in November 2010. "I believe that I have a relationship and I'm able to talk to him and really, he's the reason I'm here, so I definitely have to remember that. As soon as I start forgetting, I've got to click back and be like, you know, this is why I'm here."
However, Bieber tells V magazine that he considers himself to be spiritual and not religious.
"I don't think I'm religious. I am spiritual," he said. "A lot of people who are religious, I feel like they get lost. I am not trying to disrespect them at all, you know, whatever works for you; but for me, I focus more on praying and talking to Him. I don't have to go to church. I haven't been to church in a long time, but I know I have a relationship with Him. "
source: ontheredcarpet.com
