Born and bred Canadian Justin Bieber ignited a fashion controversy over the weekend when he wore a backwards hat and overalls to accept an award from his country’s leader. Yes, overalls.
Justin Bieber accepted the Diamond Jubilee medal in Ottawa wearing a pair of striped overalls, perfectly accessorized with a bulky white t-shirt, bright yellow sneakers, and a large silver chain. It was a look the 18-year-old pop star jokingly called “White Trash”. Prime Minister Stephen Harper, meanwhile, dressed for the occasion in a well-tailored suit.
Not surprisingly, Bieber’s choice of attire sparked quite the controversy, especially on social media. After the “Baby” singer posted a photo of himself on Instagram, users let their opinion be known in comments ranging from support to confusion to outright disgust.
Twitter user @rachhhadams said “Justin bieber wears a snap back and overalls to receive the diamond jubilee award from pm harper .. So disrespectful #disgusted.” Others were far more colorful in their distaste for Bieber’s style, posting comments with profanity or derogatory remarks. Some attacked him for wearing a suit to meet President Obama earlier this year, but not showing the same respect to his country’s leader. User @Christalite61 commented “I know I shouldn’t be attached to social norms, but I think Bieber wearing overalls to see the Prime Minister is pretty disrespectful.” Today, @spicyhalapeno chimed in with: “Justin Bieber, please stop dressing like an idiot. #overalls #seriously”
Of course, true to their form, the nation of Beliebers rushed to the heartthrob’s defense. User @lisanestrella tweeted: “maybe #overalls are hip after all…” and @daylemcleod wrote: “YEAH! Justin bibber wore overalls and a backwards hat to accept a medal from our PM. #Overalls.” And @TheOVOBelieber linked to a photo of the meeting and wrote: “THAT’S MY BOY 😉 #justin #bieber #overalls (overrauhls) #proud”
After the controversy had spread, Bieber took to Instagram to defend himself. Referencing an article called “Would a Suit Hurt, Justin?” that appeared in The Daily Mail, he shot back:
“The pic of me and the Prime Minister was taken in a room in the arena where i was performing at that day. I walked straight from my meet and greet to him, if you “Hayley” expect me to have a change of clothes let a loan a suit at that specific time that’s crazy, It wasn’t like it was like I was going into his environment we were at a hockey arena. Wow am i ever white trash hayley peterson lol.”
However, Bieber can rest easy. On Saturday, Harper hilariously tweeted his support for the singer stating, “In fairness to @justinbieber, I told him I would be wearing my overalls too. #cdnpoli #beliebers.” Now that’s a photo op we wish we could have seen!