Justin Bieber's stage comeback with SZA: Hailey claps back at critics

JUSTIN Bieber may have been quiet on the music front lately, but his name hasn’t left the headlines. His surprise appearance during SZA’s "SOS" tour, performing an acoustic version of "Snooze", should’ve been a smooth return to live music.

Instead, it raised more questions.

This was Bieber’s first performance since the birth of his son, Jack Blues Bieber, nine months ago. And while fans were initially thrilled by the duet, the mood quickly shifted.

Bieber seemed strangely distant on stage, eyes closed, minimal movement, while SZA kept the energy going, even appearing to gently steady him at one point.

The repeated hand-kissing, while dramatic, didn’t help calm concerns, trading flirty verses with SZA, dancing close as they took turns singing the chorus. But to be fair, it's not that deep, it's a simple performance.

I've seen Usher do worse, and people praise him for that. Make it make sense, people.

Anyway, backstage, Hailey filmed snippets of the moment. She shared clips of her husband dancing with SZA and holding her hand, captioned with emojis holding back tears and smiley faces with hearts.

In another clip of the on-stage performance, she wrote, “My 2 favourite artists.”

But her light-hearted posts didn’t quite match the tone of the online reaction.

Speculation about Justin and Hailey’s marriage has been bubbling for months, and not in a good way. Rumours of a split, arguments, and general misery continue to resurface.

In a recent interview with "Vogue", Hailey finally addressed it. “It’s not real,” she said. “I have a real life. I get to wake up to my beautiful family and my son, and my friends. People that know me and love me, and I love them.”

Still, the public can’t seem to let go. Hailey’s long been compared to Selena Gomez, accused of copying her style and constantly told Justin isn’t as into her as people think. And now, as a new mother, the judgment has only intensified.

“Being postpartum is the most sensitive time I’ve ever gone through,” she said. “To be figuring out a new version of myself, while people online scream ‘divorce’, ‘unhappy’, and ‘fake marriage’ - it’s unhinged. I cannot even begin to explain it.”

She didn’t hold back either: “You’d think after having a child, people would chill out a bit. But no. So I guess these bitches are going to be mad.”

Through it all, she credits Justin with helping her stay grounded. “He’s had to deal with more scrutiny than anyone I know,” she said. “He told me, ‘Baby, I’ve been here a million times. You’re not going to win. There is no winning.”

Bieber, whose life has been under the microscope since he was a teenager, knows this cycle better than anyone.