Topics: Celebrity, Justin Bieber, Social Media, Twitter, Parenting
The internet went into meltdown in 2015 when photos emerged of Justin Bieber walking around the deck of his holiday villa in Bora Bora, completely naked.
At the time, he was enjoying a getaway with his then-love interest, British model Jayde Pierce.
The singer, rightly so, threatened to sue media outlets that were planning to publish the private snaps, arguing that they were a violation of his publicity and privacy rights.
And while Justin took a moment away before commenting on the invasion of privacy, his father was quick to take to social media with a very controversial reaction.
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In the days following the leak, his dad Jeremy wrote on Twitter: “@justinbieber what do you feed that thing. #proud daddy [SIC]” - yes, you read that right.
As to be expected, the bizarre reaction sparked some backlash online, including from actress and comedian Bette Midler, who publicly criticised Jeremy.
She wasn’t a fan of the lewd comment and even went as far as to call him a d**k, seemingly alluding to when Jeremy was out of Justin’s life for a year when he was four years old.
Justin had previously told Billboard: "He was immature. He left for like a year when I was about 4, went to British Columbia, came back on Father's Day."
She wrote on social media: “@justinbieber dad tweeted he’s proud of his son’s penis size. I think the biggest d**k in this situation is the dad who abandoned his son.”
But, unsurprisingly the singer rushed to the defence of his dad and to rub salt in the wound, added that he doesn’t know who Midler is.
He told Billboard: “My dad made light of it, but I don't think that's sick and twisted. It was funny. Dads are going to be dads."
He couldn't even get her name right - not awkward at all, Justin.
"This Britt Meddler - I don't even know who that is, honestly. I wanted to immediately say, 'Who is this lady?', but then I'm just fuelling this negativity," he said.
On a more serious note, Justin did also say: "I do feel the photo was an invasion of my privacy. I felt super violated."
He continued to defend his dad in another interview at the time, on the Zach Sang & The Gang radio show, where he said he found the joke ‘hilarious.'
The Baby hitmaker said: “'What do you feed that thing?' It's such a dad thing to say.
“When I found out people were hating on him for saying that, I was like are you kidding me? What dad wouldn't be proud of that?”
He added: "It's not like he’s saying it to an 11-year-old. I'm 21 years old, you know what I mean?”
At least someone found it funny.
