Justin Bieber just gave Beliebers the surprise of a lifetime, revealing that the sequel to his latest album, Swag, is dropping in mere hours.
The Grammy winner, 31, announced on Thursday, September 4, that Swag II will be available at midnight — less than two months after the release of Swag.
“Swag II tonight at midnight,” Bieber wrote via Instagram alongside a video of a Swag II billboard. He went on to share several more promotional photos of the album art around the world, including in New York City and Seoul, South Korea.
While the cover of the first Swag was black with the title written in gray, Swag II’s cover is a bright shade of bubblegum pink. Joking about the contrast between the two covers, Bieber shared a photo of the famous Santa Monica meme houses, one of which is black and the other which is purple and pink.
Justin’s wife, Hailey Bieber, and son, Jack Blues — who just celebrated his 1st birthday last month — appear to feature prominently in the album art as well, as they did in the first Swag. One post shared by the pop star showed the pink cover next to a photo of the Biebers holding baby Jack as Hailey, 28, grinned and wiped his face with a cloth.
Justin surprised fans with the release of Swag just under two months ago, announcing it only one day before it dropped on July 11. Us Weekly confirmed at the time that Justin was already working on a sequel.
“[Swag] is more of a personal project that Justin has been wanting to put out, almost like a mixtape,” a source said at the time. “His label is [also] planning a more traditional pop album.”
While Justin’s behavior in public and on social media had sparked concern earlier this year, Swag was largely met with praise by fans and critics alike. An insider told Us last month that Justin and Hailey were also in a better place after the release of Swag.
“The intense focus and emotional toll of creating new music had put a strain on their marriage,” the source explained in August. “When Justin is in the studio making new music, he gets completely consumed and shuts everything else out.”
The insider added, “There’s a sense of relief on both sides. Justin’s behavior has been more relaxed. He felt a lot of pressure hanging over him and has been in a better mental headspace these last few weeks. He is very happy there have been positive reviews of the album and that fans like it.”
Hailey, meanwhile, celebrated her own milestone on Thursday, as her beauty brand, Rhode, made its debut in Sephora stores. Justin made sure to notify his fans of the update too, sharing an Instagram post about the news with the caption, “Congrats baby gurlllll @haileybieber x @rhode x @sephora.”
On the first Swag, Justin referenced Rhode’s famous Lip Case on the song “Go Baby,” crooning the line, “That’s my baby / She’s iconic / iPhone case / Lip gloss on it.”