The comparisons to Justin Timberlake were always going to be raining in, to be fair.  It all fits – their teenage heartbreaker years, their controversies, even their first names – and now, the musical changes.  And while it’s yet to be seen whether Bieber will ever drop an album as distinctive and era-representative as FutureSex/LoveSounds, it’s clear that he’s certainly gunning for that type of recognition.  

As it stands, he’s well on his way.  The last couple months, he’s been releasing outstanding songs that are probably better than anything Timberlake’s released this year in either of his albums (with the possible exceptions of “Mirrors” and “TKO”).  It’s not exactly that he’s lyrically improved (it’s relatively generic fare), or that he’s pushing the envelope (he’s dealing with typical pop/R&B material).  But whatever he’s doing, he sounds more confident, more smooth, more slick.  The music he’s making isn’t just the music of a pop star.  And what better way to display that transition than to grab 2013’s biggest breakout rapper, Chance the Rapper?  It’s not the best song to emerge from Bieber this year (that distinction probably goes to “Heartbreaker” or “All That Matters”), but it flirts with synths that dart dangerously close to G-funk territory, and any Chance verse is always welcomed.  In any case: what a year for both of them.