Justin Bieber promised to move forward with a planned concert live stream on Friday night in the wake of the Paris attacks.
Earlier this week, Bieber announced three shows at the Staples Center in Los Angeles to celebrate the release of his new album, Purpose. After the initial “An Evening With Justin Bieber” event sold out, two more shows were added, all to be held on Friday afternoon and night. Then, early Friday, he revealed fans worldwide could live stream the middle show by purchasing his album online.
Bieber was in the midst of the first event when news of the shootings and explosions in France first broke. He apparently didn’t learn of the situation until the concert ended. The singer tweeted afterward, “Had a great first show but just heard about what happened in Paris. Thoughts and prayers with everyone #PrayForParis.”
Five minutes later, Bieber added, “We decided we are going to continue with the livestream at 6PM to hopefully bring some light & hope to those hurting.” Included in the tweet was a link to buy access to the stream. He then wrote in a third message, “#PrayForParis #PrayForJapan.”
The tragedy sent shock waves throughout Hollywood, with countless celebrities using social media to send prayers. NBC announced its usual Friday night live broadcast of “Undateable” would be a repeat, and Andy Cohen canceled a Saturday tour stop so that collaborator Anderson Cooper could cover the tragic events for CNN. U2 has also called off a concert event that was scheduled to take place in Paris on Saturday and be taped for an HBO special.
Bieber is pictured above during the first show. TELL US: What do you think of Bieber choosing to live stream as planned, despite the attacks?