‘What does she do again?’ Maybe ‘sad’ Hailey Bieber needs a purpose

Hailey Bieber, the influencer and model wife of pop star Justin Bieber, opened up on Instagram Wednesday about how she’s been feeling “fragile” and that the start of 2023 has brought her some of the “saddest, hardest moments” of her adult life.

Bieber, 26, didn’t identify those sad, hard moments but people assume she’s talking about the internet labeling her a celebrity “mean girl” in the perceived social media feud with Selena Gomez, the multi-talented ex-girlfriend of her husband. Bieber reportedly faced so much “hateful” online “negativity,” as well as death threats, that Gomez, her supposed nemesis, stepped in to defend Bieber and to ask her own fans to lay off.

Maybe Bieber also is sad because she has yet to identify a clear purpose for why she wants to be famous, beyond being known for being the wife of a mega-famous pop star.

Bieber could easily sit back and lead a happy, quiet with her husband and save herself the risk of inciting “online negativity.” But she keeps putting herself out there, having amassed 50 million Instagram followers in the process. So, who does she want to be? A top model? A skincare entrepreneur? A YouTube chef?

Of course, Bieber is pretty and she can come across as personable — not at all a mean girl — in her YouTube makeup tutorials and in her latest project, “What’s In My Kitchen?” As the name of the YouTube series implies, she invites fans into her kitchen where she cooks a favorite dish. Sometimes, she makes cocktails and guacamole with a celebrity friend like Kendall Jenner. However, she fails to show any more than “mediocre-to-average” cooking skills, the Daily Beast said.

Bieber’s lack of clear purpose was suggested in Vulture’s blockbuster report late last year on nepo babies — how the offspring of celebrities seem to have built-in advantages when it comes to launching lucrative entertainment or fashion careers.

Bieber is what Vulture called “a double nepo,” because she’s the daughter of actor Stephen Baldwin and the wife of Justin Bieber. Actually, you could say that Bieber is a “triple nepo” as she’s also the niece of actor Alec Baldwin.

As Vulture sees it, Bieber’s family connections probably helped her land magazine covers, do some modeling work for Saint Laurent and nab invitations to the Met Gala. She’s listed among the “Catwalk Nepotati,” the new generation of fashion models who hail from famous families. Others in this category include Kaia Gerber, Lily-Rose Depp, Kendall Jenner and the children of Reese Witherspoon, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jude Law and Apple founder Steve Jobs.

But even with the modeling, YouTube ventures and the Instagram followers, Bieber has yet to show a clear direction or outstanding talent. Vulture in fact identified her as one of the nepo babies whose vague career paths prompt people to ask, “What do they do again?”

Other nepo babies in this category include Brooklyn Beckham, Lourdes Leon, Chet Hanks, Katherine Schwarzenegger, Olivia Jade Giannulli and Bieber’s cousin, Ireland Baldwin. These nepo babies dabble in various pursuits, probably because their privilege allows them to dabble. They become influencers, launch “brands” of one kind or another or make themselves stars of YouTube cooking and lifestyle shows.

Bieber’s brand is her Rhode skincare line, best known for its “glazing fluid,” which Bieber said gives her skin it’s “signature glazed, dewy” look. As for her cooking show, the Daily Beast said it’s pleasant enough, including an episode in which she prepares air-fried chicken wings. While Bieber’s commentary “is not exactly riveting,” her “blandness and the sterile appearance of her home have a weirdly hypnotic effect,” the Daily Beast said. Alas, this assessment doesn’t necessarily bode well for a red-hot career as a celebrity chef.

It’s easy to imagine that it’s difficult for Bieber to have an ill-defined celebrity persona, especially in contrast with her husband or Gomez, neither of whom are nepo babies and both of whom are among the best-known entertainers on earth. Bieber’s in a tough spot.

With no clear persona, she’s essentially a blank slate and people are left to fill in the gaps about imagined feuds with other celebrities or personal qualities that may or not be true. TikTok users have recently shared stories about meeting her and saying that she’s “rude” and “not nice.”

“The ‘mean girl’ label can be incredibly hard to shake,” Lauren Beeching, founder of Honest London, a social media and reputation management agency, told BuzzFeed News. “You can’t really see the true her online, which I think is her biggest weakness.”

Going back to 2020, Bieber said she was aware that people thought of her as “mean,” during an interview for megachurch Hillsong’s YouTube channel, BuzzFeed News said.

“I think anyone who knows me personally knows that’s so not me at all,” she protested.