Da Brat has the inside scoop of what went down between Usher and Justin Bieber at an Oscars after-party.
“Well, I spoke to Usher and he said, ‘This is an exaggeration of conversation,’” Da Brat, 51, said during the Monday, March 23, episode of the Rickey Smiley Morning Show. “He’s been nothing but supportive of plenty of issues that Justin Bieber has had throughout the years and y’all can actively check the records for all that.”
Da Brat added that Usher, 47, told her that “Justin is on his own journey, dealing with his own reality he’s created” but there are no hard feelings between the pair.
“Usher wishes him nothing but the best and they have no hostility towards each other,” she continued. “They definitely love each other so people just take things out of context when they see something and they run with it and I’m just here to say that is not the issue. They are definitely cool with each other and they have love and they support each other.”
Rumors swirled that Usher and Bieber, 32, got into a heated exchange at an Oscars after-party hosted by Beyoncé and Jay-Z. Da Brat confirmed that Usher and Bieber did speak at the event but it was not a full blown argument.
“They had a conversation and somebody heard the conversation with the two of them. People are just taking it and twisting it and turning it around,” the rapper said on Monday. But I’m letting you know that everything is OK between them and there’s [no] hostility.”
Usher and Bieber have had a close relationship over the years. The “Confessions” singer helped launch Bieber’s career after the singer was discovered online by former manager Scooter Braun. Usher served as a mentor to Bieber and the pair collaborated on several tracks.
“I’d heard about Justin through the grapevine, because people were talking about him,” Usher recalled of how he met Bieber in a 2016 interview with Howard Stern. “And I said to him, ‘Why don’t you set up a meeting between me and your manager, I’d love to meet with you and do this in a formal setting, I’m late for an appointment with Jermaine Dupri and I don’t want to keep him waiting, so let’s do this the right way.’”
When Bieber was going through his struggles with substance abuse, Usher remained by his side to offer support.
“He’s making his own decisions and it’s important to show support. I can say I’m not happy with all the choices my friend has made, but I’m supportive of him,” Usher told Billboard in 2014 referring to Bieber’s DUI arrest. “I try my hardest to give as much positive reinforcement as I can. I’ll punch him in the f***ing chest when I need to, and give him a hug and kiss when I need to. It’s more than just mentoring. I love the kid.”
