“Honest” by Justin Bieber (ft. Don Toliver)
Based on the chorus, “Honest” is supposed to be a love song. And Justin Bieber sticks to that idea in the first verse. Here, we get to know that the person he is addressing is someone he’s so enamored by that he decides to settle down with her.
But as implied by Don Toliver in his verse, he personally doesn’t drop these kinds of songs “often”. So even though the rapper does briefly mention a girl he likes with a “booty thick”, for the most part, Don’s passage is dedicated to describing his gangsta lifestyles. And at times – such as when he speaks to being up in the club strapped with his homeys or his drug-dealing past – what Toliver is saying has absolutely, positively nothing to do with romance.
But in terms of the thesis sentiment, to reiterate this song is based on the vocalist feeling as if now he has found the one. That is because the addressee, on top of being physically appealing, is also someone he recognizes as always ‘keeping it real’.
Facts about “Honest”
In 2021, the Biebs album “Justice” became his eighth to top the Billboard 200. And he is not resting on his laurels, as it is speculated that “Honest”, which came out on 29 April 2022, may itself be featured on a larger project. Indeed in between “Justice” and now, Bieber dropped a few more singles, including a collaboration with Juice WRLD (titled “Wandered to LA“, 2021). And overall it feels as if he’s now as active, in a recording capacity, than ever.
Just a couple of days before the issuance of “Honest”, Bieber released another single called “I Feel Funny“. It was on the impromptu music video to that piece, which was shot at the same time as the visual to “Honest”, that Bieber fans first began to speculate that a collaboration with Don Toliver was forthcoming. This is because Toliver actually made a cameo appearance in I Feel Funny‘s video. To note, Cole Bennett directed the videos to both of those songs.
Three artists produced this song – Azul, Beam and Sonni. Additionally, they served as co-writers alongside 5 others. They are:
- Bieber
- Toliver
- Amir Stivie B
- Simon Plummer
- Aleicia Nicole
“Honest” marks the second time Bieber, a singer from Canada and Toliver, a rapper from Houston, has teamed up on record. The first was a 2021 joint they dropped in collaboration with Skrillex called “Don’t Go”.
According to Bieber, he was first introduced to Toliver through rapper Travis Scott. He later got to meet Toliver physically through Skrillex. The trio then went on to collaborate on the song “Don’t Go”.
