You don't likely see Justin Bieber as a master of shade-throwing, but with "Love Yourself," he proved he was. Whomever the song's target was, they likely felt as bad as all those dudes Carly Simon chopped down as totally vain.
The song is pure "you don't matter anymore." Bieber sings about how an unnamed ex "still hit[s his] phone up," not that he cares. In fact, he "didn't want to write a song" because he didn't want to give this person any attention. He then croon-sneers "my mama don't like you and she likes everyone," which may be the cleanest, purest putdown teen pop has produced in decades — if the Biebs' sweetheart of a saintly mother thinks you're trash, then probably even Oscar the Grouch would spit on you. It could have been cruder. The song's actual writer, Ed Sheeran, told Howard Stern he initially envisioned Rihanna as the singer, and it would have had more cursing. Honestly, toning down the language actually makes it feel even more biting, like you're not even worth the effort of cursing out.
As for whom he's got in mind while singing? Justin won't say — he'll only admit (as he did in an unintentionally poetic interview with Ryan Seacrest), "It's definitely about someone in my past, someone who I don't want to put on blast." So it could be anyone, considering his history of less-than-successful relationships. If you ever get a chance, ask Mama Bieber whom she hates the most.
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