Pop star Justin Bieber, front, performs during a free open-air concert in Mexico City, Monday, June 11.
Justin Bieber and Carly Rae Jepsen aren’t exactly enemies—Bieber has played a big role in his fellow Canadian’s rise in the annals of earworm greatness—but, especially since yesterday, that doesn’t mean they’re not rivals.
Bieber released “As Long As You Love Me,” the latest single off his forthcoming album (Believe, due June 19) less than 24 hours ago, and he’s already giving Jepsen a run for her money for the top song on the iTunes charts. Bieber was congratulatory when Jepsen hit number one in the U.S. on May 17, but as the song continues to hold on even as Bieber releases new singles he’s been pretty direct about the challenge. Just because you tweet “haha” doesn’t mean you’re not serious.
(MORE: Q&A with Carly Rae Jepsen)
“As Long As You Love Me” is a bass-heavy dance track featuring Big Sean. Bieber told Billboard that it’s his favorite song on the album, and fans agreed enough to push the song to number 11 in the first ten minutes after it was released at 3:00pm Eastern time yesterday afternoon, following a to-the-minute countdown on Twitter. The song has already hit the top spot in Canada—and throughout much of Scandinavia—but remains at number two on the U.S. iTunes chart at the time of this posting.
Keep hitting refresh, though. It could happen any minute…
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OjkJn-VdWag]