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Fat Joe recently opened up about how his friendship with Justin Bieber changed after the pop star’s infamous 2014 Miami Beach arrest, revealing an emotional and personal side to their bond on a new episode of his Joe and Jada podcast.
According to the rapper, he played a direct role in helping Bieber during that difficult time — even bailing him out of jail. Joe shared that it was his late friend and fellow Terror Squad member, Raul Conde, who called him and asked for help after Bieber got arrested for driving recklessly in Miami.
Joe said the bail amount wasn’t anything major — “It wasn’t no money. Couple hundred dollars, maybe a thousand,” — but the situation led to a conversation that would ultimately shift their relationship.
After being released, Bieber called Fat Joe to thank him, joking that he was a “gangster now.” But instead of laughing it off or brushing it under the rug, Joe took the moment to give him some tough love.
“Yo, Justin. Listen bro. You gotta stop. We don’t want you gangster,” Joe recalled telling the Purpose singer. He explained that although he could’ve just played along to stay in Bieber’s circle, he chose to speak honestly, telling Bieber he was worried and didn’t want to keep seeing him in the headlines for the wrong reasons.
Fat Joe said he told Justin he wanted him to succeed because “my daughter worships you” and “we all love you.” Unfortunately, Joe admitted that his honesty seemed to strain their friendship: “That kinda messed up my relationship with him at that moment.”
Fans React to Fat Joe’s Revelation
Fans had mixed responses online. Some praised Fat Joe for being a real friend who spoke truth instead of enabling celebrity behavior. Others speculated that Bieber may have taken the advice the wrong way because he was in a vulnerable place at the time. A few even expressed surprise that the two had such a close bond in the first place.
Regardless of public opinion, Fat Joe’s message was clear: real friendship sometimes means saying what someone needs to hear, not what they want to hear — even if it costs you the relationship.