Study Shows U25s Can Pick Out More Bieber Lyrics Than Shakespeare Lines

The study, which picked the brains of a thousand of Britain’s under-25s, found 43% could place lines like “is it too late to say that I’m sorry?” as Bieber-isms, while 38% attributed centuries-old classics like “to be or not to be” to Shakespeare. 

It’s all been researched for The Bard’s 400th birthday, and if you think about it, nearly four straight centuries of being literally indispensable is a fair effort. It may come as a surprise to anyone who was alive during Baby’s heyday, but Bieber hasn’t been around that long.

Before we all descend into hysterics at the thought of such a literary legend being compared to a pastel-dreaded Canadian, it’s important to realise the survey was backed by streaming service Deezer. They claim the Biebs was their #1 streamed artist last year. 

While Shakespeare has well and truly perforated every aspect of modern language, his grasp on streaming isn’t so strong; most people are also unlikely to cue in sonnets between bangers, which may have something to do with the final results. 

We eagerly await the results of this survey in the year 2416. We’ll be absolutely fucked if space-Bieber trumps ol’ Billy then, too. 

Source: The Guardian. 
Photo: Jeff Kravitz / Universal History Archive / Getty.