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Justin Bieber Says One Direction Slam Was Just Poking Fun

Purpose is expected to debut at No. 1.
Justin Bieber talks to Us Weekly about allegedly slamming One Direction and growing up over the past few years

It's just friendly competition, that’s all. In an exclusive new interview with Us Weekly, Justin Bieber discusses facing off against One Direction — whose new album, Made in the AM, dropped Friday, Nov. 13 — the same day as Bieber’s latest effort, Purpose.

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“Everyone should support everyone,” the pop star, 21, tells Us Weekly’s Entertainment Director, Ian Drew. “I think that this should be friendly competition. I think it’s fun to joke around. But I really genuinely support everyone that’s making music and every young artist that’s doing what they love and getting success from that. I think that everyone should support that, regardless if you enjoy their music or not.”

Related: PHOTOS: Celebs with healthy egos

Last month, Bieber angered fans of the boy band after intimating to a New Zealand radio station that the group purposely chose the same release date to increase their publicity. Not only did the Biebs downplay that comment in his interview with Us, but he also admitted to his past mistakes.

“Making some bad decisions made me more human, because I think most people go through a period in their life when they’re figuring it out,” he admits. “It showed a human side to me that just showed growth. The fact that I’m able to come back and be better than ever is a true testament to who I am as a person. I think people could all relate to me.”

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Bieber — who is expected to top the charts with his latest effort and outsell One Direction — reveals how his faith helped him to grow up and make better choices after a tumultuous few years.

“My faith is really important to me,” the “Sorry” singer says. “It’s what really helped me grow up and become a man. It’s helped me to get to the place where I am at right now. I felt like I lost my purpose, and I feel like I found it again. You should always find your purpose, and if you don’t know your purpose, search for your purpose. Our purpose in life is not for ourselves; it’s to help other people and to use our light and what God’s given us to just share that with the world.”

Selena Gomez’s ex also opened up about his relationship with his parents, Jeremy Bieber and Patricia Mallette. The “What Do You Mean?” singer revealed that he was genuinely hurt by the public’s comments about them following his numerous incidents, including a DUI arrest and charges for assault.

“My dad said, ‘Pride is your worst enemy.’ It just felt powerful to me, and I put it in my phone because I thought it was genius,” Bieber says. “I think that pride is our worst enemy. We need to just get rid of all our personal desires; not make it about us, make it about others. The hardest thing to deal with was probably just the things people were saying about my parents. They judged them based on the decisions that I was making, and I think that was unfair to them, not having any involvement and that was just sad to me. My parents weren’t in this business, and the judgment and pain just wasn’t fair to them. It’s time to just focus on today and focus on this next chapter and keep getting better and keep getting stronger.”

Tell Us: Whose album will you be buying?

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