Justin Bieber stripped down to just a pair of boxers during his performance of Yukon at the 2026 Grammy Awards - but the shirtless look wasn't exactly planned ahead.
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The 31-year-old singer - who had garnered four nominations during the night for his album Swag - showed off his array of tattoos in only light purple, custom satin boxers from his SKYLRK brand and a pair of ankle socks.
The star-studded guests and crowd were quiet as they listened to the music artist show off his vocal skills for the intimate performance.
But Grammys executive producer Ben Winston offered a bit of insight into Bieber taking to the stage on Monday's episode of the Rolling Stone Music Now podcast.
'I don't think he decided what the outfit would be until he walked on stage,' Winston explained.
He went on to share that Bieber had intended to keep the performance simple to focus on just the music.
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Justin Bieber, 31, stripped down to just a pair of boxers during his performance of Yukon at the 2026 Grammy Awards - but the shirtless look wasn't exactly planned ahead; seen on Sunday in L.A.
'I don't think he decided what the outfit would be until he walked on stage,' Winston explained
'He's not even really going, "This is what I'm going to do." When we had got reached out to him about his creative, he was just like, "I'm just going to get on stage and sing."'
Winston went on to recall the star's 'brilliant' rehearsal - which only lasted the span of 15 minutes.
'We are seven minutes into his hour-and-a-half rehearsal. And he goes, "How'd it look to you? You happy with it?"
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'And I was like, "Oh, my God. It looked beautiful. I loved it." And he went, "Okay, fantastic. See you Sunday!"' he added.
However, Winston did ask the Peaches hitmaker to run through the performance a second time during rehearsals for the camera operators.
Yukon is a track found on Bieber's album Swag - which was released last year in July. A few months later, he dropped a double album sequel Swag II. His last LP before Swag had been Justice (2021).
Swag raked in nods for Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album. Yukon also garnered a nomination for Best R&B Performance while another track Daisies got a nod for Best Pop Solo Performance.
Along with only sporting a pair of boxers during his performance on Sunday, Bieber played the tune of Yukon on a guitar which wrapped around his shoulder.
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The showed off his array of tattoos in only light purple, custom satin boxers from his SKYLRK brand and a pair of ankle socks
'He's not even really going, "This is what I'm going to do." When we had got reached out to him about his creative, he was just like, "I'm just going to get on stage and sing,"' Winston added
Swag raked in nods for Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album. Yukon also garnered a nomination for Best R&B Performance while another track Daisies got a nod for Best Pop Solo Performance
He then added a beat through instruments near him before singing lyrics to the ballad.
At the end of the song, Bieber began to walk off the stage as lights started to dim down. However, he soon returned to quietly remove his guitar before fully walking off as the audience broke out into a standing ovation.
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His wife Hailey proudly watched from the floor of the arena as her husband sang the lyrics to Yukon.
When his back was turned towards the camera, some fans later jumped to social media that ink on his back looked exactly like Hailey.
Some believed that the tattoo was similar to the Rhode founder's Elle 2020 cover shoot.
Bieber previously had ink on his wrist of ex Selena Gomez which was also based on an Elle shoot - but the singer has since covered it up.
'There is no way Justin Bieber got a tattoo of Hailey Bieber's Elle magazine... similarly to the one he got of Selena Gomez's Elle cover,' one fan said on social media.
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'Remember when Hailey told Justin she doesn't want him to get any tattoo on his back and he said he was saving it for something important? Oh well he got Hailey f***ing Bieber's face tattooed!' another said.
When his back was turned towards the camera, some fans later jumped to social media that ink on his back looked exactly like Hailey
'There is no way Justin Bieber got a tattoo of Hailey Bieber's Elle magazine... similarly to the one he got of Selena Gomez's Elle cover,' one fan said on social media
However, others thought that the ink was actually the face of Jesus - with Bieber being open about his Christian faith.
'I thought it was Jesus,' another fan typed out, while one added, 'WHAAAAT i thought that is jesus?????'
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When it came to the star opting for a shirtless look on stage, body lady expert Judi James told the Daily Mail that the move was 'emotionally telling.'
She added, 'The core body language signal seemed to be one of vulnerability. Justin's walk was an amble, with his shoulders held in a self-protective hunch.
'When he stood alone on stage he adopted a fig leaf pose with his hands in a self-protective barrier ritual.'
His Grammys performance over the past weekend was a possible glimpse into what fans can expect to see as the singer is set to be one of the headliners at the upcoming Coachella Music Festival in April.
When it came to the star opting for a shirtless look on stage, body lady expert Judi James told the Daily Mail that the move was 'emotionally telling'
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His Grammys performance over the past weekend was a possible glimpse into what fans can expect to see as the singer is set to be one of the headliners at the upcoming Coachella Music Festival in April; seen in 2020
Sabrina Carpenter and Karol G are other artists that are headlining the festival over the span of two weekends.
The festival quickly sold out when tickets became available, with the Baby hitmaker slated to take to the stage on April 11 and then again on April 18.
Bieber has also become the highest paid act for the Coachella Music Festival.
The star reportedly will earn $10 million for taking to the stage during the festivities for the two weekends, surpassing Beyonce who made $8 million.
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