It's safe to say that Justin Bieber is no stranger to controversy.
Over the years, the pop idol has gone through his 'bad boy' phase, his 'Christianity' period and most recently raised eyebrows when he used quotes from a Martin Luther King speech - apparently apropos of nothing - on his new album 'Justice'.
However, it's rare that a pop star's hairstyle has generated
Bieber previously came under fire from accusations of cultural appropriation when he debuted his 'cornrows' hairstyle in 2016.
Now, he is being accused of the same thing because of his new 'do - locs, also known as dreadlocks.
The Canadian star debuted his new look on Instagram in recent days, and although fans queued up to leave admiring messages, it wasn't all positive reviews.
Stephanie Cohen of The Halo Collective - a natural hair organisation for POC - said: "When I see a white person in mainstream media sporting a black hairstyle, it makes me angry.
“I’m angry because this standard does not exist when a black person simply wears their hair in this way. You can’t just wear something so historically significant and ignore the struggles behind what the hairstyle purports.”
Meanwhile, the editor of Black Hair and Beauty magazine Irene Shelley accused Bieber of being "a dilettante, a person who’s dipping his toe in the culture, without any real commitment or knowledge of the style’s history.”
Adele faced similar outrage last year when she posted a picture of herself at the Notting Hill Carnival.
On social media, many fans have accused the media of overreacting although others have maintained that he is being insensitive.
