Life and career

1994–2007: Early life

Bieber was born on March 1, 1994, in London, Ontario, at St Joseph's Hospital, and was raised in Stratford, Ontario. He is the only child of Jeremy Jack Bieber and Patricia "Pattie" Mallette. Bieber's parents were never married. Pattie raised her son with the help of her mother, Diane, and stepfather, Bruce. His mother is of French-Canadiandescent; his paternal great-grandfather was of German ancestry, and his other roots are English and Irish. He has stated that he believes that he has some undetermined Aboriginal Canadian ancestry.

Through Jeremy, Bieber has two younger half-siblings, Jasmyn (born 2009) and Jaxon (born 2010). Pattie worked a series of low-paying office jobs, raising Bieber as a single mother in low-income housing. Bieber has maintained contact with his father.

Bieber attended a French-language immersion elementary school in Stratford, the Jeanne Sauvé Catholic School. Growing up, he learned to play the piano, drums, guitar, and trumpet. In early 2007, aged 12, Bieber sang Ne-Yo's "So Sick" for a local singing competition in Stratford and was placed second. Mallette posted a video of the performance on YouTube for their family and friends to see. She continued to upload videos of Bieber singing covers of various R&B songs, and Bieber's popularity on the site grew.