Judy L. Hasday - Justin Bieber

Justin Bieber arrives at the MTV studios in Times Square, New York City on November 19, 2009.

Source: Newscom: CPF/DHK/ZOJ WENN Photos.

In the years before the Internet and Web sites, most music careers were made through live performances in clubs and bars. Music giants, such as Elvis Presley, the Beatles, Michael Jackson, and Bruce Springsteen, became megastars by reaching large audiences via radio broadcasts of their songs and live concert appearances. However, the creation and explosive growth of the Internet and the World Wide Web suddenly made it possible to upload a video or audio recording, instantaneously reaching an enormous worldwide audience.

A native of Stratford, Ontario, Canada, Justin Bieber had been singing and playing music for most of his pre-teen years. It was something he did purely for fun. So, when he met the age eligibility requirement (12 years of age) to participate in the Stratford Star contest, a local talent competition, he signed up. The contest was a local annual talent show hosted by the Stratford Youth Centre. People who had heard Justin sing often wondered why he didn't try out for the national television talent show, American Idol. They thought he was that talented. Justin explains in his autobiography, Justin Bieber First Step to Forever: My Story, "The few people who'd heard me do music kept telling me, 'Dude, you're pretty good. You should try out for American Idol.' But you had to be sixteen for thatas old as you had to be for a driver's license." At twelve, reaching age sixteen seemed like light-years away to Justin. Even so, the Stratford Star contest was like American Idol, only on a smaller scale. Any kid between the age of 12 and 18 could try out and compete through a series of elimination rounds. Two dollars got you through the door, but instead of performing in front of such Idol judges as Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul, and Simon Cowell, contestants performed in front of the local townspeople. The judges were music teachers at the Stratford high school or directors of church choirs. In place of Idol's Ryan Seacrest, the contest was hosted by a young woman who organized many of the Stratford summer music programs.

From the outset, Justin just looked at the contest as something fun to do. The grand prize was pretty cool tooa microphone that could be connected to a computer, and a couple hours free at a local recording studio. Justin had never been inside a recording studio but often wondered what it would be like, how he would sound laying down lyrics and music tracks in a professional studio. In addition, although Justin thought the grand prize was cool, he "was more into the idea of getting up in front of people and doing music just to see how it felt," as he wrote in his book. "I wasn't nervous about performing, because I was used to playing basketball and hockey in front of crowds much bigger than this," he continued. Still, coming out on the stage at the Stratford Star competition was going to be the first time Justin sang in public other than Sunday church services. Further, even though he was approaching the contest as simply something fun to do, Justin planned ahead for everything, from what clothes he would wear to what he would sing through each round.

Throughout the three-week competition, Justin's mother Patricia "Pattie" Mallette, and maternal grandparents Bruce and Diane Dale sat in the audience and watched each performance, bursting with pride. Justin put on a great show every time he got up on stage, and even had many of the young girls in the audience screaming and cheering for him after he finished each song.

Justin and two female contestants made it through to the final round. In the end, Justin came in third. Though disappointed that he didn't win, he described the moment in Justin Bieber First Step to Forever: My Story, "being surrounded by beautiful girls, win or lose, I wasn't complaining. I was feeling really good about how it went, but not cocky at all. I didn't assume I'd win, but I really, really, really wanted to."

Pattie, Bruce, and Diane took Justin out for ice cream after the competition was over. That evening Pattie hugged Justin and told him how proud she was of him making it all the way to the finals. Coming in third was better than not having made the final at all. "'You did great, Justin,'" Justin relates in his book. "'I wish everyone could have been therethe whole family and all our friends at church. But I got some great videos. I'm going to put them up on YouTube so everyone can all see how amazing you did.'"

True to her word, Pattie uploaded the videos she recorded of the Stratford Star competition on YouTube under Justin's handle, or screen name, "kidrauhl." The videos were really intended for the small audience of family and friends. Pattie thought it would be a good way to share the live performance of her son on stage doing what he did for funsing. Pattie sent out "invites" to the video links to family and friends and hoped they would enjoy watching Justin strut around the stage, microphone in hand, belting out songs like Matchbox 20's "3 AM" and Aretha Franklin's "Respect" like a trained vocalist.

Though just 12 years of age, Justin Bieber looked and sounded like a seasoned professional with the composure of an artist who had already performed many times in front of a live audience. He moved easily across the stage, taking small, dance-like steps, engaging his audience by encouraging them to clap along to the music, and knowing how low to hold the microphone so his voice sounded at just the right volume. Justin was a natural born entertainer and had been "performing" for his mom from the time he was able to stand up. However, the development and growth of the Internet made it possible for a much larger audience to view Justin's performances.