One thing that’s sort of amazing to me is that, with all of the accolades and internet buzz and fan mania that’s happened with Justin Bieber, the kid’s only really released two albums. Of course, the industry loves to milk teen sensations for all they’re worth before their bubble bursts (see: Hanson & New Kids On The Block,) so there’s already been the acoustic album, the remix album, and the Christmas album. That said-it looks like there is some legit long-tail strategy involved in the attempt to make Bieber’s career arc more like Justin Timberlake’s and less like Nick Carter’s.

At any rate, the Biebs is now officially 18, and he can get his grown man swag on. He tries with new single “Boyfriend,” which hit airwaves and digital stores today. The song isn’t bad. Aside from the chorus, it is pretty forgettable. This definitely isn’t a “Like I Love You”-style “oh shit, this kid’s got skills” moment, but it’s not embarrassing, either. It’s just…there. This might have something to do with the fact that the song was written by questionably talented Mike Posner. At any rate, this kid’s got a lot of important folks in his corner, so I don’t think there’s any danger of the bubble bursting anytime soon, and it seems like he’s sliding well into that post-puppy love level of teen idoldom that his former duet partner Chris Brown occupied before he opened the can of whup-ass on Rihanna.