Skrillex teased his latest all-star collab on Wednesday (Aug. 18) in a 20-second clip of “Don’t Go,” featuring Justin Bieber and rapper Don Toliver.
The brief preview of the song slated to drop on Friday (Aug. 20) opens with the image of a painting of a woman in an art gallery who appears to be weeping black tears before quick-cutting to blurry shots of Bieber — sporting a head full of short, dreadlock-style braids — and rapper Toliver as the song’s slurry, downtempo chorus bubbles up.
“Don’t go … Don’t go,” Bieber sings in a drowsy falsetto amid a cascade of images including a white statue covered in dripping paint and a menacing stuffed wolf. At various points, Bieber sits on a stool and Skrillex leans on a black luxury vehicle while wearing an all-black ensemble alongside Toliver in a custom track suit and shades.
Though the hypnotic chorus has a chilled-out feel, several shots find the three men bouncing and jumping around, clapping their hands and nodding their heads in a sign that the beat could be a bit more hype than the snippet suggests.
Skrillex and Bieber were spotted in the studio with a large group of collaborators — including Jon Bellion, Maejor, Ant Clemons and frequent JB songwriter Poo Bear — in October 2020 in a post the pop star shared on Instagram. He captioned it, “Being able to create something from nothing that will last forever and speak to peoples hearts is something i don’t take lightly. It’s a true honor and a true gift. If god gave you a gift, use it and watch how he uses you.”
Skrillex and Bieber have a history of hit collabs, including “Where Are Ü Now” with the the Diplo/Skrillex supergroup Jack Ü, and “Sorry,” which Skrillex produced that same year for Bieber’s 2015 Purpose album.
Check out the “Don’t Go” preview below.
