# Poo Bear
**Poo Bear** is the professional name of Jason Boyd (born 1979), an American songwriter and record producer best known for co-writing much of [Justin Bieber](https://www.edgepedia.org/justin-bieber)'s 2015 album *Purpose*, including the singles "[What Do You Mean?](https://www.edgepedia.org/what-do-you-mean)" and the Skrillex and Diplo collaboration "Where Are Ü Now".[1](https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/artists/poo-bear/) • [2](https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/apr/09/im-like-a-secret-assassin-poo-bear-on-writing-for-justin-bieber-skrillex-and-sam-smith) His earlier credits include 112's "Peaches & Cream", Usher's "Caught Up", and [Kelly Rowland](https://www.edgepedia.org/kelly-rowland)'s "Work".[2](https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/apr/09/im-like-a-secret-assassin-poo-bear-on-writing-for-justin-bieber-skrillex-and-sam-smith)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1979, Connecticut, United States[1](https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/artists/poo-bear/) |
| First hit | Co-wrote 112's "Anywhere" while still in high school; the Guardian and Pitchfork give his age as 14, his own site as 16[2](https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/apr/09/im-like-a-secret-assassin-poo-bear-on-writing-for-justin-bieber-skrillex-and-sam-smith) • [3](https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/poo-bear-poo-bear-presents-bearthday-music/) • [4](https://poobear.com/) |
| *Purpose* (2015) | Co-wrote 9 of the album's 13 songs; "What Do You Mean?" reached No. 1 in more than 25 countries[1](https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/artists/poo-bear/) |
| Catalog sale | Hipgnosis Songs Fund bought a 100 percent interest in his catalog, 214 songs, in November 2018[1](https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/artists/poo-bear/) • [5](https://www.hipgnosissongs.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/181211-Interim-Report-pdf..pdf) |
| Publishing | Worldwide publishing deal with peermusic signed in February 2020[1](https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/artists/poo-bear/) |
| Solo albums | *Poo Bear Presents: Bearthday Music* (2018, Capitol) and *The Book of Nabeel* (2022)[3](https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/poo-bear-poo-bear-presents-bearthday-music/) • [6](https://www.spinmagazine.com/2022/03/a-day-in-the-life-of-poo-bear/) |
| Output | He told Music Business Worldwide in 2017 that he writes "600 songs a year"[1](https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/artists/poo-bear/) |
## Early life and the R&B years
Boyd grew up in [Connecticut](https://www.edgepedia.org/connecticut). When he was approaching nine, his father left the family home, and two weeks later the apartment was hit by a tornado, leaving Boyd, his brother, and his mother homeless; the family relocated to Atlanta.[7](https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/podcast/poo-bear-i-turn-my-hurt-into-gas-into-fuel-to-keep-going-and-working-harder/) In his mid-teens, through an introduction from his cousin, he began writing for the R&B group 112.[7](https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/podcast/poo-bear-i-turn-my-hurt-into-gas-into-fuel-to-keep-going-and-working-harder/) The first session produced "Anywhere", and the group's approval gave him the confidence to treat songwriting as a career.[8](https://tidal.com/magazine/article/poo-bear-bearthday-music-interview/1-50306)
Through the 2000s he wrote for 112 ("Peaches & Cream"), Usher ("Caught Up", from *[Confessions](https://www.edgepedia.org/confessions-usher-album)*), P!nk, and Kelly Rowland, and he has said he made a conscious decision to quit performing in his own group and write for others because he wanted to make a better living for his family rather than be famous.[2](https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/apr/09/im-like-a-secret-assassin-poo-bear-on-writing-for-justin-bieber-skrillex-and-sam-smith) • [9](https://news.djcity.com/how-poo-bear-went-from-being-homeless-to-writing-justin-bieber-hits/) He has described his hook-first method: settle the concept and title, find chords that move emotion, then write a hook "simple enough for a five-year-old to sing along with" but clever enough to hold a sophisticated listener.[9](https://news.djcity.com/how-poo-bear-went-from-being-homeless-to-writing-justin-bieber-hits/)
## The Justin Bieber partnership
Boyd met Bieber around 2013 through Bieber's then-roommate [Lil Twist](https://www.edgepedia.org/lil-twist), who played him Boyd's demos; Bieber's response, in Boyd's telling, was "I want that".[10](https://www.thefader.com/2015/11/11/justin-bieber-poo-bear-purpose-journals/) The pair wrote together through the *Journals* releases of 2013, a collection of R&B-leaning digital singles that Boyd says caught an older audience but was under-promoted because it departed from Bieber's planned career arc.[10](https://www.thefader.com/2015/11/11/justin-bieber-poo-bear-purpose-journals/)
For *[Purpose](https://www.edgepedia.org/purpose-justin-bieber-album)* (2015), labels brought in major producers and writing camps, but Bieber insisted on keeping Boyd, who ended up with writing credits on about 85 percent of the songs; Music Business Worldwide counts 9 of the album's 13 tracks.[10](https://www.thefader.com/2015/11/11/justin-bieber-poo-bear-purpose-journals/) • [1](https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/artists/poo-bear/) The Guardian credits this collaboration with a central role in Bieber's turnaround from one of the world's most criticized celebrities to an electronic dance music headliner, noting that Bieber's choice of the then little-known Boyd over the songwriting-by-committee approach was a risk taken while his career was at stake.[2](https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/apr/09/im-like-a-secret-assassin-poo-bear-on-writing-for-justin-bieber-skrillex-and-sam-smith) Boyd continued with Bieber through the "Despacito" remix (2017), which reached No. 1 in over 50 countries and was nominated for Song of the Year and Record of the Year at the 2018 [Grammy Awards](https://www.edgepedia.org/grammy-awards), and the 2020 album *Changes*, on which he says he co-wrote and co-produced every track.[1](https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/artists/poo-bear/) • [7](https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/podcast/poo-bear-i-turn-my-hurt-into-gas-into-fuel-to-keep-going-and-working-harder/) • [13](https://www.grammy.com/awards/categories/record-of-the-year/2018/)
## Solo records and label
In 2018 Boyd released his debut album as an artist, *Poo Bear Presents: Bearthday Music*, on Capitol, a 15-track compilation of guest features including [Jennifer Lopez](https://www.edgepedia.org/jennifer-lopez), Zara Larsson, Anitta, and Bieber once.[3](https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/poo-bear-poo-bear-presents-bearthday-music/) • [11](https://time.com/5256488/5-songs-you-need-to-listen-to-this-week-50/) Boyd framed the project as a way to release finished songs that had missed their intended albums, a stockpile he called "the music abyss".[3](https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/poo-bear-poo-bear-presents-bearthday-music/) Pitchfork's review judged the album a compilation in name, noting that Boyd sings on little of it and, as a topline writer (Writes melody and vocal hook over a track), handles little production.[3](https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/poo-bear-poo-bear-presents-bearthday-music/) In April 2021 he signed a joint-venture deal with Def Jam for his Bearthday Music label.[12](https://americansongwriter.com/meet-poo-bear-the-most-famous-songwriter-youve-never-heard-of/) His second album, *The Book of Nabeel* (2022), grew from poems by his partner Nabeel and blends world music and pop influences.[6](https://www.spinmagazine.com/2022/03/a-day-in-the-life-of-poo-bear/)
## Catalog sale and business ventures
In November 2018, Hipgnosis Songs Fund acquired a 100 percent interest in Boyd's catalog of 214 songs for an undisclosed amount, one of the fund's early acquisitions alongside The-Dream's catalog.[1](https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/artists/poo-bear/) • [5](https://www.hipgnosissongs.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/181211-Interim-Report-pdf..pdf) In February 2020 he signed a worldwide publishing deal with peermusic.[1](https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/artists/poo-bear/) His own site lists commercial services for artists, from a one-on-one studio day from $15,000 to a full written, produced, and released single package from $100,000, alongside ventures including H Factor [hydrogen water](https://www.edgepedia.org/hydrogen-water) and the cannabis brand Wonderbrett.[4](https://poobear.com/)
## Recognition and profile
Boyd has deliberately kept a low public profile, telling the Guardian that staying under the radar kept audiences from tiring of him: "I'm like a secret assassin."[2](https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/apr/09/im-like-a-secret-assassin-poo-bear-on-writing-for-justin-bieber-skrillex-and-sam-smith) His own site claims 47 billion streams, 2,877 career credits, four Hot 100 number ones, and five Grammy nominations; other profiles describe him as a two-time Grammy nominee, and the figures differ between sources.[4](https://poobear.com/) • [6](https://www.spinmagazine.com/2022/03/a-day-in-the-life-of-poo-bear/) A Red Bull-produced documentary about his career, *Afraid of Forever*, premiered in 2017.[2](https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/apr/09/im-like-a-secret-assassin-poo-bear-on-writing-for-justin-bieber-skrillex-and-sam-smith)
## References
1. [Poo Bear, Music Business Worldwide artist page](https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/artists/poo-bear/)
2. ["'I'm like a secret assassin': Poo Bear on writing for Justin Bieber, Skrillex and Sam Smith", The Guardian (2017)](https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/apr/09/im-like-a-secret-assassin-poo-bear-on-writing-for-justin-bieber-skrillex-and-sam-smith)
3. ["Poo Bear: Poo Bear Presents: Bearthday Music Album Review", Pitchfork (2018)](https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/poo-bear-poo-bear-presents-bearthday-music/)
4. [Poo Bear official website](https://poobear.com/)
5. [Hipgnosis Songs Fund Limited Interim Report, 11 December 2018](https://www.hipgnosissongs.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/181211-Interim-Report-pdf..pdf)
6. ["A Day in the Life of…Poo Bear", SPIN (2022)](https://www.spinmagazine.com/2022/03/a-day-in-the-life-of-poo-bear/)
7. ["'I turn my hurt into gas, into fuel, to keep going and working harder.'", Music Business Worldwide podcast (2020)](https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/podcast/poo-bear-i-turn-my-hurt-into-gas-into-fuel-to-keep-going-and-working-harder/)
8. ["Poo Bear on 'Bearthday Music,' His Bag Boy Past And G4 Goals", TIDAL Magazine (2018)](https://tidal.com/magazine/article/poo-bear-bearthday-music-interview/1-50306)
9. ["How Poo Bear Went From Being Homeless to Writing Justin Bieber Hits", DJcity (2017)](https://news.djcity.com/how-poo-bear-went-from-being-homeless-to-writing-justin-bieber-hits/)
10. ["How Justin Bieber Grew Into Himself, According To Poo Bear", The FADER (2015)](https://www.thefader.com/2015/11/11/justin-bieber-poo-bear-purpose-journals/)
11. ["5 Songs You Need to Listen to This Week", TIME (2018)](https://time.com/5256488/5-songs-you-need-to-listen-to-this-week-50/)
12. ["Meet Poo Bear, The Most Famous Songwriter You've Never Heard Of", American Songwriter (2021)](https://americansongwriter.com/meet-poo-bear-the-most-famous-songwriter-youve-never-heard-of/)
13. [Record Of The Year 2018 Winners & Nominees](https://www.grammy.com/awards/categories/record-of-the-year/2018/)
---
*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musicians and ensembles › Individual musical biographies › Songwriters and record producers › Songwriters and lyricists*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license