A Justin Bieber lookalike is said to have tricked staff, partygoers, and even DJ Gryffin himself into thinking he was the actual pop star at a nightclub in Las Vegas. The prank was strange and expensive.
TMZ said that the lookalike not only got on stage at XS Nightclub on Saturday, August 16, but also ran up a bar charge of $10,000 before the truth came out.
The actual Bieber’s name was already all over the news that night because he had just released Swag in July. His song “Daisies” is currently at number five on the UK Singles Chart, which has made fans even more interested.
Dylan Desclos, a Frenchman who has gained a following for copying Bieber’s look and mannerisms, took advantage of the situation to stir trouble, even though the real artist was nowhere near Las Vegas.
Clips that were shared on TikTok and X immediately went viral. They showed the crowd going wild when the impostor was taken on stage to “perform.” Gryffin, who was the main act that night, said that the man came with what looked like a large entourage, which made the act seem even more real. The DJ later posted a video in which he said he had been “duped.” He said that it was hard to tell if the person who looked like Bieber was real because the club was dark and loud.
Gryffin wrote that his “team” suggested he wanted to sing “Sorry,” a song by Bieber from 2015. I had no idea I was going to be regretful. At first, the DJ said he went along with the show because he thought it was a last-minute surprise appearance. But not long after, his own staff told him that the man on stage was not Bieber at all.
Desclos has done this kind of impersonation before. He has created an online identity by making public appearances and viral situations that play with fans’ expectations. He is 29 years old. There have been a lot of videos of him riding public transportation while being surrounded by people who think he is Bieber. Even Hailey Bieber said on social media that she was “scared” after viewing one of the videos. Desclos has even promoted his own “world tour” as Bieber in the past, which shows how far he is ready to go with the act.
Some fans at XS Nightclub were angry that they had been fooled, but others have made fun of the situation online, saying that “Bustin Jeiber” (as the fake person is now known) looked like a whole vibe. Others said it was scary how easily he and his so-called “team” convinced a big DJ and hundreds of clubgoers that they were in the presence of a global superstar.
There is still no information on who paid the huge bar tab, but the strange stunt has had a lot of people talking online. For a lot of people, it reminds them of how rapidly perspective can change when there are flashing lights, loud music, and the power of celebrity illusion.