Yeezy has definitely developed at “diva” rep in the music business, but those close to him seem to have nothing but nice things to say about the talented rapper/producer. I mean even when I met him in the fall when he came to visit Flex I thought he was super sweet. Justin Bieber talked to XXL Magazine about his relationship with the Loius Vuitton Don and let them know he’s “not really an a**hole,” amongst other things. He also names his favorite rapper and speaks on Drake, Lil Twist and more. Hit the jump to see what else he said.

Marisa Mendez

““I got to be in the studio with him and work with him and see how he works and talk to him—and talk to him as a friend, and not like someone [in] business,” Bieber said. “He’s not really an asshole like everyone makes him out to be. I mean, he can, he can do bad things, but he’s really generally a good guy.”

“He can make bad decisions, you know, as well as everyone can,” he added, “but generally I think he is a good guy.”

Bieber was the first person that Kanye followed once he joined Twitter last July. The two went on to form a relationship over the social networking site and eventually recorded a song together, a remix to the pop singer’s track, “Runaway Love,” along with a cameo from Wu-Tang Clan rapper Raekwon over the group’s classic track, “Ain’t Nothin’ Ta Fuck Wit.”

Another excerpt of the interview:

XXL: How long have you been listening to hip-hop?

Justin Bieber: I’ve been listening to hip-hop, basically, since I was, like, like, three. My mom listened to a lot of Ma$e, and my dad introduced me to Tupac when I was, like, like, four.

Oh, Tupac? So you were a Tupac fan early on.

Yeah, I was a Tupac fan.

Did you ever believe any of the conspiracy theories that he might be alive? Or think he might come back?

No, I don’t think so. I think he’s dead.

What about when you got older? Do you still listen to him as much?

Yeah. I mean, I’m still a huge ’Pac fan. But when I was, like, eight or nine, I could rap all of “Thugz Mansion.” Like, the whole song. My dad taught me.

So was it a big deal for you at all when you started to meet rappers?

Yeah. I was a big Ludacris fan, and then I was able to meet him in Atlanta at his restaurant. And I was freaking out. It was a crazy moment for me. Then I got to do a song with him, which was incredible and just a great experience. Probably my favorite rapper now, right now, at this moment, is probably Lil Wayne.

How do you pick your favorite? What do you base it on?

Just the stuff they do. Like, he’s on a lot of songs and some of them get repetitive, but usually he’s on.

You play around and rap, but do you ever see yourself trying seriously?

[Laughs] Not really. I just do it for fun, but nothing serious. I don’t think people would take me seriously if I came out with, like, a rap album.

In the beginning, did you ever get intimidated by rappers? ’Cause it’s a whole different genre of music from yours.

Yeah.

It’s fascinating how you have been so accepted by all the rappers. Your being so young and from a genre of music that’s so different, it seems pretty cool.

It’s great. Drake, he’s kinda like my big brother, and, like, a bunch of people I’m just really close to. I mean, most of Young Money—I know all of them, and they’re really cool and stuff. I try to associate myself with them. But not too much, because, like, you know, I don’t wanna get hurt or anything. [Laughs]

It looks like you and Lil Twist are really cool with each other.

He’s, like, one of my best friends, actually. I was just with him last night, at the basketball game, and he’s just a really cool guy. He’s really talented, and everybody should know about Twist.

Both Asher Roth and Drake have spoken about giving you advice and mentoring you. What kinds of things do they tell you?

Just to keep a straight head and make sure to always, um, keep family first. Basically, just regular, normal stuff.