Justin Bieber fans armed with tents and sleeping bags occupied a Midtown street this week in anticipation of their hero’s Wednesday “Today” show concert.
Beliebers lined up Monday on the 48th St. sidewalk outside Rockefeller Center. They erected eight tents by midday Tuesday, a week after camping Wall St. protesters were booted from Zuccotti Park.
“It’s crazy,” said Arianna Baron, 15, of Glen Cove, L.I., sitting under a makeshift tent. “But when it comes to seeing Justin it’s whoever gets to him first.”
The teen pop star’s fans said security guards at Rockefeller Center had originally forbidden them from erecting tents, but eventually relented as weather worsened.
“What are they going to do, put us out in the pouring rain?” asked Holly Wickline, 44, of Fredericksburg, Va. “Can you imagine the tears in my kids eyes?”
Wickline shared a pup tent with her 12-year-old daughter, Shelbe, and 8-year-old son, Wyatt. The family put up a sign reading “Occupy 30 Rock” outside their encampment and were as impassioned as any Wall St. protestor.
“We believe in Bieber,” Holly Wickline said. “The whole family supports Justin.”
An NYPD cop on a scooter kept a watchful eye on the superfans, who were hemmed in by police barricades.
Cindy Muse, 51, from Maryland, was staying in a hotel but supplying soup to her 14-year-old Belieber daughter. She said there was no comparison between the dreamboat’s well-scrubbed fans and the booted Zuccotti Park protestors.
“Everyone here has to take a shower,” Muse said. “We’re here doing something positive.”
Her daughter shivered under a makeshift tent in heavy rain. “I’m cold and wet,” said Gabby Muse, 14. “It’s so worth it. I cry just thinking about him.”
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