USHER FIX

He was a teen sensation who made it out with sanity intact. So who better than Usher to become a tutor to the young and famous?

At 32, the R&B star is clearly relishing his role as mentor to young artists such as Justin Bieber, whose elastic voice and girl-wowing ways make for easy comparisons to Usher’s early years. Bieber got his mainstream break last year at the hands of Usher, who has remained a steady guide and sounding board for the young Canadian singer.

The father of two is back on the road supporting his album “Raymond v. Raymond” and its companion set, “Versus,” which have provided a raw window into his personal life, including last year’s much-publicized divorce from stylist Tameka Foster. Album reviews were mixed, but concert reviews have been strong for Usher, who made his name in the mid-’90s with moves as smooth as his voice and sensual songs that made him one of the era’s leading musical heartthrobs.

“I only focus on the positive,” he says. “The negative is only a deterrent from my purpose. My purpose is to make sure people understand that what I’m offering is pure and from my own experiences.”

His return to the touring life has put him in a philosophical mood, happy to impart some hard-earned wisdom to the world. He spoke with the Free Press en route to tonight’s show in Detroit — a city he reveres as the musical “soul of what we are.”

QUESTION: You’ve been all over the place lately, and you seem pretty happy being back in this sort of groove, back where the action is nonstop.

ANSWER: Absolutely. It’s the kind of lifestyle that one could grow accustomed to. (Laughs) As a youth, traveling the world, I never really got a chance to enjoy it — I was always moving in circles. I looked at it like: I need to make sure I build relationships, make sure people understood why I’m here, why I’m doing what I’m doing. I was acquiring the success, but not really enjoying it.

This time, I’m actually able to sit back and just enjoy it. It’s the first time I’ve been able to just sit in a room, do my interviews, prepare for my show, do my show, go do an afterparty, get on a bus, go to the next state, then chill out a little bit. And it makes it even better when you have children, because I have that time when I’m just in their rooms, relaxing, just being with my kids.