Selena Gomez served as inspiration for Justin Bieber's new tracks

Justin Bieber has revealed his ex-girlfriend Selena Gomez served as an "inspiration" for many of the songs on his upcoming new album.

The Baby hitmaker is preparing for the release of his first record since 2012's Believe, and after splitting from his girlfriend of three years in 2013, Bieber says he used Gomez and their on-and-off romance as a recurring theme throughout the as-yet-untitled album.

He tells radio host Ryan Seacrest, "A lot of my inspiration comes from her... It was a long relationship and a relationship that created heartbreak and created happiness and a lot of different emotions that I wanted to write about, so there's a lot of that on this album."

Bieber also hints that his other personal struggles, including multiple run-ins with the law, will also play a part in the new songs.

He adds, "There is a lot of stuff that I've been going through over the last few years I just really want to bleed it on this record. I want people to know that I'm not playing around. I'm not doing a record that is cookie cutter or doing something that I think people want to hear... I've been pretty silent about what I've been going through and just growing up in this life is hard, so I want to translate that."

Bieber has yet to reveal a release date for his fourth studio album.