|
Justin Timberlake
Background information
Birth name Justin Randall Timberlake
Born January 31, 1981 (1981-01-31) (age 26)
Origin Flag of United States Memphis, Tennessee, United States
Genre(s) Pop, dance, R&B
Occupation(s) Singer, Songwriter, Producer, Musician, actor
Instrument(s) Vocals, Piano/Keyboards, Guitar
Years active 1995 to present
Label(s) Jive
Associated
acts 'N Sync
Timbaland
Nelly Furtado
will.i.am
Website JustinTimberlake.com
Justin Randall Timberlake, (born January 31, 1981[1]), sometimes known as
JT, is an American pop-R&B singer and actor. He came to fame as the frontman
of pop boy band 'N Sync and has won four Grammy Awards. In 2002, he released
his debut solo album, Justified, which sold over seven million copies
worldwide. Timberlake's second solo release, FutureSex/LoveSounds, was
released in 2006 with the #1 U.S. hit singles "SexyBack", "My Love", and
"What Goes Around... Comes Around". With his first two albums, Timberlake
has sold over 14 million albums worldwide. He has started a record label
called Tennman Records.
Biography
Early life
Timberlake was born in Memphis, Tennessee to Randall Timberlake and Lynn nee
Bomar. He has British ancestry.[2] His paternal grandfather, Charles L.
Timberlake, was a Baptist minister, and Timberlake was raised in the Baptist
religion, although he considers himself more "spiritual than religious",
though still a Christian.[3][4] His parents divorced about 1985 and both
have remarried; his mother, who now runs an entertainment company called
JustinTime Entertainment, remarried to Paul Harless, a banker, when Justin
was aged 5; while his father, a choir director at a Baptist church, has two
children, Jonathan (born c. 1993) and Stephen (born c. 1998), from his
second marriage to Lisa. A half-sister, Laura Katherine, died shortly after
birth in 1997 and is mentioned on one of Timberlake's record acknowledgments
as "My Angel in Heaven".
Timberlake grew up in Millington, a small town just north of Memphis. His
first attempts at a singing career saw him singing country music songs on
Star Search as "Justin Randall". In 1993, he got a real taste of fame when
he joined the ranks of The Mickey Mouse Club. There he met future girlfriend
and pop superstar Britney Spears, future tourmate Christina Aguilera, and
future bandmate JC Chasez. When the show ended in 1995, Timberlake recruited
Chasez to be in a new all-male singing group Lou Pearlman was forming with
Chris Kirkpatrick. The group would come to be known as *NSYNC. In 1999
Justin acted as Jason Sharpe in the made-for-TV movie Model Behavior.
1995–2002: 'N Sync
Timberlake was a member of the popular 1990s boy band, 'N Sync, and was
considered a teen idol. The group formed in 1995 and started their career
1996 in Germany and hit it big in the States two years later in 1998,
eventually releasing the fastest-selling album of all time, No Strings
Attached in 2000.[5] In 2002, after the completion of their Celebrity Tour
and release of "Girlfriend", the third single from their 2001 album
Celebrity, the group decided to take time off, at which point Timberlake
began work on his first solo album. The album signaled a transition from his
squeaky-clean boy band image to a sexier, more mature look and feel.
Looking back at those days concerning the management by Lou Pearlman (now
sued for major fraud), Timberlake said 24 September 2006 in an interview
with the British Sunday Herald: "I was being monetarily raped by a Svengali".[6]
2002–2004: Justified and Super Bowl
In August 2002, after months of recording the album, Timberlake performed at
the 2002 MTV Video Music Awards, where he premiered his first single, "Like
I Love You", a sparse dance track produced by The Neptunes. The song reached
#11 on the Billboard Hot 100. Following the single, Timberlake released his
debut solo album, Justified, on November 5, 2002. The album was also a
success, despite selling considerably less than previous 'N Sync efforts. It
debuted at #2 on the Billboard 200 album chart, selling 439,000 copies in
its first week of release. It eventually went on to sell over 3 million
copies in the U.S. and over 7 million copies worldwide.[7] The album
contained several tracks which were created to be part of Michael Jackson's
Invincible album but did not make it to the final selection of songs used
for it. The album also received critical acclaim, thanks to its heavy R&B
influence provided by hip-hop producers The Neptunes and Timbaland. It spun
off hits throughout late 2002 and 2003, including the top ten singles "Cry
Me A River" and "Rock Your Body".
Timberlake supported the album by co-headlining the Justified/Stripped Tour
with Christina Aguilera in the summer of 2003. For many dates, The Black
Eyed Peas served as the opening act; Timberlake appeared uncredited on their
smash hit "Where Is The Love?" which was also released in the summer of
2003. His record company did not want Timberlake to be credited for fear
that it would take focus away from his solo releases; still, Timberlake
often appeared with The Black Eyed Peas to perform the track live, including
during the 2003 MTV Europe Music Awards. By the end of the year, Timberlake
recorded a song entitled "I'm Lovin' It." It was used by McDonald's as the
theme to their "I'm Lovin' It" campaign. The deal with McDonald's earned
Timberlake an estimated $6 million.[8]
In February 2004, during the halftime show of the Super Bowl XXXVIII,
Timberlake performed with Janet Jackson before a television audience of over
140 million viewers. At the end of the performance, Timberlake tore off a
part of Jackson's black leather costume in a "costume reveal" meant to
accompany a portion of the song lyrics, "gonna have you naked by the end of
this song". Part of the costume became detached, and Jackson's breast was
briefly exposed. Timberlake apologized for the incident saying that he was
"sorry that anyone was offended by the wardrobe malfunction during the
halftime performance of the Super Bowl... It was not intentional and is
regrettable".[9] The phrase "wardrobe malfunction" has since been used by
the media to refer to the incident and has entered pop culture.
As a result of the controversy, Timberlake and Jackson were banned from the
2004 Grammy Awards unless they agreed to apologize on screen at the event.
Jackson, who already gave a public apology declined to issue a second one.
Timberlake attended and issued a scripted apology while accepting the first
of two Grammy Awards he received that night (Best Pop Vocal Album for
Justified and Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for "Cry Me A River"),causing
some from the Black entertainment community to label him a "punk" and"sell
out" and call for his "Black Pass" to be revoked[2]. He had also been
nominated for Album of the Year for Justified, Record of the Year for "Cry
Me A River", and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration for "Where Is The Love?" with
The Black Eyed Peas.
2004–2006: Collaborations and acting
After the Super Bowl controversy, Timberlake put his recording career on
hold in an attempt to jumpstart his acting career. Timberlake had a few
minor acting roles during his early music career, including a bit part as a
model in the 2000 made-for-television film Model Behavior, and a cameo in
the 2001 film On the Line, but was seeking more substantial roles. The first
role he took during this time was as a journalist in the thriller Edison
Force, which was filmed in 2004 and received a direct-to-video release on
July 18, 2006. He also appeared in the films Alpha Dog, Black Snake Moan,
Richard Kelly's Southland Tales, and voiced a young King Arthur in the
animated film Shrek the Third, released on May 18th, 2007. He also appeared
as a young Elton John, in the video for John's song, "This Train Don't Stop
There Anymore".
Meanwhile, he continued to record with other artists. After "Where Is The
Love?", he again collaborated with the Black Eyed Peas on the 2005 track "My
Style" from their album Monkey Business. Additionally, Timberlake was
featured on Nelly's song, "Work It", which was remixed and included on
Nelly's 2003 remix album. When recording the 2005 single "Signs" with Snoop
Dogg, Timberlake discovered a throat condition. Nodules were subsequently
removed from his throat[10] in an operation that took place on May 5, 2005.
He was advised not to sing or speak loudly for at least a few months. In the
summer of 2005, Timberlake started his own record company, JayTee Records.
2006–present: FutureSex/LoveSounds
Timberlake had a cameo in Nelly Furtado and Timbaland's video for her single
"Promiscuous". He released his second solo album, FutureSex/LoveSounds, on
September 12, 2006. The album, which Timberlake created in 2005,[11] debuted
in the number one position on the Billboard chart, selling 684,000 copies
its first week. The album is also the biggest album ever for pre-orders on
iTunes, and beat Coldplay's record for the biggest one-week sales of a
digital album. The album was produced by Timbaland and Danja (Who produced a
bulk of the album), will.i.am, Rick Rubin and Timberlake himself,[12] and
features guest vocals by Three 6 Mafia, T.I. and will.i.am. A studio
representative described it as being "all about sexiness" and aiming for "an
adult feel".[10] The album's lead single, "SexyBack", was performed by
Timberlake at the opening of the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards. It began
receiving radio and Internet play on July 7, 2006, and premiered at #90 on
the Billboard Hot 100 singles and by week nine it reached number one, where
it remained for seven consecutive weeks.[13] "My Love", the album's second
single, also produced by Timbaland and featuring rapper T.I., reached number
one on the Hot 100 for the week ending November 11, 2006. Timberlake
performed the album's third single "What Goes Around.../...Comes Around
Interlude" on the December 16, 2006 episode of Saturday Night Live, the same
week it debuted at #64 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song is reported to
have been inspired by the break-up of his childhood friend and business
partner Trace Ayala with actress Elisha Cuthbert.[14] In October of 2006,
Timberlake confirmed that he would focus on his music career rather than his
film roles, specifying that leaving the music industry would be a "dumb
thing to do at this point".[13] Justin was featured in the 2006 Victoria's
Secret Fashion Show for being the special guest performer. Timberlake
performed the first single SexyBack at the first part of the show, and later
performed a medley of My Love and LoveStoned/I Think She Knows. In January
2007, Timberlake embarked on the FutureSex/LoveShow tour. According to the
sweetescape.com, Summer Love/Set the Mood Prelude is confirmed to be his
fourth single off the album as it already has charted on the Pop 100 Airplay
at #1.[15] According to Justin's official UK site, the next single in the UK
is "LoveStoned/I Think She Knows Interlude".[16] The singles What Goes
Around.../...Comes Around Interlude, and Give It To Me also reached the nº 1
spot, The first just one week, and the latest two weeks atop The Billboard
Hot 100. In April 2007, Timberlake was seen entering a London studio with
Madonna, thus confirming rumors that he was collaborating with the pop star.
Justin revealed that "We actually wound up with 5 or 6 really good songs,
some finished, some unfinished, and we're gonna go back in July and finish
some more stuff." And asked if he would be singing with Madonna, he said,
"Possibly, yeah!"[17]
Other work
Timberlake has opened several restaurants in the United States. In 2005 he
launched the William Rast clothing line, sold in Bloomingdale's, with
childhood friend Trace Ayala. The 2007 line will contain cord jackets,
cashmere sweaters, jeans and polo shirts.[18] In 2004, ABC hired Timberlake
to write a song for its NBA coverage. In October of 2005, the Grammy
Association awarded Timberlake for humanitarian efforts in Tennessee,
alongside writer/director Craig Brewer, also a Memphis native.
Near the end of 2002, Timberlake was the first celebrity to appear on Punk'd,
a "candid camera" type show created by Ashton Kutcher to trick celebrities.
Three episodes later, he set up Kelly Osbourne to be "punk'd", thus making
him the first celebrity to appear on the show more than once. Timberlake
later spoofed Ashton Kutcher and Punk'd in a 2003 episode of NBC's Saturday
Night Live. In 2006 he hosted the European MTV Music Awards. On December 16,
2006, he hosted Saturday Night Live, doing double duty as both host and
musical guest for the second time. During this appearance, he and Andy
Samberg performed an R&B song for a skit entitled "Dick in a Box," which
some radio stations have aired as an unofficial single from Timberlake.
Apart from Nite Runner, Justin Timberlake are recording another track with
Duran Duran, called Falling Down.
Justin is gonna make an appearance in 50 Cent's third album Curtis with
Timbaland for a track called "She Want It", which it will be the album's
gourth single.[19]. Also, another possible collaboration will occur with Lil
Wayne for his upcoming album Tha Carter III with Nelly Furtado and Timbaland.
[20]
Personal life
Two early teen romances, first to a school sweetheart and then to aspiring
pop singer Veronica Finn predated intense media interest, but both ended
unhappily. Timberlake then entered a high-profile celebrity relationship
with fellow pop singer Britney Spears, with whom he had worked on the New
Mickey Mouse Club. This ended abruptly in March 2002, amidst allegations of
Spears' infidelity with choreographer Wade Robson, a mutual friend of Spears
and Timberlake. Lynn Harless says as a mother she too was devastated
regarding the break-up, but to this day speaks warmly of Spears, "Britney
grew up on my living room floor. I still love her to death. They (Justin and
Britney) were together 10 of 11 years and had, from day one, instant
chemistry between them. She's a sweet girl. I just hate what she's going
through now." The breakup influenced the lyrics and theme of Timberlake's
hit "Cry Me A River", one of the most popular singles from Justified.[21]
Timberlake later dated actress-dancer Jenna Dewan (in mid-2002) and
actress-singer Alyssa Milano (between September and October of 2002).
Timberlake began dating actress Cameron Diaz soon after they met at the
Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards in April 2003. Regular rumours of break-ups
reported in the tabloid press were invariably denied.[22][23] On the
December 16, 2006 episode of Saturday Night Live, Diaz introduced Timberlake
as the night's musical guest, and the couple actually did split up shortly
afterwards. They issued a joint statement on January 11, 2007:[24]
“ It has always been our preference not to comment on the status of our
relationship, but, out of respect for the time we've spent together, we feel
compelled to do so now, in light of recent speculation and the number of
inaccurate stories that are being reported by the media. We have, in fact,
ended our romantic relationship and have done so mutually and as friends,
with continued love and respect for one another.[25] ”
In January 2007, Timberlake was linked to Jessica Biel when pictures
surfaced of the two snowboarding in Park City, Utah during the Sundance Film
Festival. On May 12, 2007, the gossip was refueled with the release of
romantic pictures of Timberlake and Biel on multiple dates, specifically
caught kissing while dining in the UK accompanied by producer/mogul
Timbaland and the Manchester United footballer Alan Smith.[26][27]
Timberlake was given Sexiest Man titles by Teen People and Cosmopolitan
magazines.
Discography
Albums
* 2002: Justified
* 2006: FutureSex/LoveSounds
Solo singles
* 2002: "Like I Love You" (featuring Clipse) (#11 U.S.)
* 2002: "Cry Me a River"(#3 U.S.)
* 2003: "Rock Your Body"(#5 U.S.)
* 2003: "Señorita" (#27 U.S.)
* 2003: "I'm Lovin' It"
* 2006: "SexyBack" (featuring Timbaland) (#1 U.S.)
* 2006: "My Love" (featuring T.I.) (#1 U.S.)
* 2007: "What Goes Around...Comes Around" (#1 U.S.)
* 2007: "Summer Love" (#6 U.S.)
* 2007: "LoveStoned" (TBA)
* 2007: "Until the End of Time" (TBA)
Featured singles
* 2002: "Work It" (Nelly featuring Justin Timberlake)
* 2003: "Where is the Love?" (Black Eyed Peas featuring Justin Timberlake)
* 2005: "Signs" (Snoop Dogg featuring Charlie Wilson & Justin Timberlake)
* 2007: "Give It to Me" (Timbaland featuring Nelly Furtado & Justin
Timberlake)
* 2007: "Nite Runner" (Duran Duran featuring Justin Timberlake)
* 2007: "Crowd Control" (with Nelly Furtado)
* 2007: "She Want It" (50 Cent featuring Justin Timberlake & Timbaland)
Grammy Awards
Year Category Genre Title Result
2002 Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals Pop "My Kind Of Girl" (with Brian
McKnight) Nominated
2003 Best Rap/Sung Collaboration Rap "Like I Love You" (with Clipse)
Nominated
2004 Album of the Year General Justified Nominated
2004 Record of the Year General "Where Is The Love?" (with The Black Eyed
Peas) Nominated
2004 Best Rap/Sung Collaboration Rap "Where Is The Love?" (with The Black
Eyed Peas) Nominated
2004 Best Pop Vocal Album Pop Justified Won
2004 Best Male Pop Vocal Performance Pop "Cry Me A River" Won
2007 Album of the Year General FutureSex/LoveSounds Nominated
2007 Best Pop Vocal Album Pop FutureSex/LoveSounds Nominated
2007 Best Rap/Sung Collaboration Rap "My Love" (with T.I.) Won
2007 Best Dance Recording Dance "SexyBack" Won
Filmography
* Ice Age: A New Beginning (2009)
* Southland Tales (2008)
* Shrek the Third (2007)
* Black Snake Moan (2007)
* Alpha Dog (2006)
* Edison Force (2005)
* On the Line (2001)
* Model Behavior (2000)
Books
* Martin Roach, Justin Timberlake, The Unofficial Book, Virgin Books,
London, 2003.
* Sean Smith, Justin, The Biography, Simon & Schuster, UK, 2004.
Footnotes
1. ^ Date/location of birth Retrieved on April 29, 2007
2. ^ http://www.gm.tv/index.cfm?articleid=21993
3. ^ Adherents.com. The Religious Affiliation of Singer Justin Timberlake.
Retrieved on June 21, 2006.
4. ^ Lambert, Dan (2004). Teaching That Makes a Difference: How to Teach for
Holistic Impact. Zondervan, 11. ISBN0310252474.
5. ^ Billboard.com. 'N Sync Artist Biography. Retrieved on August 20, 2006.
6. ^ The Sunday Herald Interview Justin Timberlake 24 September 2006 ((c)
2006 Rolling Stone)
7. ^ DailyRecord.co.uk. THE COMIEBACKKID. Retrieved on June 21, 2006.
8. ^ Justin Timberlake the New Ronald McDonald
9. ^ CNN.com. Apologetic Jackson says costume reveal went awry. Retrieved on
June 21, 2006.
10. ^ a b SoFeminine.co.uk. Justin Timberlake's Sexy New Album. Retrieved on
June 21, 2006.
11. ^ USA Today. Timberlake, roommate Trace talk shop. Retrieved on October
13, 2006.
12. ^ ShowBuzz. Timberlake To Release His Lovesounds. Retrieved on June 21,
2006.
13. ^ a b News - Music, movie, Entertainment. TIMBERLAKE: "I WILL NEVER TAKE
A BREAK FROM MUSIC". Retrieved on October 13, 2006.
14. ^ http://www.popdirt.com/article55777.html
15. ^ http://www.thesweetescape.blogspot.com/
16. ^ http://www.justintimberlakeuk.com
17. ^ [1]
18. ^ USA Today. Timberlake's gear on racks, runway. Retrieved on October
13, 2006.
19. ^ 50 Cent's fourth single will be "She Want It", formerly known as "AYO
Technology"
20. ^ Shaheem Reid, Jayson Rodriguez and Rahman Dukes. "Lil Wayne Plans His
Own Leak", MTV.com : Mixtape Monday, 2007-06-11.
21. ^ Sean Smith, Justin, The Biography, Simon & Schuster, UK, 2004
22. ^ National Ledger. Justin Timberlake & Cameron Diaz Pal Addresses Rumors
of Demise. Retrieved on June 23, 2006.
23. ^ People Magazine. Justin and Cameron: Still Going Strong. Retrieved on
June 24, 2006.
24. ^ http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,1142562,00.html
25. ^ http://www.usatoday.com/life/people/2007-01-11-timberlake-diaz_x.htm?csp=34
26. ^ http://www.tmz.com/2007/05/16/justin-sneaks-in-with-jessica-biel/
27. ^ http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/showbiz/showbiznews.html?in_article_id=455197&in_page_id=1773
read the
copyright
|