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Travis Kelce‘s dad is recently converted Swiftie — to the extent that he actually didn’t recognize Taylor Swift when he first met her. “When Travis has a lot of friends coming into town to the game, everyone meets at his house, although he’s not there,” Ed Kelce told Audacy’s 92.3 The Fan this week. “Taylor […]
If a glance at the iTunes pop charts on Friday morning (Jan. 26) had you seeing double you can thank Britney Spears fans. The Britney Army has marshalled their collective might to push her deep cut 2011 Femme Fatale bonus track “Selfish” into the top 5 of the U.S. iTunes top 40 singles chart less than 24 hours after long-ago ex Justin Timberlake released his new single of the same name.
At press time JT’s song — which was released Thursday morning — is at the top of the iTunes tally in the U.S., with Spears’ track just behind at No. 2; Brit’s “Selfish” has topped the iTunes pop chart in a number of other territories, including Canada, Mexico and Brazil, among others. The digital chess move was inspired by a raft of social media activity on Thursday urging Britney fans to stream her song in an apparent attempt to tamp down first-week streaming figures for the first single from Timberlake’s upcoming sixth album, Everything I Thought It Was.
On X, Britney’s Army have chronicled how some radio stations in the U.S. have also begun spinning her “Selfish” thanks to the attention on the song produced by Stargate, Kuk Harrell and Sandy Vee. The trolling effort came just as Timberlake began promoting his first solo single since 2018’s “SoulMate” and at press time neither Spears nor Timberlake appear to have responded to the quickly-spreading global guerrilla iTunes chart goosing, which has also included Brit’s tune being added to the Spotify “Obsessed” playlist.
While Spears announced earlier this month that she “never” plans to return to the music business, the two singers will forever be entwined in their fans’ minds due to their dating history in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The pair were pop royalty at the time, with Spears writing in her 2023 The Woman in Me tell-all memoir that she had an abortion while they were dating because Timberlake “definitely wasn’t happy about pregnancy.”
Timberlake didn’t respond to the allegations in the book about his alleged behavior during their relationship, but he did turn off comments on his Instagram after it was flooded with angry comments from Britney’s supporters. Justin did appear to allude to the firestorm during a Las Vegas show in December, where he told a crowd he meant “no disrespect” before playing his 2002 solo hit “Cry Me a River,” widely seen as a commentary on the couple’s March 2002 split after three years together.
Timberlake also apologized to Spears — and Janet Jackson — in 2021, a week after Hulu aired the doc Framing Britney Spears, writing on Instagram, “I have seen the messages, tags, comments, and concerns and I want to respond. I am deeply sorry for the times in my life where my actions contributed to the problem, where I spoke out of turn, or did not speak up for what was right. I specifically want to apologize to Britney Spears and Janet Jackson both individually, because I care for and respect these women and I know I failed.”
The tumult comes as Timberlake is in full promo mode, fresh off a visit to friendly climes of The Tonight Show on Thursday night before heading to the equally warm embrace of Saturday Night Live this weekend as the musical guest on the show he’s hosted five times; Timberlake also has a free show at New York’s 1,100-capacity Irving Place on Jan. 31, his 43rd birthday.
Check out some of the tweets from Spears’ fan promoting the “Selfish” skirmish.
Britney nerds unite! Selfish by Britney Spears, off 2011’s Femme Fatale, has entered the top 5 on US iTunes, 13 years after its release, and has reached #1 on iTunes in 9 countries so far. It’s a move to overshadow Justin Timberlake’s new song of the same name. iTunes Charts:… pic.twitter.com/wEGGiZS7Ka— BreatheHeavy (@breatheheavycom) January 26, 2024
All those hours building with Lego before he was famous has really paid off for Pharrell Williams. In fact, the two-time Oscar winning singer/songwriter/producer is parlaying his childhood fascination with the colorful bricks into the building blocks of his upcoming biopic, Piece by Piece.
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“Who would’ve thought that playing with Legos as a kid would evolve into a movie about my life,” Williams said in an Instagram post on Friday morning (Jan. 26). “It’s proof that anyone else can do it too,” he added along with a hashtag for the title of the film.
Pharrell further hyped the movie due out on Oct. 11 with an accompanying man’s march of progress illustration, except make it Lego, with blocky Williams evolving from a single flat 1×1 plate to a 1×1 brick, a golden minifigure and, finally, a camo-wearing minifig in the 13-time Grammy winner’s image.
A release from Focus Features announcing the film directed by Oscar-winner Morgan Neville (20 Feet From Stardom) describes the movie as an “unparalleled motion picture experience that captures the magic and brilliance of Pharrell Williams’ creative genius, one LEGO® brick at a time. Uninterested in making a traditional film about his life, Pharrell set out to tell his story in a way that would set audience’s imaginations free. Developed from his singular vision, Piece by Piece defies genres and expectations to transport audiences into a LEGO world where anything is possible.”
Neville is also a co-producer on the movie along with producer Caitrin Rogers, Williams, Mimi Valdés and Shani Saxon of Pharrell’s i am OTHER label/creative collective. Jill Wilfert and Keith Malone are executive producing for the LEGO Group.
“Five years ago, Pharrell Williams approached me with the idea of helping him tell his story through LEGO animation,” director Neville said in a statement. “It was one of those rare moments where I knew in a second that this was a journey I wanted to go on. I’m grateful to our partners at Focus Features and at the LEGO Group for their belief in our crazy mission. We assembled an incredible team of creative collaborators to help make a new type of film. I can’t wait for people to see it.”
Williams added that when he had “this crazy vision” to tell his story via LEGO, he could not have imagined a better partner than Neville. “He is a legend,” said Williams. “Grateful that Focus wanted to collaborate with us and I’m honored to share this with the world and bring people into my universe. Building with LEGO bricks encourages us to follow our imagination.”
See Pharrell’s post below.
When Miley Cyrus’ “Flowers” debuted in January 2023, it topped the Billboard Hot 100 — and remained there for eight weeks. The album it introduced, Endless Summer Vacation (her eighth full-length and first on Columbia Records), went on to hit No. 3 on the Billboard 200. And a year later, the single and album both remain forces: At the upcoming Grammys, Cyrus (who has yet to win one) has six nominations, including song and record of the year nods for “Flowers” and an album of the year nod for Endless Summer Vacation.
Many of her closest album collaborators spoke to Billboard about how they came to take this creative trip with her — and why her Grammy recognition is long overdue.
All Aboard!
Mike WiLL Made-It, writer-producer: Since we’ve made so many hits over the years, Miley approached me and said she wanted me involved — she felt like this was going to be her best work yet. She has already explored so many different sounds, and she’s really on her songwriting. It’s always dope to work with her because she’s constantly pushing the envelope.
Michael Pollack, writer-producer: Miley and I had done a few writing sessions in 2021 with no real mention of an album. It wasn’t until we got back in the studio in January of 2022 that the momentum seemed to pick up and I started to notice Miley assembling Endless Summer Vacation.
Tyler Johnson, writer-producer: I think it was just part of being in the system after working on the Harry [Styles album Harry’s House]. And Miley’s team and our team — myself and Kid Harpoon’s teams — wanted to make it happen. We got together for a week at NightBird Studios [in Los Angeles] and wrote the song “Wildcard” and started our relationship with Miley. Six months later, after she heard some music that we had been working on with Kevin Abstract, she came over to do a potential feature on one of the songs.
Kid Harpoon, writer-producer: I’ve always been a fan. I just fanboy when she’s singing. When we [reconnected], she had some songs she liked but she didn’t have a production direction on them. The big thing for her was, “I want to make an album I’m proud of.”
Tobias Jesso Jr., writer: I ran into [Columbia CEO] Ron Perry at Adele [One Night Only] at Griffith [Observatory in L.A.]. He was like, “Hey, I’d really like to get you involved in this Miley thing.” In this particular session, I knew why Ron wanted me there: He wanted me to write a song on the piano with Miley. As soon as all the writers were there — Mike WiLL Made-It, Bibi Bourelly and me and Miley — I was like, “Why don’t we go to the piano and just try some stuff?” I think within 30 minutes, “Thousand Miles” was written.
Tobias Jesso Jr.
Justin Chung
Tyler Johnson
Cedrick Jones
Greg Kurstin, writer-producer: Ron Perry and [Miley’s co-manager] Jonathan Daniel both reached out to me about Miley. We initially got together to write songs and “Jaded” came out of one of our sessions with [writer] Sarah Aarons. We spent a lot of time at my studio. Miley is great to work with because she has a clear vision of what she wants and she doesn’t stop until she gets it. She’s also a lot of fun.
Caitlyn Smith, writer: Since Miley cut our song “High” on her 2020 Plastic Hearts record, she and my co-writer, Jenn Decilveo, had been texting about the three of us getting together and writing a bit for her next record. It was a last-minute “Want to write this week?” in April of last year that led to a day in the studio.
Jenn Decilveo, writer: [Miley] sent me this idea, and then we got together with my friend BJ [Burton] and Caitlyn, and that was the start of “Island.” I think it was at Larrabee in the Valley [in L.A.] — 1-2-3 done. She’s such an incredible songwriter and had so much input melodically, lyrically, productionwise. She was involved in every aspect.
Maxx Morando, writer-producer: We were just hanging out, and I was working on stuff and she was working on stuff, and she heard the instrumental version of “Handstand” and was like, “Oh, I have an idea for the vocal.” I made [it] during COVID-19 — and I don’t even smoke that much weed, but I think I was really high when I made it.
Gregory “Aldae” Hein, writer: [Columbia Records head of A&R Rani Hancock] was a cheerleader for Miley to work with me. Ron Perry FaceTimed me and was like, “Hey, we’re going to bring you in with Miley. This is what we want from you.” I went in with her and it was just instant chemistry. The first day we ever worked [together], we wrote “Used To Be Young” in less than an hour.
Mike WiLL Made-It
Cam Kirk
Michael Pollack
Nesrin Danan
Stopping To Smell The “Flowers”
Pollack: “Flowers” was written in January of 2022 during a week of sessions at Sunset Sound [in L.A.]. The song came together organically, being written in its entirety at the piano. Initially the idea was slower and sadder, but both Greg [Hein] and Miley had the vision to make the song positive and free-spirited. We demo’d the song on Rhodes [piano] and left thinking it was a ballad — or at least I did. Almost immediately after, I remember being told, “ ‘Flowers’ is going to be the first single and it’s going to be produced out as an uptempo.”
Hein: Miley randomly texted us almost a year later, like, “Hey, just so you guys know, you have my first single.” Then she invited me to the music video shoot and I saw the scene where she walks up in the gold dress and I was like, “Oh, this is going to be a thing.”
Johnson: Ron Perry was really leading the charge of making sure “Flowers” and “Used To Be Young” were right. Those songs were definitely the priority, especially “Flowers.” But while we were working on that, we were doing other records, and it was actually [album track] “Rose Colored Lenses” that helped us gel.
Kid Harpoon: “Rose Colored Lenses” isn’t necessarily anything single-y, but we just loved it. Those songs are the soul of the record. “Rose Colored” was always the one that felt like the touchstone, but making sure that “Flowers” did its job in relation to that was important.
Johnson: It’s important for artists like Miley to have a level of autobiographical texture to their songs. Then you mix that with something people can move to, that feels new and retro at the same time, and it’s a really powerful cocktail.
Hein: It all comes down to, “I can love me better than you can.” That’s the all-encompassing lyric to me. I was in a city just now called Siguatepeque in Honduras and I was driving to meet a priest for my wedding coming up and there was no music playing in this city but “Flowers.” That one’s reach is just crazy.
Maxx Morando
Eva Pentel
Kid Harpoon
Josiah Van Dien
Vacation Scrapbook
Smith: Miley arrived at the studio wanting to write this idea called “Island.” She talked to us about how being in the spotlight since she was a kid has put her on a bit of an island from the rest of the world and how it’s beautiful but, at times, can be really lonely. I’m obsessed with the hook: “Am I stranded on an island or have I landed in paradise?”
Decilveo: I love that line, which is one she wrote, which I think sums it up. Being uber successful, uber everything — is it paradise, or are you stranded alone? Not being able to go out because you’re so famous and you can’t go to Trader Joe’s because people won’t let you walk down the aisles like a normal person.
Smith: Also, Miley’s mom came by for a bit that day, and she had told us about this “Smoke ’Em If Ya Got ’Em” hat that she had bought. Later that day, we thought it would be a great line to put in the song.
Jesso: I love [on “Thousand Miles”] how country she gets on “Pick up the phone and I call back home, but all I get is a dial tone. And instead of hangin’ up, I hang my head.” It was really cool to see Mike WiLL Made-It be part of that too, because it’s not something you imagine, but he was so into it.
Mike WiLL Made-It: Miley took the song and switched the direction. I was already married to what we made but she took it to Grammy collaboration level. She got Brandi [Carlile] on the song and that was the piece that was missing. That’s how we ended up with the banger “Thousand Miles” we hear today before every Delta flight.
Morando: For “Violet Chemistry,” [Miley] was like, “Do you think you could add some sauce into this song and spice it up?” [My friend Max Taylor-Sheppard and I] thought, “What if we did some Erykah Badu bridge with a stinky bassline and something crazy?” It happened in maybe 15 minutes. We like the idea of throwing a wrench in something — a tasteful wrench.
Kid Harpoon: They’re very similar, Miley and Harry [Styles]. They’re giant pop icons, but their process is like an indie kid that just wants to have fun and doesn’t really give a sh-t about all the pop stuff. They just want to make something creative, so for those kinds of brains, going in and trying to write a pop hit is going to completely destroy all their fun. Me and Tyler [engineered] an environment in the studio where you can just do whatever the f–k you want.
Jesso: Even if you had a day session with Miley, it wouldn’t feel like a day session because she gets real so quick. She has just been so exposed in her life that she’s like, “What have I got to lose?” That’s a very fertile place for creativity to live. You feel a jolt of this creative energy from her, almost at all times. It’s sporadic and it’s crazy and it’s wild — but it’s the best kind.
Jennifer Decilveo
Brantley Gutierrez
Greg Kurstin photographed on November 28, 2022 in Los Angeles.
Austin Hargrave
Destination: Grammys
Smith: She seems to have arrived at a place in her life and her career where she doesn’t want to chase but simply create from the heart. I remember her talking about how even though she was successful and had reached this place and level in her career, it still felt like a treadmill, and she still felt like she was always “chasing the carrot.” She seems to have entered a season of life where she has found some peace and clarity. I think it shows in this record.
Pollack: Over the years we’ve seen so many sides to Miley and her music. Endless Summer Vacation is a representation of what all those elements look like when they come together.
Morando: This has been a long time coming for her. Endless Summer Vacation is a fantastic album; on top of that you have her whole career and everything that she has done before. Now [she’s] at this pinnacle.
Hein: It’s her most mature body of work.
Mike WiLL Made-It: This is the year where she wins album of the year after all the growth and hard work. This album, she found and unlocked another sound, that poster-girl Miley sound that no one can replicate.
Caitlyn Smith
Robert Chavers
Gregory “Aldae” Hein
Sylvain Photos
Jesso: [2013’s] Bangerz was robbed. The Grammys need prison for Bangerz not being nominated for album of the year. Aside from that, I think it’s time for her to get what’s due.
Kid Harpoon: I still love Bangerz. It’s a classic. The thing I’ve always felt with Miley is that everyone wants Miley to win. She represents that part of everyone who doesn’t give a f–k and just wants to enjoy their life. I think this is a culmination of years and years of just being an absolute boss. People think, “Oh, someone writes Miley’s songs,” or “someone tells her where to stand, someone does this, and the record label says this,” but it’s not like that, and it’s a narrative that I just don’t think is helpful. And someone like Taylor [Swift], she’s helped change that narrative. That’s why I’m proud of Miley, because the Grammys will mean more, in a way, [now]. [A Grammy win is] recognition by your creative peers that you created this, and she really did.
Johnson: Without the Grammy, people are [still] singing the song. People are living their lives to this music. That’s the point of it. Grammys are a reflection of that already achieved milestone. We’ve already won — this would just be a bonus.
This story will appear in the Jan. 27, 2024, issue of Billboard.
“Shellback was bored,” ILYA says, reflecting on how he and the Swedish hit-maker ended up working together for the first time — ultimately changing the course of his career. Having grown up in what he calls “the hood of Sweden,” ILYA’s discovery of music production was a bit of a surprise — quite literally, as he found a CD of the music-making program Dance eJay in a cereal box. From there, he says, he “fell in love with creating.”
By his late teens, in 2005, ILYA signed a publishing deal with Warner Chappell Music and remembers “grinding, grinding, grinding… with not a lot happening.” Several years later, he met Shellback (Britney Spears, P!nk, Taylor Swift), who eventually asked ILYA what he was working on, and later suggested to his close collaborator Max Martin that they should all team up. “Coming up to that point, I had a lot of almosts,” recalls ILYA, now 37. “I had songs with One Direction that just fell off and didn’t make the albums. All those years were so important to learn how to act in the room, how to deal with people’s emotions and all these things leading up to when I got the shot from Shellback and Max.”
Almost immediately, ILYA scored a major win as a co-producer and co-writer on Ariana Grande and Iggy Azalea’s 2014 smash, “Problem,” which hit No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100. “Every time I make music today, I try to channel the energy I had when we did ‘Problem,’ ” says ILYA, who has continued his relationship with Grande for a decade, leading into her current era. “Making that beat, it was like, ‘I’m just going to do me.’ And when that success finally happened… It was unbelievable.”
Ariana Grande, “Yes, And?”
“This whole song was her idea — she had a vision. I remember we were going through chords and she was like, ‘It needs to be more confident. It has to be more sassy.’ When Ari’s describing an emotion she wants to have, I instantly go, ‘What sounds can make that emotion come to life?’ And to me, the 909 drums are what that vibe is. In the bridge there are all these funny Mellotron sounds that are really ’60s, Beatles-esque, and a flute that Max played that I laugh at every time I hear it. Once we finished it, that’s when I fell in love with it.”
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Tate McRae, “Guilty Conscience”
“The first time I worked with [Tate] she seemed very unsure of everything. There was one song we did so many versions of because she couldn’t decide which one was the best. But I think growing up, she feels much more confident in what she likes, which helps me a lot. I’ve never finished a song as fast as this one… it was all her initiative. We wrote it and then had to turn it in that week or the week after. Everything [came] from whatever happened that day.”
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Conan Gray, “Never Ending Song”
“Conan started working with Max for a few days and they cracked this sonic direction, but not the details. And then Max came to me and was like, ‘Conan would love to work with you for this next round.’ Once the song was done, [Max and I] spent a lot of time running stuff through analog gear. Sometimes it’s cool if a song sounds like it’s made quickly — but the details and tasteful stuff that you can get from analog gear, you can’t beat that.”
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This story will appear in the Jan. 27, 2024, issue of Billboard.
Billboard’s Friday Music Guide serves as a handy guide to this Friday’s most essential releases — the key music that everyone will be talking about today, and that will be dominating playlists this weekend and beyond.
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This week, Justin Timberlake returns still looking out for number one, Ice Spice gets lightly scatological and Megan Thee Stallion becomes Megan Thee Rattlesnake for one particularly venomous diss track. Check out all of this week’s picks below:
Justin Timberlake, “Selfish”
It hasn’t been the easiest half-decade of Justin Timberlake’s career, following 2018’s poorly received Man of the Woods album and some very public relitigation of his old behavior in his personal relationship with Britney Spears and professional relationship with Janet Jackson. But with a catalog and legacy like he has, a new Timberlake project is still going to command some degree of attention — and we’ll see just how much with the release of “Selfish,” single from his upcoming Everything I Thought It Was album. Despite the title, the song is actually much more unassuming than his usual lead singles: a honeyed, ornately produced mid-tempo ballad built on warmly groaning organs and a bossa nova drum machine. “If I get jealous, I can’t help it/ I want every bit of you, I guess I’m selfish,” JT sings on the chorus — not exactly a brand-new sentiment, but one sweet enough to really get up much hate for.
Megan Thee Stallion, “Hiss”
The song that your entire social media feed is buzzing — fine, hissing — about this morning is almost certainly Megan Thee Stallion’s take-no-prisoners latest. “I just wanna kick this s–t off by saying f–k y’all,” Megan proclaims to begin “Hiss.” “I’m finna get this s–t of my chest and lay it to rest.” Megan then spends the next three minutes spitting venomous bars against her haters and rivals, including rhymes about BBLs and Megan’s Law, which have been largely interpreted by fans online to be about Drake and Nicki Minaj’s husband Kenneth Petty, respectively. (Nicki Minaj seemingly responded on IG Live this morning with bars of her own.) Regardless of intended targets, though, the song contains some of the fieriest rapping of Megan’s career, and seems likely to recenter her in the hip-hop conversation for early 2024.
Ice Spice, “Think U the Shit (Fart)”
Ice Spice basically dominated 2023 from January on, so it’s not shocking she’d try to get in early on 2024 as well. “Think” is a bit of a left turn for her — go-to producer RIOTUSA replaces her usual drill beats and pop-leaning hooks with Jersey Club thumps and bleating synths, sounding like a cousin of 41’s underground smash “Bent” from last year. Ice’s vocals put a lot of stock in the questionable chorus rejoinder, “Think you the s–t?/ You not even a fart,” but goes a little harder on the verses, spitting, “I’m a pretty b–ch, I don’t like fightin’/ On the beat, I’m goin’ Super Saiyan.” We’ll see if it’s enough to keep her 2023-long hot streak on the charts cooking into 2024.
Lil Nas X, “Where Do We Go Now?”
Lil Nas X: Long Live Montero, the first full-length documentary about Lil Nas X, debuts on MAX this Saturday (Jan. 27). We wrote about our biggest takeaways from the doc here, but while fans wait to get their first look at the doc, Lil Nas has gifted them with another new song (following “J Christ” from two weeks ago): “Where Do We Go Now?” The pop-rock power ballad is written with and produced by LNX’s star’s go-to collaborators, Blake Slatkin and Omer Fedi, and feels like very natural new sonic and thematic territory for the genre-blending star, as he pleads “I just wanna be somebody new inside” over tender guitars and racing drums.
Morgan Wallen, “Spin You Around (1/24)”
Call it a Morgan’s Version: Country superstar Morgan Wallen announced last night on social media that he would be releasing a new version of his 2015 early-career recording “Spin You Around” this Friday. Why now? Because it’s not the only new release you’ll see posted on his artist page this morning: Stand Alone, parent EP to “Spin You Around,” has also been re-released in a 13-track “10th Anniversary Deluxe Edition” (despite having come out nine years ago), featuring eight previously unreleased songs — all against Wallen’s wishes. “I cringe when I listen to these songs & I’m very concerned my fans may mistakenly believe this is a new release by me,” he explained.
So to hopefully direct fans away from the unapproved new re-release, he’s re-recorded the fan favorite as a stripped-down acoustic ballad, subtitled with today’s date and given the cover-art note “had to leave the duck woods to make this.” It’s a lovely new version of the love song — which despite its rough-draft quality, does sound decently in line with more recent Wallen recordings — and it wouldn’t be shocking to see it become a new-old hit for Wallen, much like some of those Taylor’s Versions have the past couple years.
The Smile, Wall of Eyes
Apart from the huge pop, rap and country releases of this Friday, there’s also the less-top-40-friendly (but equally anticipated in some corners) new sophomore album from rock supergroup The Smile, led by Radiohead duo Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood. The eight-track new set features more blends of knotty art-rock melodies, psychedelic instrumental flourishes, Krautrock grooves and alt-funk jams, and has already attracted some of the early year’s strongest critical notices, including a Best New Music designation in Pitchfork.
Just hours after teasing his return to the stage on Thursday night’s (Jan. 25) Tonight Show, Justin Timberlake rolled out the dates for his first tour in five years. The first leg of JT’s Forget Tomorrow World Tour will include 22 North American dates, kicking off on April 29 with a show at Rogers Arena in Vancouver.
The Live Nation-produced arena outing will take Timberlake from coast-to-coast, hitting Seattle, San Jose, Las Vegas, San Diego, Phoenix, Atlanta, Tampa, Miami, Chicago, New York, Boston and Cleveland before winding down with a July 9 show at Rupp Arena in Lexington, KY.
The dates will support Timberlake’s upcoming sixth solo album, Everything I Thought It Was, which features his moody new R&B single, “Selfish.” The new album — Timberlake’s follow-up to his earthy 2018 Man of the Woods LP — is due out on March 15.
There is a Citi presale for the tour that kicks off in the U.s. beginning Jan. 30 at 10 a.m. local time until Feb. 1 at 5 p.m. local time here, with a Verizon presale slated through Verizon Up beginning Jan. 30 at 10 a.m. local time until Feb. 1 at 5 p.m. local time here. Tickets for the North American tour will be available beginning with a fan presale starting Jan. 29, with existing fan club members receiving a unique email code, followed by the general onsale kicking off on Feb. 2 at 10 a.m. local time here.
Check out the dates for Justin Timberlake’s 2024 North American leg of the Forget Tomorrow World Tour below.
April 29 – Vancouver, BC @ Rogers Arena
May 2 – Seattle, WA @ Climate Pledge Arena
May 6 – San Jose, CA @ SAP Center at San Jose
May 10 – Las Vegas, NV @ T-Mobile Arena*
May 14 – San Diego, CA @ Pechanga Arena San Diego*
May 17 – Inglewood, CA @ Kia Forum
May 21 – Phoenix, AZ @ Footprint Center
May 29 – San Antonio, TX @ Frost Bank Center
May 31 – Austin, TX @ Moody Center
June 4 – Fort Worth, TX @ Dickies Arena
June 6 – Tulsa, OK @ BOK Center
June 10 – Atlanta, GA @ State Farm Arena
June 12 – Raleigh, NC @ PNC Arena
June 14 – Tampa, FL @ Amalie Arena
June 15 – Miami, FL @ Kaseya Center
June 21 – Chicago, IL @ United Center
June 25 – New York, NY @ Madison Square Garden
June 29 – Boston, MA @ TD Garden
July 3 – Baltimore, MD @ CFG Bank Arena
July 4 – Hershey, PA @ Hersheypark Stadium
July 7 – Cleveland, OH @ Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse*
July 9 – Lexington, KY @ Rupp Arena
*Verizon Up Presale Not Applicable
Justin Timberlake spent four years recording upcoming Everything I Thought It Was album, so it’s no surprise that the “Selfish” singer had some energy to spare when he jumped on the couch on Thursday night’s (Jan. 25) Tonight Show. From his sprinting up to the cheap seats rumba line entrance with old pal host Jimmy Fallon, to a greatest hits run classroom instruments bit, Timberlake seemed eager to kick off his EITIW era after several years of being mostly off the radar.
Introducing JT at the top of the show, Fallon went on an extended news-inspired riff in the opening monologue ticking off just how close the pair are. “He is the Taylor to my Travis,” Fallon joked. “He’s the missing bolt to my Boeing plane… He’s the recall to my exploding Tesla… Yeah, he and I are besties. We got together like a soccer mom and a Stanley tumbler… That’s right, we’re quite a team. Think of us like Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, but with chemistry… I’m so glad he’s here. Last week when it slowed a little in New York, I looked at the grass and I saw those frosted tips and I thought, ‘I should call Justin.’”
The pair then crammed into the Tonight Show schoolroom for a round of Classroom Instruments, with the Roots gathered around as Timberlake struck a triangle to kick off a funky, unplugged version of his just-released new single, “Selfish.” They only got a verse in, though, before diving into a quick-hit run through JT’s solo catalog of hits, pivoting to a snippet of hip-swiveling “Señorita,” before jumping into “SexyBack,” “My Love,” “Suit & Tie,” “Rock Your Body,” and a raucous “Can’t Stop the Feeling.”
Timberlake, 42, made a proper entrance by roping Fallon into doing a dance up the steps into the audience and then busting some disco moves before hoofing it back down to the stage and declaring himself “exhausted.” Fallon said he’d never seen anyone work harder on anything than Timberlake did on EITIW, describing Timberlake’s work ethic in the studio, while Justin copped to how strange it was to be explaining the new album’s origin to Jimmy, with whom he said he’s already discussed it ad nauseam in private.
“I feel like we’ve already had this conversation, but we have to have it so you guys can hear the story,” Timberlake said, of the difficulty of recording during the pandemic, having his second son, Phinneas, with wife Jessica Biel, and tracking 100 songs over different runs across several years. In describing the sound, Timberlake suggested that the Tonight Show should have a spin-off called Jimmy Fallon Listens to Your Album.
Timberlake then described what a kick he got out of watching Fallon listening to the album. “What was I doing?” Fallon asked in perfect rehearsed confusion. “A lot,” Timberlake laughed, as Jimmy described himself as totally “cool” and “chillin’ out” in the studio. Justin then proceeded to jump on the couch and channel Fallon by shouting “what is this song?!” “OH! What?!,” “OH My GOD!” before busting out some goofy dance moves.
JT also revealed the upcoming Forget Tomorrow World tour, which kicks off April 29th in Vancouver, with stops in Seattle, Phoenix, Fort Worth, Raleigh, Miami and New York, with dates and venues to announced soon.
The segment ended with Fallon recalling an unlikely bunker shot he nailed while playing at Timberlake’s 8AM Golf Invitational tournament last year, where the friends were paired with Kansas City Chiefs dynamic duo Travis Kelce and QB Patrick Mahomes. Jimmy described Timberlake giving him some meticulous swing advice, before cueing up the video of Fallon sinking the shot and getting lifted up into the air by an overjoyed Kelce.
It got better, though. In an extended view of the special moment, after Timberlake sprinted around in circles, he made his way over to congratulate the two and Justin said that was nearly the end of him. “Travis Kelce almost… I saw my life flash before my eyes,” Timberlake said of his abject fear when jumping up to do a hip bump with the 250-pound NFL tight end.
“I was like, ‘he’s doing it! I have to do it!,’” Timberlake recalled thinking, forgetting that the professional baller has about 80 pounds on him. As the tape kept rolling, it showed Kelce hip-checking Timberlake flat onto his sexy back on the green.
Timberlake will be back as the musical guest on Saturday Night Live this weekend and will play a free show at 1,100-capacity Irving Plaza in New York on Jan. 31.
Watch Timberlake on The Tonight Show below.
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First the single, then the album, now Justin Timberlake completes his solo return with confirmation of a world tour.
The former boybander announced the big news when he stopped by The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, for a stint surfing the guest couch.
The Forget Tomorrow World Tour will support JT’s forthcoming collection Everything I Thought It Was, his first solo album release in more than six years.
Due out March 15, EITIW is Timberlake’s sixth studio LP, and the followup to Man of the Woods which peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 following its release in February 2018, for his fourth consecutive solo leader.
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As a warm-up, the pop singer will play a small-capacity show in New York on Wednesday, Jan. 31, the 1,100-capacity Irving Plaza.
Fallon teased the touring news out of JT, in a totally above-board, pre-rehearsed kind of way.
Was there anything more to announce, the late-night show host prompted his musical guest? Well, yes, “we are still putting the setlist together for Irving Plaza,” noted Timberlake.
But wait, there was more.
“I’m going on tour,” was the dry response.
The 10-time Grammy Award winner gave fans a taste of things to come earlier this week with the release of “Selfish,” the first cut from EITIW. He’ll be back on our screens when he serves as musical guest on Saturday Night Live this weekend, with Dakota Johnson hosting.
Though his solo music career has been in deep freeze, Timberlake did return to his boy band roots last year when he reunited with *NSYNC for “Better Place,” which accompanied the JT-starring animated family film Trolls Band Together. The track started at No. 25, for *NSYNC’s lucky 13th appearance on the Billboard Hot 100 and first appearance on the tally since “Girlfriend” featuring Nelly reached No. 5 — way back in 2002.
As a solo artist, Timberlake has landed 19 titles in the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100, including five No. 1s.
Details of the Forget Tomorrow World Tour have yet to be announced. Watch the big reveal on Fallon’s late-night show below.
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