Justin Timberlake talks to Craig McLean about making
music, why he feels at home in Hollywood and all those rumours about Cameron, Britney and Scarlett
ustin Timberlake is all over the place. He’s
traversing the world with the nine-month—
long FutureSm/lx)veShmv tour. an in-the— round extravaganza of singing, dancing, panto sex moves. human beatboxing and tequila- drinking (in the course of the show. Timberlake does all of these). He’s preparing for the European launch of his clothing line William Rast (named after the grandfathers of he and his childhood friend and business partner Trace Ayala). The tune that he and Pharrell Williams co-authored for McDonalds. ‘I’m Lovin’ It’. is the advertising jingle that refuses to die. In collaboration with producer Timbaland he’s been writing for Rihanna. 50 Cent and Jay-Z. and is the secret guest on the recent Macy Gray album. He’s starting up his own record label called Tennman (because he’s a Tennessee man).
And of course. he’s all over the media. The headlines come thick and fast and (more often than not) unsubstantiated. He’s broken up with Cameron Diaz. He’s reportedly seeing Scarlett Johansson. whom he snogged in the epic. quasi- cinematic video for recent single “What Goes Around’. Said song. with its lyrics about a
cheating girl getting her comeuppance, is allegedly his revenge on fonner girlfriend Britney Spears. No. wait. he’s not seeing Scarlett, he’s seeing Britney again. giving her comfort in her hour of baldness; a ‘friend’ said so. Ah but, his speech at February’s Grammys. in which he advised against drinking too much (‘you know who you are!’) was his finger-wagging riposte to the troubled Ms Spears.
And so on . . . In conversation, Timberlake. the epitome of Southern manners, is polite and restrained at the best of times. But no wonder he's super-cagey in these days of spurious, furious tabloid storms. Being misunderstood or misquoted gives him the serious heebie-jeebies. Even superstars get the blues.
‘It’s weird. I gotta be honest with you man.’ he sighs. ‘And it’s funny how much of it gets so blown up. so much of it. It’s interesting to me. And I’ve talked to people about it — I’ve talked to Chris Martin and Jay-Z about it — it’s one of those things. it’s unexplainable, you don’t know how it happens. You do an interview and it gets published and there’s a little piece of something you said that’s been taken from here and moved
The loves and lives of a trousersnake
Just how do the ebbs and flows of Justin’s career compare with the ups and downs in his love life? Mark Robertson takes a look
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Joins the cast of children’s television show Mickey Mouse Club, aged 12
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Model Behaviour
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Performs “Like I Love You’ at the
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JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE
there . . . You get to the point where you’re like. people hear what they wanna hear. So what am I gonna do about it? I can’t do anything about it.’
Chris Martin becomes defined as the yoga- Ioving rock guy. ‘Right, exactly. It's interesting how stereotypical stereotyping is. Oh. “she’s crazy”. Or “she’s addicted”. Or “he’s soft”. “She’s gay”. It just becomes the headline. People don’t read the details. they read the headlines, and they look at the pictures.’
Never mind, Timberlake has plenty other distractions to keep him busy. This year the former boyband member-tumed-serious player is all over the movies too. This summer he supplies the voice of the young King Arthur in Shrek The Third. He has been widely praised for his performance in this month’s indie film Alpha Dog, a true story about a gang of drug-taking Californian teens, playing the slang-spouting Frankie. ‘Frankie is probably the biggest “smack” talker in the group. so if that’s not fun to play, then I don’t know what is.’ says Timberlake of the role. Next month the Memphis native goes home, sort of, when he appears in steamy Tennessee-set drama Black Snake Moan. playing the soldier boyfriend of ‘town tramp’ Christina Ricci.
‘The beautiful thing about Justin is that he’s not just some guy who’s come out of music, who is trying acting as a thing to do,’ says Black Snake Moan producer John Singleton (director of Boy: N The Hood). ‘I think he’s really serious about it as a craft. and I love his performance in this picture. Justin really gets the nuances. He’s not dealing in broad strokes.’
‘I feel like I got to get my feet with the right type of projects.’ says Timberlake of these small but notable roles. ‘Not a lot of responsibility, great actors involved.’
How does Hollywood compare to the music industry? ‘You know what’s interesting? I find that. maybe I’m just ignorant and maybe it's more that the people in Hollywood talk about you more behind your back, but for some reason for me in meeting producers and heads of studios in the film industry. I feel like they at least say it to your face. They show a lot more respect. They’re
Justified the solo debut released
26 Apr—10 May 2007 THE LIST 1 1