Justin Timberlake
Justin Randall Timberlake (born January 31, 1981)[1] is an American singer, songwriter, and actor.[2] Often referred to as the "Prince of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most influential entertainers of his generation.[3] Timberlake is known for his diverse artistry in songwriting, showmanship, tenor vocal range, and music production. He is the recipient of numerous awards and accolades, including ten Grammy Awards, four Primetime Emmy Awards, three Brit Awards, nine Billboard Music Awards, the Contemporary Icon Award by the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and MTV's Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award. According to Billboard, Timberlake is the best performing male solo artist in the history of the Mainstream Top 40.
Justin Timberlake
JT
- Singer
- songwriter
- record producer
- actor
1992–present
2
- Vocals
- guitar
- keyboards
Born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee, Timberlake appeared on musical television shows as a child, competing on Star Search; in the early to mid-1990s, he was a main cast member of Disney's Mickey Mouse Club, performing cover songs and choreography. While on the show, Timberlake worked with future bandmate JC Chasez, as well as future pop cultural figures including Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Keri Russell and Ryan Gosling. Timberlake and Chasez soon rose to prominence in late 1997 as the lead vocalists for the boyband *NSYNC. The group released four commercially successful studio albums, becoming one of the best-selling boy bands of all time with sales of over 70 million units worldwide.
As a solo act, Timberlake has sold over 88 million records, making him one of the best-selling music artists in the world. Timberlake's debut solo album, Justified (2002) yielded his first solo hit singles, "Cry Me a River" and "Rock Your Body". His second album, FutureSex/LoveSounds (2006) reached further success as it debuted atop the US Billboard 200 and spawned three consecutive Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles: "SexyBack" (featuring Timbaland), "My Love" (featuring T.I.) and "What Goes Around... Comes Around". Established as a solo artist worldwide, his first two albums both exceeded sales of 10 million copies and received triple platinum certification by the RIAA. Meanwhile, Timberlake collaborated with other artists on a string of successful singles, including The Lonely Island's viral hit "Dick in a Box" in 2006,[4] his fourth US number-one single with Timbaland's "Give It to Me" in 2007, as well as Madonna's "4 Minutes", 50 Cent's "Ayo Technology" and T.I.'s "Dead and Gone" in the following years.
From 2008 through 2012, Timberlake paused his musical career to focus on acting, starring in the films The Love Guru (2008), The Social Network (2010), Bad Teacher (2011), Friends with Benefits (2011), and In Time (2011). He returned to recording in 2013 with his third and fourth albums, The 20/20 Experience and The 20/20 Experience – 2 of 2; both of which peaked at number one on the Billboard 200 and spawned the Hot 100 top-ten singles "Suit & Tie" (featuring Jay-Z), "Mirrors", and "Not a Bad Thing". The 20/20 Experience became the best-selling album of that year. Timberlake voiced the character Branch in DreamWorks’ Trolls franchise; the soundtrack for the first film included his fifth US number-one single, "Can't Stop the Feeling!", which earned him an Academy Award nomination. He had also previously voiced Artie in Shrek the Third. His fifth studio album, Man of the Woods (2018) became his fourth US number-one album and was supported by two top-ten singles, "Filthy" and "Say Something" (featuring Chris Stapleton); it was named the sixth best-selling album of that year.[5] His sixth studio album, Everything I Thought It Was (2024) became his sixth consecutive top five album in the US,[6] and was preceded by the top-twenty single "Selfish",[7][8] as well as the singles "Drown" and "No Angels".[9]
Early life
Justin Randall Timberlake was born on January 31, 1981, in Memphis, Tennessee,[1] the son of Janet Lynn (Bomar) Harless and Charles Randall Timberlake, a Baptist church choir director.[10][11][12][13] Timberlake has two half-brothers, Jonathan and Stephen, from Charles' second marriage to Lisa Perry. His half-sister Laura Katherine died shortly after birth in 1997, and is mentioned in his acknowledgments in the album NSYNC as "My Angel in Heaven".
His family circle includes several musicians;[14] his grandfather introduced him to music from country music artists like Johnny Cash and Willie Nelson.[15] Performing as a child, Timberlake sang country and gospel music: at the age of 11, he appeared on the television show Star Search, performing country songs as "Justin Randall".[16] By that time, he began listening to rhythm and blues musicians from the 1960s and 70s, such as Al Green, Stevie Wonder and Marvin Gaye, and he had listening sessions with his father of studio albums by the Eagles and Bob Seger.[15]
In 1993 and 1994, he was a Mouseketeer on The All-New Mickey Mouse Club, where his castmates included future girlfriend and singer Britney Spears, future tourmate Christina Aguilera, future bandmate JC Chasez, and future movie actors Ryan Gosling and Keri Russell.[17] Timberlake then recruited Chasez to be in an all-male singing group, put together by Chris Kirkpatrick and financed by boy band manager Lou Pearlman, that eventually became NSYNC.[18]
Personal life
Relationships and children
In early 1999, Timberlake began dating fellow former The All-New Mickey Mouse Club cast member and singer Britney Spears. Their relationship ended abruptly in March 2002.[204] In her 2023 memoir, Spears wrote that she became pregnant during their relationship and had an abortion in late 2000 after Timberlake said they were not prepared for parenthood and he did not want to be a father.[205][206] In 2003, he briefly dated British singer Emma Bunton.[207][208][209] In April 2003, he began a relationship with actress Cameron Diaz soon after they met at the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards. After much speculation of breakups throughout their relationship, the couple split in December 2006 shortly after she introduced him as a musical guest on Saturday Night Live.[210][211][212]
In January 2007, Timberlake began dating actress Jessica Biel.[213] They became engaged in December 2011 and married on October 19, 2012, at the Borgo Egnazia resort in Fasano, Italy.[214] Their first child, a son, was born in April 2015.[215][216][217] In July 2020, they had a second son.[218][219][220]
Residences
In July 2002, Timberlake purchased a 13,250-square-foot (1,231 m2) mansion in Hollywood Hills for $8.3 million from Helen Hunt.[221] In 2010, Timberlake purchased a unit at 311 West Broadway in SoHo, formerly owned by Oscar de la Renta, for $6.56 million. He sold the unit in 2018 for $6.35 million, incurring a loss.[222][223]
In 2015, Timberlake bought a house in the Yellowstone Club near Big Sky, Montana.[224][225] In May 2017, Timberlake and his wife, Jessica Biel, paid $20.2 million for a 5,375-square-foot (499.4 m2) penthouse unit at 443 Greenwich Street in Tribeca, Manhattan.[226]
Earnings
Forbes began reporting on Timberlake's earnings in 2008, calculating that he earned $44 million between June 2007 and June 2008 for his music, tour, commercials, and hospitality, making him the world's 4th best-paid music personality at the time, above Madonna and Celine Dion.[227] That year, he was ranked twelfth on the Forbes Celebrity 100 list[228] and second on the "Best-Paid Celebrities Under 30" list.[229]
According to Billboard, Timberlake was the third highest-paid musician of 2013, with earnings of $31 million.[230] He was ranked 26th with earnings of $57 million on the Celebrity 100 list for 2014,[231] and 19th on the 2015 list with $63 million.[232] Timberlake was listed at number three on the Billboard Money-Makers List of 2014.[233]
He was ranked 41st on the 2019 Celebrity 100 list by Forbes, with earnings of $57.5 million in 2019.[234]
Other ventures
Business ventures
Timberlake has co-owned or provided celebrity endorsement for three restaurants in the United States: "Chi" opened in West Hollywood, California in 2003,[378] and "Destino" and "Southern Hospitality" in New York opened in 2006 and 2007, respectively.[379] In 2005, Timberlake launched the William Rast clothing line with childhood friend Juan ("Trace") Ayala. The 2007 line contained cord jackets, cashmere sweaters, jeans, and polo shirts.[380] The pair reports inspiration from fellow Memphis resident Elvis Presley: "Elvis is the perfect mixture of Justin and I", Ayala says. "You can go back and see pictures of him in cowboy boots and a cowboy hat and a nice button-down shirt, but then again you can see him in a tux and a collared shirt with rhinestones on it and slacks. We like to think 'If he was alive today, what would he be wearing?'"[381] Target has announced that a William Rast collection, including denim, outerwear and sportswear for men and women, would launch in December and be available for a month.[382] In 2015, the clothing line earned him a Lord & Taylor's Fashion Oracle Award at the Fashion Group International's Night of The Stars Gala.[383] An avid amateur golfer, in 2007 Timberlake purchased the run-down Big Creek Golf Course in his hometown of Millington, Tennessee, which he redeveloped as the eco-friendly Mirimichi Golf Course at the cost of around $US16 million. It was reopened on July 25, 2009, but closed again on January 15, 2010, for further improvements expected to take six months.[384] In October 2011, Timberlake received the Futures Award at the Environmental Media Awards for his green-conscious golf course.[385] It was reported on November 7, 2014, that Timberlake had sold Mirimichi to Three Star Leasing LLC for $500,000.[386] In October 2018, Timberlake and Levi's debuted their collaborative clothing line collection "Fresh Leaves".[387] In 2022, Justin Timberlake invested in Greenville, South Carolina par-3 golf course Greenville 3's.[388]
Timberlake provides celebrity endorsement for many commercial products, this aspect of his business being managed by IMG since April 2008.[389] Major endorsements in 2009 included Sony electronic products,[390] Givenchy's men's fragrance "Play",
[391] the Audi A1,[392] Callaway Golf Company products,[393][394] and in 2011, Myspace.[395][396] In 2011, he teamed up with Capital One to announce the winners of the inaugural Capital One Cup, in a six-minute advert, where he is repeatedly getting hit in the groin.[397] In 2012, he hosted Walmart's annual shareholders meeting,[398] saying, "I buy a lot at Walmart."[399]
In 2014, Timberlake partnered with Sauza Liquors to re-launch his own version of the beverage as part of the Sauza franchise: Sauza 901.[400] In 2016, he became an investor in the beverage company Bai Brands.[401] In 2017, Tiger Woods and Timberlake acquired an ownership stake in the Hurricane Junior Golf Tour.[402]
Timberlake and his wife Jessica Biel are minority owners of the Memphis Grizzlies.[403][404]
Timberlake is an Air Jordan brand ambassador. His first collection with the brand, the Legend of the Summer collection, debuted on the co-headlining tour of the same name with Jay-Z. These sneakers have gone on to resell for upwards of $10,000.[405] In the lead up to his 2018 Super Bowl Halftime Show, Timberlake worked with famed Nike, Inc. designer Tinker Hatfield to design his own version of the Air Jordan 3.[406] Timberlake debuted the shoe at the halftime show. Timberlake's performance was estimated to be worth $2.86 million in marketing for Nike, and is credited for reigniting interested in the Nike and Air Jordan brand.[407][408] Nike went on to release several colorways as part of the collaboration with Timberlake.[409][410]
In May 2022, Timberlake sold the rights to his entire musical catalog, around 200 songs he wrote or co-wrote, to Hipgnosis Song Management for $100 million. The deal covers only pre-existing work, and not work he produces after the deal.[411][412]
Timberlake had an estimated net-worth of $250 million prior to the Hipgnosis deal, and is now estimated to be worth in excess of $350 million - making him one of the music industry's wealthiest solo performers.[413]
Philanthropy
Timberlake has been active in several charitable pursuits, initially through NSYNC's "Challenge for the Children" aimed at a range of charities, and since 2001 through his "Justin Timberlake Foundation", which initially funded music education programs in schools, but now has a much broader agenda.[414] In October 2005, the Grammy Association presented Timberlake with an award for his humanitarian efforts in Tennessee, alongside writer/director Craig Brewer, also a Memphis native.[415]
In November 2007, he donated $100,000 from takings from his Australian tour to Wildlife Warriors founded by Steve Irwin.[416] On March 23, 2008, he donated $100,000 to the Memphis Rock N' Soul Museum and another $100,000 to the Memphis Music Foundation.[417]
On November 12, 2007, the PGA Tour announced that Timberlake, an avid golfer who plays to a six handicap,[418] would become the host of the tour's Las Vegas tournament starting in 2008. With Timberlake's agreement to host the tournament, its name was changed to the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open. He played in the celebrity pro-am on the day before the competitive tournament and hosted a charity concert during the week of the tournament.[419] The activity was a success and was repeated in 2009. A review of the value of celebrities to fundraising concluded that Timberlake's contribution to Shriners Hospitals for Children was the single most valuable celebrity endorsement in the U.S. during 2009, and worth over $US9 million.[420] However, in 2012, the event's chair Raoul Frevel told reporters Timberlake would no longer be involved in the event: "We tried everything we could to get him more involved with our kids and the hospitals. But it seemed that when the TV cameras weren't on, he disappeared."[421]
Studio albums
Media related to Justin Timberlake at Wikimedia Commons