Have you ever read an article completely summed up by its headline? This is one of those articles. There is very little else to say beyond the fact that Justin Timberlake owes Britney Spears an apology. It bears repeating: Justin Timberlake owes Britney Spears an apology. But for the sake of argument, here's what's going on.
A new documentary, Framing Britney Spears, has just aired in the US. It is yet to receive a UK release date, but it has nevertheless been discussed widely across social media. One of its key conversation topics? The manner in which Justin - then the frontman of squeaky clean boyband NSYNC, used his break-up with the teenage singer to enhance his solo career. You may remember that, following their split, Britney stood accused of cheating. There was never any proof, and the rumours were never cemented, but Justin didn't seem to care about that. He cast a woman who looked a lot like his ex for the music video of his hit, Cry Me A River, thereby spinning it as a Britney diss track and securing its place as a water cooler discussion point. Inevitably, it became a hit. He became a bonafide solo star, and two decades later he still has a lucrative career. It is built on the pain of a woman whose star power far outweighs his own.
Many viewers of the new programme have expressed their disgust at the way in which Justin benefitted from slurring Britney. 'Beyond showing how impossibly horrible "the media" was to Britney Spears in the 00s, I’m glad that the doc begins to reckon with the idea of how much of Justin Timberlake’s career in the aughts came at the expense of women like Britney', wrote one.
The pair have been permanently linked, even though they split almost twenty years ago. When Britney kissed Madonna onstage during their controversial performance at the MTV VMAs in 2003, the camera panned to Justin's reaction, thus skipping Madonna and Christina Aguilera's own smooch. He has discussed the relationship at length in interviews. He has teased reunions and collaborations. He has mocked and derided a woman who may or may not have cheated on him in order to gain column inches, push his agenda and sell his music. That woman, it is now more painfully clear than ever, has suffered greatly at the hands of the media and of the people in her life who should have looked after her. Justin's actions were always suspect. Now, we know that it was actively harmful.
Naturally, this has brought up a separate incident relating to Justin and another female artist: Janet Jackson. When the latter flashed her breast during the Superbowl halftime performance in 2004, her career was irreparably damaged. Justin was criticised, yes, but was scrutinised far less. His success was undented. 'Timberlake wasted no time placing the bulk of the blame for the incident on Jackson', said E! at the time. 'And, of course, the woman takes the blame even though the man stripped her. Pathetically typical.'
Are all of Britney's troubles linked to Justin? Of course not. But he is culpable, and has been a fixture in driving the narrative around her. With this new documentary showing people the truth, I hope Justin wakes up to his role in the sad tale.
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