It's from Marie Claire
ARTICLE:
Lustin' For Justin
He's the sexiest man on the planet and coming soon to a stage near you. But how did the phenomenon know as Justin Timberlake suddenly go from Britney's boyfriend to America's hottest export? Kate Thornton finds out.
Until the Kylie bum grabbing incident at this year's Brit Awards, Justin Timberlake was better know on these shores as Britney Spear's boyfriend. We were probably vaguely aware that he was one fifth of the most successful band in American pop history too, but *NSYNC never really took off in the UK.
Then last year Britney and Justin unxpectedly split and, while Britney took 6 months out and reportedly embarked on a brief fling with Limp Bizkit's Fred Durst and publicly sucked face with actor Colin Farrell, Justin declared himself 'heartbroken' and retreated to the studio to work on his first solo material.
Justified, the resulting album, has since made him the world's most talked about male artist at just 22 years old. Right now he's on course to eclipse the professional achievements of his multi-selling ex, thanks in part to the fact he has poured his devastation at their split into his song lyrics, giving us all something to talk about and him a number one album on both sides of the pond.
With his obvious talents (he sings, writes and dances like Micheal Jackson), his gentlemanly Southern charm (he hails from Memphis, Tennessee), a personal fortune of £35 million and good looks that hang from a well-honed 6ft 2in frame, it begs the question - what on earth was Britney thinking when she let him slip through her fingers?
So Justin, were you nervous about releasing a solo record?
Definitely. I was nervous and anxious but I never considered failure. If you don't believe in what you're doing, then who else is going to? That's why I had to make something that was honest, because how else could I expect people to believe it?
Were you worried that you'd been too honest? CMAR hears you sing about a cheating lover and the video sees you avenge her by sleeping with another woman in her bed, video-recording your exploits and leaving the tape playing for her to see. Plus, the cheating ex bares an uncanny resemblance to Britney.
Oh, trust me, there are songs that didn't make the record for that reason, but CMAR is a pretty honest song, there's no beating around the bush. I guess that when I do get into honest mode, I'm good at portraying things very literally. The video was a little more catty and manipulative than the song. The director saw an opportunity to make people walk by the TV, do a double take and say 'Holy @#%$!'
But you must have known the song's video would get people talking about a situation that you have tried to avoid discussing in any great detail.
I've always had a bit of a dark side, and I think it's a very catty dark side, not spiteful. I think it's the ability to look at situation in your life that may be very dramatic and be able to take the piss, as you so like to say over here in Britain.
Did you get some awkward calls from Britney when the video went to air?
Umm. No. Everything's OK. There nothing that was too bad [he rolls his eyes heaven-bound]. I made phone call because I didn't want it to be taken out of proportion. And if anyone knows me, Britney does, so she knows my sense of humour. I think she may have expected me to do something like that. I don't know [shrugs], maybe she didn't.
When you first broke up with Britney, it was intimated that one of you had been unfaithful, and your video does little to dispel those rumours.
No one knows what went one between Britney and me except us. What I will say is I was never unfaithful. When we split up, everyone was trying to work out why. All I can say is that it has been really emotional and it broke my heart.
So when you sat down to write this album, you weren't a happy man?
I don't think that's a word I would use! I would say I had a lot of angst. I was caught up int he fact that I was breaking up with someone I had been with for four years and I had literally moved into a new house and was starting a new single life. I don't know how you do it here, but where I come from in the South, all the people I went to school with are married and have kids now, so it wouldn't be unacceptable for me to be married at this point in life. I wouldn't get married, that's not what I'm saying. But beginning a new life, in a new house and being single, plus having a little bit of insecurity about starting a solo record and, on top of all that, every time I walked out the door having the press trying to pin me with some new female, it was a lot to handle all at once - and the whole world was watching.
So, how did you deal with it all?
I became a hermit. I pretty much lived in the studio for 2 months and I didn't talk about anything, I put it all into my work. But I learned a lot about myself. I discovered that I'm better under pressure. But it's kind of scary now, because I'm worried that I might need drama to make a record. It's going to be interesting to see what the next album is like, because I'm in a different place now. I'm as happy as a lark and I feel like I have some peace.
The common female 'get-over-him' routine usually involves drinking, crying and talking endlessly with your friends. Did you do any of that?
I know I've had those nights where I've gotten drunk and felt sorry for myself, but for me, when something goes wrong, I try to find a way to make a positive out of it. The biggest confidence booster of 2002 was that I could take all of that and turn it inot something creative.
A lot of people listened to your album purely to hear if you'd dealt with your private life lyrically, but then got converted into fans.
Well, that's cool. It's one for me. But I think people are letting go of that [the break-up]. It's old now, it's old to talk about and we're not mad at each other, we're friends now.
In your experience what is the best thing about being in love?
It's a great feeling. There's nothing about it that's not pleasant and it's the one thing you can't control or manipulate. It's like a television channel that you can't switch off. I find it intriguing that something can be that powerful. It can inspire a person to change, to want to be a better person. I'd never had that feeling before.
You've said that your album 'deals with sex in a genuine way'. What does that mean?
It means animalistic. I mean how do you feel when you're having sex?
Well that depends. By 'genuine' do you mean not being casual about sex?
Well, I'm not a one-night stand kind of person, but I am very expressive sexually. I'm not the kind of guy who can chat someone up in a bar - I've never done that. But I am a firm believer in talking about what's on your mind, having grown up in a family where communication was key and we talked about everything.
So, sex has never been taboo for you?
Hell, no! I enjoy it and I praise it and I embrace it and I celebrate it - openly, freely and fun-ly...if that's even a word.
It makes sense that teenage girls flip over you, but an alarming number of thirtysomething women would gladly corrupt you, too.
[Laughing] Don't tell me that! But tell your friends I don't think there is anything they could bring on that would corrupt me. I've been doing this since I was 15.
Really?
[Smiles.] Just kidding.
In a recent American poll, you were voted the gay community's number one icon. Have you ever been hit on by a man?
I've had all different kinds of people hit on me - men dressed up as women, women dressed up as men - and I get letters from guys.
Some gay men insist that most men are gay and just don't want to admit it?
I've encountered gay men who believe that and honestly, I find that disrespectful. I have friends who are gay who embrace my heterosexuality as I do their homosexuality, and that's what being a friend is about.
Your faith in 'good people' must have been tested when *NSYNC were sued for $150 million by your old record label, BMG, and your former manager, Lou Pearlman, 3 years ago. [The band walked out on them both because they felt they weren't seeing enough of *NSYNC's profits.]
It was tough, more than tough, but I'm glad that I had the other guys around. I couldn't have gone through it on my own. Sometimes people get greedy and if there's one thing I have learned this last year, it's that you can't control other people's actions, as much as you are in business with them, as much as you might love them, as much as they could even be part of your family. You have to let people live. I really feel in my heart that Lou got warped somewhere and his vision became impaired. It's just better for me to feel that and to feel sorry for him than to hate him.
How on earth did you sleep at night with a $150 million lawsuit hanging over you?
I didn't. I was up every night for a month. That's the one time that I honestly said, 'I don't want to do this anymore.' I thought our careers were over. Lou wasn't just suing us for $150 million, he was suing us for our name. We'd never be able to perform as *NSYNC again. Then, we got picked up by Jive Records and 20 milllion albums later, here we are.
If you could what would you change about the music industry?
The contracts. It's the only business where the artists don't get as much as they should. Look at the movies: you get one big movie and you're a $20 million a movie actor. You get one hit record and you go up a point. It's ridiculous. We're kind of a bunch of prostitutes being pimped. But I don't get angry about it. I'm not a capitalist and I'm not an enterpriser. I enjoy making music and I'd do it even if I wasn't getting paid.
But isn't it easy to say that when you are enormously wealthy?
Money isn't what makes me happy. It makes life pleasant and technically a little easier but it's not why I do it. If it was, I would have stopped by now because I have enough.
Robbie Williams would say that fame and money don't make him happy because the one thing he craves, a relationship, is made virtually impossible by his success. Do you worry about falling into that trap?
Do you think that he is also idealistically impressed with love? I can relate to that. Having your face on the front of every magazine on the news-stands makes it hard to meet someone, and being trained in this business and going through $150 million lawsuits makes you put your guard up; it makes it hard to trust people.
That must make starting new relationships difficult.
Yeah. But if you can't get past all that, imagine what it would be like. If my mum taught me anything, it is that if something is worth having, it's really worth working hard for.
Do you compare most women to your mum?
Yeah that's why I'm single [laughs]. I'm fighting a losing battle. She's openly honest, very caring and always puts me first. I don't know if this is a greedy thing to say, but that's what a mother should do.
And partners, too?
Yes, partners too.
You went on a date recently with a girl from your home town. How did it go?
It was good. The best part about it was that we just sat down, had dinner, and struck up a totally impromptu conversation that led to us sitting there for another hour and a half. Obviously, it was awkward at first, overly awkward, because there's a definite presumption of how celebrities act. You see them on TV breaking down and demanding stuff, so people get this impression that celebrities live in another world, but they don't. I don't believe in celebrity or fame, but I do believe in the power of music. I see how people react to it and that's not about me, it's about a piece of pop culture.
Drugs are a big part of pop culture, and you've admitted experimenting with them in the past, going as far to say that 'drugs are fun'.
You get to a point in life when you are curious and of course, drugs have been built up to be like they're fun. But then you think, 'No, I don't feel like I can do this.' The messed up thing with drugs is that they do bring you down and they are consuming. And honestly, I don't really get off on too many things that decrease creativity. I don't even drink that often. I've seen people @#%$ faced drunk and it's not attractive. Drugs don't intrigue me, because I feel I have the ability to create those sensations without taking any drugs. I'm not saying I'll never do anything, but I don't believe in addiction, I think my mind is so much more powerful than that. Everybody's is for that matter.
So what's the closest you've come to being hooked on something?
[Long pause.] I was addicted to Britney. I really was. But that's love for you.
So how did you break the addiction?
By being humble and realising that you can't dictate someone else's actions. But I do still believe in love, it's out there somewhere. It's the light at the end of the far, far tunnel.
CREDIT: JJB
New Justin Picture! 
He looks great there, thanks 
