Justin Timberlake

[Peter1999]

The charts aren’t too important for an artist who’s been around as long as he has. He’ll still fill seats just off of his name, especially if he joins the guys back on the road.

Partially true. Album streams still matter. It shows career longevity. Loyal fans aren't enough to keep a career going or many people would still have careers. That's just how the entertainment industry works. You and I aren't enough to prop a big career like Justins.

I'm not saying his career is over, I'm saying his team needs to reevaluate ASAP. MOTW and now EITIW not doing high numbers (especially with all that promotion) is definitely a cause for concern.

 

[klenahough]

The charts aren’t too important for an artist who’s been around as long as he has. He’ll still fill seats just off of his name, especially if he joins the guys back on the road.

Charts are absolutely important nowadays. Beyonce has been around just as long as he has and she's killing it with her latest releases.

But I also get the sense that his label isn't pushing his album hard enough - he doesn't get any real push in streaming through playlisting, and he's not performing on TV shows since the album released to really promote it. He can't rely on social media to promote for him because there's a real reckoning for him going on (be it Britney fans, Janet fans, or NSYNC fans who thinks he's just using them).

It's a shame because it's a really good album.

 

[CJ-24]

The charts aren’t too important for an artist who’s been around as long as he has. He’ll still fill seats just off of his name, especially if he joins the guys back on the road.

True but it’s always disheartening when I see veteran artists underperform like this. However, the REAL money is in touring and that's where he will make money and get the most love.

 

[CJ-24]

Charts are absolutely important nowadays. Beyonce has been around just as long as he has and she's killing it with her latest releases.

But I also get the sense that his label isn't pushing his album hard enough - he doesn't get any real push in streaming through playlisting, and he's not performing on TV shows since the album released to really promote it. He can't rely on social media to promote for him because there's a real reckoning for him going on (be it Britney fans, Janet fans, or NSYNC fans who thinks he's just using them).

It's a shame because it's a really good album.

Beyoncé is anomaly. There isn’t a SINGLE artist from her era/age group that generates the kind of musical hype she does with cultural dominance. Her longevity as a commercially viable pop star is almost unmatched - even by some of her legendary predecessors.

Justin was there in 2013/2014 when he released 20/20. However, MOTW ruined that momentum because the album wasn’t as well received and he got caught in the middle of three cultural crossfires (Britney, Janet and cultural appropriation). At this point, it’s obvious he’s not one of RCA’s main priorities (playlisting). He’s also reached the age when most artists decline in popularity.

 

[Peter1999]

Beyoncé is anomaly. There isn’t a SINGLE artist from her era/age group that generates the kind of musical hype she does with cultural dominance. Her longevity as a commercially viable pop star is almost unmatched - even by some of her legendary predecessors.

Justin was there in 2013/2014 when he released 20/20. However, MOTW ruined that momentum because the album wasn’t as well received and he got caught in the middle of three cultural crossfires (Britney, Janet and cultural appropriation). At this point, it’s obvious he’s not one of RCA’s main priorities (playlisting). He’s also reached the age when most artists decline in popularity.

Madonna was still putting out big numbers at 50 with Hard Candy and at 47 with Confessions on the Dance Floor. Heck, Confessions is arguably one of her best albums.

Justin is an anomaly though. He created a huge solo career when splitting from a boy band. It's next to impossible in achieving that success going solo. The only other solo careers after a pop band I can think of is Michael Jackson and John Lennon. No one has done that in decades. He should be able to get big numbers...

 

[Peter1999]

Michael Jackson, harry Styles, Robbie Williams

harry Styles and Robbie Williams are not doing big numbers lol. They are much smaller in the music world.

Michael Jackson and John Lennon are the only other 2 of Justin's level of success after going solo.

 

[Young1]

Madonna was still putting out big numbers at 50 with Hard Candy and at 47 with Confessions on the Dance Floor. Heck, Confessions is arguably one of her best albums.

Justin is an anomaly though. He created a huge solo career when splitting from a boy band. It's next to impossible in achieving that success going solo. The only other solo careers after a pop band I can think of is Michael Jackson and John Lennon. No one has done that in decades. He should be able to get big numbers...

Paul McCartney, Harry styles, sting, George Michael, Paul Simon, dr Dre, Phil Collins, Morrisey and Robbie Williams…

 

[Young1]

Paul McCartney, Harry styles, sting, George Michael, Paul Simon, dr Dre, Phil Collins, Morrisey and Robbie Williams…

Added a couple more.

 

[RocDaBoat]

Charts are absolutely important nowadays. Beyonce has been around just as long as he has and she's killing it with her latest releases.

But I also get the sense that his label isn't pushing his album hard enough - he doesn't get any real push in streaming through playlisting, and he's not performing on TV shows since the album released to really promote it. He can't rely on social media to promote for him because there's a real reckoning for him going on (be it Britney fans, Janet fans, or NSYNC fans who thinks he's just using them).

It's a shame because it's a really good album.

They aren’t. Don’t get me wrong, for any artist looking for relevance, it would be. But Justin will be fine. He cemented his legacy over a decade ago. While high chart performance is always nice, it isn’t necessary for an artist with his longevity, especially with timeless song that he can actually sing.

Basically he’s the kind of artist who can go years without releasing an album and still generate buzz/ access to certain circles without much effort.

Olivia Ridrigo, Lil Nas X , Harry Styles, Lizzo etc are reliant upon charting because they are still cementing themselves as lasting acts. While others like Ariana, Bruno, and even Taylor are crossing that threshold of longevity despite still charting high.

 

[Peter1999]

Paul McCartney, Harry styles, sting, George Michael, Paul Simon, dr Dre, Phil Collins, Morrisey and Robbie Williams…

None of those did big numbers though. There's legendary status, there's there's average success. Zayne and Nick Jonas also had moderate success, but not Justin Timberlake success. Most of your list consista of one or two successful projects and then indie relevancy.

Also, Dr. Dre was in a pop band?

 

[klenahough]

Paul McCartney, Harry styles, sting, George Michael, Paul Simon, dr Dre, Phil Collins, Morrisey and Robbie Williams…

Correct to name Harry Styles as a solo pop star that broke out of a boy band. His last album sold over 500k copies its first week. If you are culturally relevant and make good music, it's still possible to sell albums.

 

[leafysuburbs]

John Lennon was assassinated at the age of 40. So Justin is older than him now. Madonna and Michael Jackson were in a different league than Justin, Britney, Christina, Usher etc. They were global superstars on an astronomical level and still considered the King and Queen of Pop.
Madonna's last great album was "Confessions on a dancefloor" in a cultural and commercial sense. I am a Madonna fan and like her releases since then but in a pop culture sense, COADF was her last major mark.
When she released Hard Candy, critics thought she was chart chasing and riding on the coat tails of the current pop trends at the time (JT, Timbaland, Pharrell, Kanye). It's a good album but not a Madonna album as such.
Now Justin is in the same league. He has his fans but unfortunately is nowhere near as big as Ariana, Justin Bieber, Shawn Mendes, Harry Styles and Taylor Swift in the streaming world to mention a few.
As mentioned previously, in regards his peers, Beyonce is the sole exception.
I love Justin Timberlake's music so this isn't a hate post. Taylor Swift is the biggest star in the world right now but it will be interesting to see how big she will be in 10 years time.
Justin is now where Madonna was when she released Hard Candy. He will still create a buzz but not as big as he did in his musical heyday which wasup until the 20/20 Experience.

 

[CJ-24]

Madonna was still putting out big numbers at 50 with Hard Candy and at 47 with Confessions on the Dance Floor. Heck, Confessions is arguably one of her best albums.

Justin is an anomaly though. He created a huge solo career when splitting from a boy band. It's next to impossible in achieving that success going solo. The only other solo careers after a pop band I can think of is Michael Jackson and John Lennon. No one has done that in decades. He should be able to get big numbers...

Madonna IS an anomaly as well! She and Beyoncé are the only ones who we’ve seen get sustained pop success in their 40s. Janet and Mariah weren’t pulling the sort of numbers Madonna did. You’re right about Confessions being one of her best albums too.

Justin is an anomaly in his way by making the flawless transition from group member to solo superstar. In fact, I would say his path was even less cluttered than Michael’s, who had almost a decade before he hit a major stride with Of The Wall. Justin’s was instant.

Like I said, Justin’s status as a pop star has drastically changed in the last few years. Couple that with the industry prioritizing streams over sales (which are already down), it’s no wonder his album is underperforming.

 

[timberlakesbitch]

I think the biggest problem with this era is the lack of promotion. It started off really well when he was promoting "Selfish," and then it became very sporadic (for someone who doesn't keep up with his every move, at least). That song's chart debut honestly surprised me because of it's Jan 25 (Thursday), 8AM ET release time; most music comes out at midnight ET on a Friday. It lost the first few hours of tracking because of how Billboard's tracking week works, but it still found success and stability.

So far, he's only made a few really big promotional stops, and even fewer were showing off his music:

1. The Late Night Show with Jimmy Fallon
2. SNL (Performance)
3. The Kelly Clarkson Show
4. The Graham Norton Show (Performance)
5. Jimmy Kimmel Live! (Performance)

Other than these and his Tiny Desk show, he's been doing free concerts in various big cities. Starting in Memphis, he went to NYC, London (canceled due to an illness), and LA. Though, these really aren't impacting anything outside of the immediate area. I guess you can count his social media activity as promotion, but people who follow him are probably already going to listen to it.

"Drown" got no promotion or video at all, which is typical of a promotional single. "No Angels" doesn't seem to be getting as much promotion as "Selfish" despite being a proper single. Speaking of which, help it out on YouTube; the man just uploaded a shortened version for seemingly no reason. ( Director's Cut / Music Video Cut )

Truly and honestly, I don't think he cares about charts. I wouldn't be surprised if he was the one who decided "Selfish" should be released at a weird time. It certainly wasn't the decision of anyone who is interested in making money.

 

[J. B. Fletcher]

Like I said, Justin’s status as a pop star has drastically changed in the last few years. Couple that with the industry prioritizing streams over sales (which are already down), it’s no wonder his album is underperforming.

Justin Timberlake has over 46 million monthly listeners on Spotify. That's an impressive amount. Even taking low physical sales into account, his new album should be performing a little better than it is. According to the first UK album chart update, his new album hadn't even sold 4,000 copies on Friday. In comparison, Kacey Musgraves, who has 26 million monthly listeners, was ahead of him. Other older artists have managed to sell more albums on name recognition than JT.

 

[deleted18851701]

His body is perfect

 

[deleted18851701]

Always loved this one

 

[Young1]

Thing is, I don’t think Justin is likeable! After all the Britney stuff and him cheating on his wife, he’s gone into creepy old man territory whose also pretty cringy when he performs.

 

[dominacano]

Here's the high-res JT and Usher picture for anyone who wants it.


View attachment 124816711

He has really aged since the last album.

 

[timberlakesbitch]

Always loved this one


View attachment 125814451

He'll never miss a chance to show off his arms