From Janet Jackson's Breast Incident To Britney Spears' Virginity Jokes, Is Justin Timberlake's Sorry Too Late?

Justin Timberlake (music video screenshot)

JAKARTA - The documentary Framing Britney Spears made by the New York Times still leaves a big effect on the singer's life. One of them is the relationship between Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake which is highlighted in the documentary. The two big stars ended their relationship in 2002 and Justin released a song called Cry Me a River.

The video clip star of the song looks similar to Britney, so fans assume this song tells of their relationship. Justin didn't answer anything. Even when the media lashed out at Britney for her looks or whatever she did, Justin was letting the public guess what.

Five years after breaking up, the former NSYNC member publicly insulted Britney. “Stop drinking. You know yourself. You will be careless. " He also made a joke of having taken Britney's virginity. As a result, netizens attacked Jessica Biel's husband.

However, Justin and Britney seem to have left these tough times. At the end of January, Britney recorded herself dancing the song Holy Grail from Justin. This is not the first time. Last year, she also shared a video to dance to the song Filthy.

“As you can see I'm not very good at dancing… I'm just bored. I know we (her and Justin) had our biggest break up 20 years ago… but hey this guy is a genius. Good song JT !!!!! " he wrote in the caption.

Regardless of their 'peace', netizens still consider Justin as one of the reasons Britney is the subject of gossip from the media and the public.

Cry Me A River: Conveniently Courageous Justin Timberlake Prudently Proffers 6,935-Day-Late Apology To Janet Jackson And Britney Spears For Shameful Silence And Flagrant F ** kboi-ishness (Image via Frank Trapper / Corbis / Frank Micelotta / Getty) https: / /t.co/DOZY5zVRtq pic.twitter.com/2uagUFJczD

- Bossip (@Bossip) February 13, 2021

Super Bowl incident

Justin Timberlake's controversy continued when he appeared as a surprise guest star in Super Bowl XXXVIII 2004 with Janet Jackson. They collaborated to sing Timberlake's Rock Your Body song.

Just before the last lyrics read, "Gonna have you naked by the end of this song", Justin grabbed Janet's shirt and caused Michael Jackson's younger brother's breasts to be seen. The camera immediately cut off the performance and switched to Reliant Stadium.

The CEO of MTV had stated that the action of 'tearing' the shirt was initiated by Janet. However, a few moments later, another MTV party said that the idea came up but that there were no plans to rip open Janet's breasts.

"This incident is very embarrassing for me to know 90 million people saw my breasts and became excited on the internet as big as a computer screen," explained Janet. The word wardrobe malfunction is a description of the incident.

More than 544 thousand complaints were sent to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) as the party that makes regulations for television. The public accused Janet's actions to boost sales of her album. However, the singer gave rebuttal.

Viacom CEO Les Moonves blacklisted the screening of all Janet's songs and music videos on CBS, MTV and all radio under Infinity Broadcasting. This incident also caused her to miss the 46th Grammy Awards. Janet left the film Lena Home and the iconic Rhythm Nation outfit at the Walt Disney World theme park was also removed.

With all this misfortune, Justin was not having a big effect. To Access Hollywood, he said, "Hey man, we love giving you guys something to talk about." but he changed his statement by apologizing for the incident.

The media had dubbed Justin as The Teflon Man, which means a smart man but cunning and does his own way so that no one knows his true character.

In fact, Justin was again invited to headline the Super Bowl LII halftime show in February 2018. He sang Rock Your Body but before reaching the final lyrics, he ended the performance with, “Stop!” and smiles - referencing 2004 events.

The two incidents above have made Justin a misogynist and bystander because he did not defend or take over the public or media attacks against Janet or Britney. And of course, it was the woman who was to blame, even though it was this man who stripped her clothes.

Apology

After public outcry turned to him, Justin finally spoke up. “I see messages, hashtags, comments and concerns and I want to respond to them. I apologize for a time in my life when my behavior had an effect on the problem, when I didn't speak up, or didn't stand up for what was right. "

He also mentioned the names Britney and Janet. "Because I care and respect these women and I know I failed. I also failed to respond because everyone involved deserves better and most importantly, this is a conversation I want to be fully part of. "

Justin went on to mention that the music industry continues to allow things like this where a man has more advantages and he doesn't want to take advantage of anyone anymore.

Public reaction? Of course it is divided in two. Some say what Timberlake did right, a public apology. But others think it is too late. The reason is, look what happened to Britney and Janet. Britney was in the conservatory and was absent from public appearances for a long time while Janet was not very active in the music scene.

Others say it seems Justin blames the state of the industry more than himself. Justin's apology is also called a 'confession' not an apology. One tweet concluded, "An apology is not an apology until someone shows how he or she changed."

This message is proof that the public will look at Justin's every move to see whether this statement is mere publication or sincerity.

Meanwhile, Janet's album Control is back on the charts and Britney is still posting on social media as if nothing happened.