10 years ago this week, 'NSYNC predicted the Rise of Timberlake
Thursday, July 28, 2011 at 11:23AM 
Hello, everyone! It's Mark Blankenship from The Critical Condition. You may remember me from a recent podcast here on TFE, but otherwise, this is my first appearance on the site. I'm not saying I'm nervous, but I changed my outfit six times before you got here, and I did this silly thing with my hair that you probably didn't even notice and... oh! Where are my manners? Why don't we sit in the living room and talk about you?
Ahem. Anyway.
As you already know, this week marks the tenth anniversary of Wet Hot American Summer and its ever-glorious scene of Janeane Garofalo destroying an infirmary. However, that is not the only cultural touchstone that arrived a decade ago. This week also brought us Celebrity, the final album by 'NSYNC.
Even at the time, the album was a big deal, selling 1.87 million copies in its first seven days and generating hit singles like "Girlfriend," "Pop," and "Gone." None of these were quite as brilliant as"Bye Bye Bye," but they were still pretty magical. (Plus, Dirty Pop is a great drag name.)
In retrospect, however, this album is even more important because it signalled the birth of Justin Timberlake: Media Machine. Before Celebrity, he was simply the most popular member of a boy band, meaning he occasionally shared lead vocals and danced in the back of a V formation.
Celebrity, however, was essentially the Justin show. Looking at the album cover, you could assume he was the lead artist, and watching this video or this one, you might think you were watching "Cry Me a River."
Hey... who are those guys in Justin's light?
When Lance Bass wrote a book (sigh), he suggested this intense focus on Justin broke up the group, and he may be right. Intentionally or not, this period let 'NSYNC's success provide a low-risk incubator for Timberlake's solo career. If he fizzled, then he still had the group to fall back on, but if he sizzled, then he could leap into new projects.
That's kind of how Timberlake evolved from a mere pop star into box-office draw. While nestled in his music career, he started making limited appearances as an actor, popping up in SNL videos and Christina Ricci vehicles. Failure wouldn't have meant much, since people were more focused on "SexyBack" than Southland Tales.
Obviously, though, the acting thing worked out. The Social Network, Bad Teacher, and Friends With Benefits have made Timberlake a movie star who used to make records, not a pop singer who moonlights in film. And to think this was all predicted when we heard "Pop" on the radio!
Timberlake at the Oscars, February 2011
Timberlake isn't the only person to transition from one medium to another, of course, but as Celebrity hits double digits, it's interesting to consider just how successful this former Mouseketeer has been. Ten years from now, we might be analyzing how Bad Teacher laid the seeds for Senator Timberlake's eventual appointment as the Secretary of Education.
[Editor's Note: Mark is currently hosting an amazing "ULTIMATE POP SONG" contest at Critical Condition... there's only 24 hours left to vote on the first round match-ups. Don't miss the hilarious POP SONG commentary at Nick's Flick Picks, and Low Resolution, either. Some of the first bracket countdowns are true 'Sophie's Choice's. Go now... vote!]
10|25|50|75|100, Justin Timberlake
Reader Comments (5)
What a timely post, not just because of the anniversary of Celebrity, which I didn't know about, but because my friend and I had a similar conversation after we saw Friends with Benefits over the weekend, mostly in regards to Timberlake's road to fame.
As a boy, he was part of the Mouseketeers along with other popular alumni (cough The Year of the Goz cough) then used that to jump into a very successful musical career as part of a group and then as a bonafide solo artist (won 6 Grammys). And as you said, he used that success as a jumping off point to acting first in TV (for which he has won 2 Emmys) and now in films. He was perfectly cast in The Social Network and I thought held his own in Friends with Benefits. He's not going to get nominated for an acting Oscar anytime soon, but maybe he'll use his acting to jump off somewhere else. You jokingly say politics, but I'm thinking more behind-the-scenes stuff like directing or producing.
Wow, I've written more about Timberlake than I ever really wanted to ever. Weird.
yep, it's a pretty impressive leapfrogging rise from JT.
But i do often wonder about the multi-media sensations what they actually care about? Is it all about celebrity? I tend to prefer celebrities whose passion for a specific art is clear: like Bjork with music even if she'll do a film or help with artistic installation pieces.
You didn't even mention this was the time of the Britney Spears breakup! A big turningpoint that also seem calculated behind the scenes.
Great post. 'NSync was so ubiquitous in the nineties and my sisters were crazy over music so they were crazy about 'NSync by default. You're so right about "Celebrity", though, it was so blatantly the Justin show it seemed like he was trying TOO much to be all "star" worthy (he's mind-numbingly facetious in the video for "Gone" for example) but his solo album was cool and he's turned into a generally cool person, it seems. I'm not sold on his acting talents, but who knows what'll happen in 10 years.
I tend to agree with Nathaniel regarding our current crop of multi-media sensations. One gets the sense that when Sinatra, Garland, Streisand, and others in previous generations of entertainment multi-hyphenates (such as they were at that time) did it, there was a genuine love of craft. Now it seems as though people are just out for world domination, using one artform or medium as a springboard for forays into everything else.
That having been said, it was always clear for me which *NSYNC-er they were setting up for solo success. I just didn't know he would become such a star. It is apparent, however, that he has been very shrewd about it.