Justin Timberlake answered the prayers of many on Jan. 13, releasing “Suit & Tie,” his first single in seven years. The single is set to be the first of many from Timberlake’s forthcoming third studio album, The 20/20 Experience, due some time this year.
The song came a mere three days after Timberlake took to Twitter in the early hours of Jan. 10 to deliver the mysterious message of “Jan. 10, 9:01 a.m. PST,” leading many to believe he would be releasing the song at that time. Instead, fans got a teaser trailer of Timberlake heading into the studio with a voice-over declaring he was “ready” to return to music.
It was later leaked out by various stars and media outlets that Timberlake’s newest single would feature Jay-Z, be produced by long-time collaborator Timbaland and would be released at midnight the following Monday.
In true pop star fashion, the single quickly climbed the Billboard Hot 100 in record setting fashion – debuting at No. 14 (the highest of any male artist in history and second highest of all time).
Timberlake re-teams up with hip-hop producer Timbaland for the track in a chance to recreate the magic of their previous collaboration, Future Sex/Love Sounds.
Rather than follow the same futuristic, electro-pop of Future Sex/Love Sounds Timbaland helps Timberlake live up to the songs classy title with a jazz-infused sound full of horns and string arrangements during the thirty-second intro and JT boasting that he’s on his “suit and tie s*it,” a clear sign that he’s matured in the last decade from being a former boy band star.
The song’s slow creep during the intro gives off a slow jam vibe, but soon after Timbaland speeds the tempo up and lets Timberlake’s vocal cords glide across another genre-bending pop hit.
Timberlake is clearly having fun with his new “no end game” approach to music, crafting a simple, but infectious song centered on dressing your best and dancing the night away. While he’s at his best when expressing deep emotions like affection (“My Love”) or getting revenge on an ex-lover (“Cry Me a River”, “What Goes Around Comes Around”), it’s nice to hear Timberlake finally make a pure good-time track like “Sexyback” again.
Most noticeable about the track, though, is the guest verse from rap superstar and mogul Jay-Z, a big step up from the last rapper Timberlake had guest on one of his tracks, Juicy J. While Jay doesn’t drop a lyrically mind-blowing verse, his boastful nature fits the track well.
While it’s clear that Timberlake has a hit on his hands, the real question the single now brings up now revolves around the album it’s promoting, The 20/20 Experience.
While “Suit & Tie” is a promising direction of what The 20/20 Experience may sound like, a lot has changed for Timberlake in the seven years since he released his last album.
For starters, Timberlake is now married to Jessica Biel, meaning that the subject matter should change from the vengeful-themed tracks based on his past affairs, to that of a (hopefully) happily married man.
While love may be a strong emotion, pop artists have been known to create their best songs and albums during or after a troubling affair (see Marvin Gaye’s Hear, My Dear for a good example).
Secondly, and more broadly, the pop landscape has changed drastically since Timberlake released Future Sex/Love Sounds. The electro-pop clashed with hip-hop sound that made “Sexyback” and “My Love” big hits in the summer of 2006 is long gone, and the charts are now dominated by America’s crappy version of British electronic dance music.
“Suit & Tie” is a good sign that Timberlake will not take this route, but it’s not too hard to be skeptical in this day and age that money may motivate him to push out a few mundane, radio-friendly tracks to build a bigger buzz.
No matter what route he takes, one thing can be agreed on – it’s good to have Timberlake back in the music world.
