Justin Timberlake threw some serious shade during his set at Irving Plaza in New York City Wednesday night (Jan. 31).
“I’d like to take this opportunity to apologize to absolutely f—ing nobody,” Timberlake said right before performing his 2002 song “Cry Me a River.”
Watch the moment below:
The hit single is famously believed to be about Timberlake’s ex-girlfriend Britney Spears. The two pop stars dated in the early 2000s before calling things off in 2002 amid allegations of infidelity.
Timberlake’s shady onstage comment appears to have been a direct response to Spears, who recently apologized to anyone she may have offended with the many personal revelations included in her best-selling memoir, The Woman in Me.
“I wanna apologize for some of the things I wrote about in my book. If I offended any of the people I genuinely care about I am deeply sorry,” Spears wrote on Instagram over the past weekend after Timberlake performed new music on The Tonight Show.
Spears also lauded Timberlake’s new single, “Selfish,” writing, “I also wanted to say I am in love with Justin Timberlake’s new song ‘Selfish’ … It is so good and how come every time I see Justin and Jimmy together I laugh so hard?”
Timberlake released his new single, “Selfish,” on Jan. 25. After its release, Spears fans trolled the Trolls star by driving one of Spears’ 13-year-old songs of the same name up the charts.
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Timberlake previously apologized to Spears, as well as his Super Bowl Halftime Show co-performer Janet Jackson, in a public statement back in 2021.
“I am deeply sorry for the times in my life where my actions contributed to the problem, where I spoke out of turn, or did not speak up for what was right. I understand that I fell short in these moments and in many others and benefited from a system that condones misogyny and racism … I specifically want to apologize to Britney Spears and Janet Jackson both individually, because I care for and respect these women and I know I failed,” he wrote at the time.
Timberlake performed at Irving Plaza in Manhattan Wednesday evening as part of a special free concert for fans on his birthday. The singer turned 43.
During his set, his wife, actress Jessica Biel, brought out a birthday cake onstage and sang “Happy Birthday” to him along with the audience.
Timberlake also debuted a new song called “My Favorite Drug.”
The musician recently announced The Forget Tomorrow World Tour, which is set to kick off in Vancouver this April. His new album, Everything I Thought It Was, is due out in March.
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Gallery Credit: Ryan Reichard