Justin Timberlake

Justin Timberlake (born 31.1.1981)

Justin Timberlake is an American singer / songwriter who first found fame with the boy band *NSYNC. He has won six Grammy awards and an Emmy Award.

Justin Timberlake: Childhood

Justin Timberlake was born in Memphis, Tennessee. His parents were Lynn Harless (nee Bomar) and Randall Timberlake, giving him both English and Native American ancestry. Justin's grandfather, Charles L. Timberlake, was a Baptist minister.

Justin has two half brothers, Stephen (b. 1998) and Jonathan (b. 1993). His half sister, Laura, died shortly after childbirth in 1997. Justin acknowledged Laura as "My Angel In Heaven" in the liner notes of one of his records.

Timberlake grew up in a small town named Millington. His first attempt at singing success was performing country songs on the TV show, Star Search. He was billed as Justin Randall.

Justin Timberlake joined The Mickey Mouse Club in 1993. It was here that he met fellow performer Christina Aguilera as well as future band mate, JC Chasez and future girlfriend Britney Spears. It was when the show disbanded in 1995 that Justin and JC began an all-boy band, masterminded by boy-band manager Lou Pearlman. The group became known as *NSYNC.

Justin Timberlake: The *NSYNC Years

Justin Timberlake and JC Chasez were the two lead singers of *NSYNC. The band formed in 1995 and began their career in 1996. The release of their debut album, *NSYNC in 1998 saw them hit the big time. The album sold over 11 million copies in the US alone.

For the next two years, the band was involved in a legal battle with their manager, Lou Pearlman. Although Pearlman financed the launch of their careers, he was found to have been the con man behind a number of scams. Once released from contract with Pearlman, *NSYNC signed with Jive Records.

2000 saw the release of the next album, No Strings Attached. The album became the fastest selling album of all time, shifting 2.4 million units in its first week on sale.

*NSYNC's third album, Celebrity, became the second fastest selling album of all time. After completing the Celebrity tour in 2002, the band decided to take some time off. It was at this point that Timberlake began work on his first solo album.

Justin Timberlake: The solo years

In August 2002, Timberlake performed at the MTV Music Video Awards, premiering his debut solo single, 'Like I Love You', a track produced by The Neptunes. The single reached number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Justified was released later in 2002 and although it sold fewer than *NSYNC's albums, it debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200. 439,000 copies were sold in the first week and the album went on to sell over seven million copies worldwide.

As well as huge commercial success, the album received critical acclaim, largely owing to the production skills of Timbaland and The Neptunes.

In summer 2003, Justin Timberlake and Christina Aguilera co-headlined a tour to promote their album releases. Later that year, McDonald's used a Timberlake song, 'I'm Lovin' It' to promote their ad campaign. The deal reportedly earned Timberlake $6 million.

In 2004, Timberlake performed alongside Janet Jackson at the Super Bowl XXXVIII. The performance was televised and turned out to be highly controversial. During the performance, Timberlake tore off a portion of Jackson's attire, revealing her breast, complete with nipple adornment.

Justin was forced to make a public apology at the Grammy Awards (2004) in order for the organisers to agree to let him attend. He read a scripted apology when accepting the first of two awards he received that night. Timberlake won 'Best Pop Vocal Album' and 'Best Male Pop Vocal Performance'. He also won a joint award with Black Eyed Peas (Best Rap / Sung Collaboration) for 'Where Is the Love?'

During a period of rest for the singer, after nodules were removed from his vocal cords, Justin set up his own record label, Jay Tee records.

On his return to the music scene, Timberlake featured in Nelly Furtado & Timbaland's 'Promiscuous' and then released his second solo album in 2006. The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200. The producers of this album were Timbaland, Danja, will.i.am and Rick Rubin. Timberlake himself also gained some production credits for this album.

He lead single from the album was 'SexyBack' which reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100. Timberlake gained yet another number one single when he performed alongside Nelly Furtado on a Timbaland single, 'Give It To Me.'

In February 2008, Justin Timberlake won another two Grammy Awards, this time for 'male Pop Performance' and 'Dance Recording Award'.

Justin Timberlake: Acting career

Justin Timberlake has appeared in a number of high-profile movie roles, including Alpha Dog and Black Snake Moan. He also voiced the character of King Arthur in Shrek the Third.

Justin Timberlake: Personal Life

Justin Timberlake has been involved in a number of high profile, long-term relationships. Perhaps the most well known was his lengthy relationship with Britney Spears, which ended abruptly in 2002, amid speculation that Spears had been unfaithful.

In 2003, Justin embarked on another long-term relationship with actress Cameron Diaz. This relationship ended in 2007.

Mostly recently, thee singer has been linked to Jessica Biel.