Justin Timberlake begins his comeback era with ex-girlfriend Britney Spears’ “Selfish” as a No.1 hit on the iTunes Chart in 9 countries, and within the Top 10 in 15 (X). On Thursday (Jan. 25), Timberlake launched his comeback era after an almost six-year album hiatus with the new release, “Selfish.”
“The wait is over. That boy JT is back,” said longtime collaborator and award-winning producer Timbaland in a video posted to social media. The duo’s collaborative journey started in 2006 with Timberlake’s zesty hit “SexyBack.” Since then, they’ve been inseparable, whether it’s collaborating on 2023’s “Keep Going Up” with Nelly Furtado, curating music for ESPN’s Monday Night Football, or producing behind-the-scenes efforts.
“I tried to tell y’all. Gotta be patient,” Timbaland continued. “Greatness is slow-cooked. What we got coming for y’all, you’re gonna love it.” However, the bombshells from Spears’ record-breaking memoir, The Woman In Me, reignited a decades-long feud between the Britney Army and Timberlake.
Timberlake’s lead single, “Selfish” sets one of many tones for his forthcoming project, Everything I Thought I Was. His last album, Man Of The Woods, came out in 2018.
“We were talking about the song itself and just breaking down the idea that you just don’t hear that from men often, that they would express an emotion that makes them vulnerable,” he said to Apple Music 1’s Zane Lowe about the new single. “And then, growing up the way I grew up, you’re taught not to do that. But I don’t know, it just felt like a really honest song.”
Despite the lush, mid-tempo R&B recapturing the music icon’s 2000s legacy, as well as a high-profile musical guest spot on Saturday Night Live, the comeback plummeted 72 spots (to No. 164) on the Global Spotify chart on its second day of release. Watch the music video for “Selfish” by Justin Timberlake below!
Instead, Britney fans are streaming a 13-year-old track of the same name to block Timberlake’s success. And it’s working. As of Jan. 28, Britney Spears’ “Selfish”—an underrated bop from her 2011 album, Femme Fatale—hit a daily stream high of 282K on Spotify whilst spending a second consecutive day at No. 1 on iTunes Worldwide Song Chart.
So, ironically enough, even a new release can’t break Britney’s grasp on pop music—even with a decade-old song. Sorry, Justin.
