CULTIVATED INFLUENCE

Seven years is quite a long time. In seven years we’ve seen the entire music landscape changed, we’ve seen the meteoric rise of Lil Wayne and subsequent fall (depending on who you ask). We have seen the rise of stars from YouTube and the impact that social media can have on media. It’s hard to believe it’s been seven years since FutureSex/LoveSounds. Seven years, Timberlake has matured and you can tell it in his music. His lead single “Suit and Tie” had a more grownup feel rather than “Sexy/Back” Timberlake has created an album for those that are in the same age bracket as he is. Timberlake is 32, has truly been away from the music world for a few years. Since FutureSex/LoveSounds Timberlake took a hiatus, starring in several movies, The Social Network, In Time, Bad Teacher, and Friends With Benefits. And even attended a Marine Corps Ball in 2011. Up until this point many didn’t know when or even if Timberlake would ever return to music.

Then came the letter to the fans in January, the letter in which he declared a return to music, a return that fans had been clamoring for.The obvious question was how would his new music sound. Questions were abundant and there seemed to be no answer. Then he released the album’s first single “Suit and Tie” featuring Jay-Z on January 14th, it was a song that was different from the Timberlake that everyone knew. Many weren’t sure how his album would sound after hearing the single. Timberlake’s “new sound” was no longer the R&B/HipHop that fans were accustomed to. No, this time he sounded more mature as he was singing about wearing a suit and tie, sounding way more adult than the man who brought sexy back.

That’s the magic of his new album though,Timberlake has made an album that reflects himself. He married Jessica Biel in 2012. So simply sticking to his past style wouldn’t work. The 20/20 Experience allows you to see Justin in a new way. Grown Up. No longer is he singing about “shackles and being a slave” Rather JT is using the L word. Heavily. Timberlake has created an ode to the love of his life and you can sense that early in the album. He starts the album off with Pusher Love Girl, a smooth cut that compares his lady to a drug which he is addicted to. Once you hear the string filled first ten seconds of it you know this is different, this isn’t JT, this is Justin.

The album is smooth, like real smooth. Although he has matured, he has gone back to the golden formula he knows works best and that is linking up with Timbaland once again (Have they made anything bad?). This album represents a metamorphosis of sound. Gone is the synth pop/ R&B hybrid sound of FutureSex. 20/20 doesn’t sound like anything you can find on the radio and that is one of the best things about it. That’s the magic about this album. The music from this album sprawls across many genres, as it takes pieces and mixes them all up. Like a fine blended gumbo.

Timbaland’s trademark sound can be found on the tracks especially “Mirrors” a song that almost sounds like Justin never even left music for those years. In this song he compares the love of his life to looking in a mirror and seeing a reflection of himself. His content is littered with drug references and an acclamation for love of a certain woman. It’s almost like he recorded this album right after cupid’s arrow hit him.”Spaceship Coupe” sounds like that R&B song that you might find on the later tracks of FutureSex. With a chorus like,

“Hop into my spaceship coupe/ There’s only room for two (Me and you)/ And with the top down/ We’ll cruise around/ Land and make love on the moon/ Would you like that“

you know it’s about to get real serious. There are some baby makers on this album, but that’s what everyone has become accustomed to.

The songs are a bit longer and if you want to get technical this album is more neo-soul than pop and R&B. That’s completely fine. There are only 10 song on the album but there is more than meets the eye (yes I did that). The songs often experience a key change that completely changes the whole song, it is almost like you are listening to a whole different song. That’s one of the strong points of the album.

At the age of 32, this isn’t to be deemed a comeback album, rather this is a triumphant return to music from one of the industry’s top draws. Many artists have had comeback albums to only just fall in line with the latest trend in today’s music. Timberlake could have easily just released an album full of EDM tracks (it would still sell) but rather Justin created an album that he liked and that’s the most important thing for an artist today. For a man that came from the boy band machine (complete with the ramen noodle curls and outlandish outfits) it is good to see him going in his own direction. It doesn’t matter if he will be a trendsetter or not with this, because he has this all under control. Justin hasn’t finished either, come November he’ll be releasing Part 2 and if it’s anything like this, he might as well just stay on that Grammy stage.