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Timberlake puts the sexy into married life in albumBy Piya Sinha-Roy, Reuters LOS ANGELES--After making the transition from child star and boy band heartthrob to movie star, Justin Timberlake is returning to music with his first album since 2006, cementing his grown-up status with a record inspired by his new marriage.
March 19, 2013, 12:00 am TWN Timberlake, 32, officially releases “The 20/20 Experience” on Tuesday. But the 10-track record of smooth love songs with a throwback R&B sound is already No. 1 on the iTunes charts after it was streamed online last week. The album is Timberlake's first since “FutureSex/LoveSounds” which spawned hit pop singles “Sexyback” and “What Goes Around...Comes Around.” Although lead single “Suit & Tie,” featuring rapper Jay-Z, failed to meet sales expectations on its first week of release in January, the album is expected to sell well following weeks of promotion including a Grammy Awards show performance and a stint by Timberlake on TV sketch show “Saturday Night Live.” Industry sources cited by Billboard said “The 20/20 Experience” could sell 500,000 copies in its first week, and easily give Timberlake the No. 1 spot on the Billboard 200 album charts. “The 20/20 Experience” sees Timberlake embracing his status as a married man after his wedding to actress Jessica Biel in October 2012. The singer draws on lazy summer romances for the majority of his songs, with slow-tempo swing rhythms on tracks such as “Pusher Girl Love,” where Timberlake describes his addiction to a girl. Jason Lipshutz at Billboard magazine gave the album an 88 out of 100 rating, saying that while the singer did not replicate the edgy pop sounds of earlier hits on his “FutureSex” album, he “has offered us something more complicated, although no less accessible.” Rolling Stone magazine's Jody Rosen praised the singer for being “such a charismatic and effortlessly appealing singer, dancer and showman,” and called the album “Timberlake's neo-soul record.” |
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