Justin Timberlake, who graces the cover of this week's Entertainment Weekly with Jesse Eisenberg and Andrew Garfield spoke candidly to the magazine about transitioning from music to film, and whether he's worried he will face the same fate as Christina Aguilera, who had the biggest flop of her career with "Bionic."
EW: Are there people you work with who are telling you that you should put another record out sooner rather than later?
Timberlake: [Long pause] When someone starts alluding to that, it gets shut down so fast. It’s like, “Talk all you want. Predict what you want.” I’m talking about people that work with me. “Ask me what you want, but know that I’m going to do what I want.” Does a painter make a painting because he has to make it by December 21st? No, he doesn’t. It happens when it pours out of him. That’s how music is for me. It’s not methodical. It’s so much more of an outburst of emotion. That’s the way my two albums have been. And when it does, it’s like Niagara Falls. I’m constantly creating. I’m into photography, I’m into music, I’m into film. I’m into a lot of things, but I don’t think that every idea I come up with is the greatest idea ever. I don’t have to tweet that I’m going to the bathroom in a song.
EW: Do you think it’s dangerous to wait so long? Christina Aguilera waited four years between albums, and her fans don’t seem to care about her right now.
Timberlake: If you’re asking me, no. I never stop making music. I don’t know what else to tell you, except that I just don’t know [in] what capacity I want to be involved anymore.
EW: That sounds very final.
Timberlake: No. All I’m saying is, in very simple terms, I’ll know when I know. And until I know, I don’t know. Every time I’ve gone against my gut, I’ve made the wrong decision. Call that New Agey if you like. I don’t give a s—. I know that I could wake up next year one day and be like, “Hey, I want to go on tour again, so I want to put a record out.”
One thing I love about JT is that he's not a studio performer. He doesn't just run into the studio like Rihanna and Beyonce to put out a new album every six months just so he can compete with today's microwave singles market. Music and songwriting should come naturally, and not be forced. There have been many okay songs that have come out lately and people wonder why their sales are shit. I think the reason JT's career has lasted so long and he's come out unscathed is because there's two things you need in the entertainment business in order to succeed: Humility and the ability to work hard. Justin is so focused on his film career at the moment, and trying to prove he's a serious actor, when he's ready to make a new album I'm sure he will. He may decide to make a new album tommorrow, or he might decide to produce for someone. Being an artist (which is a rare thing these days) should be about going with your gut and doing what feels right, no matter the criticism.
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