Not in many years has there been as much hype for a project as there is for Justin Timberlake‘s comeback effort ‘The 20/20 Experience’.
Due in stores on March 19th, the set has already been supported by major promotional slots on the Grammy Awards and the UK’s BRITs. Yet that isn’t stopping the former NSync’er from pressing on with an aggressive push for maximum exposure, with his latest stop being prime-time German show ‘Wetten, Dass?’.
Watch below as the singer-actor rocks out to ‘Mirrors’….
Though markedly better than the BRIT’s showing of the song, this was still surprisingly bare for a JT performance. Think cereal with no milk.
It’s oh so clear that, in an era where another Justin has the younger audience on lock, Timberlake has opted to cater to a (slightly) older demographic – which, from our vantage point makes a lot of business sense. Indeed, statistics show that in today’s recession ravaged industry the younger crowd are responsible for the bulk of $0.99 single sales, while the older crowd account for most album sales. And with the latter being where the real $$$ are made, it’s smart that JT is working the album more than any one song (see: not just performing lead single ‘Suit & Tie’).
However…
in serving up these conservative performances, it’s as if Justin has forgotten his foundation. He is, before any thing else, a Pop star, a Pop performer. Indeed, both with NSync and during his initial solo run, he was the main purveyor of the “MTV Dance” break – moments in music videos and performances that would truly “wow”. Now, judging by his stage offerings as of late, it’s like he’s going through the motions, while the masses applaud “just because”. And while in no way as tragic as the current predicament of his ex Britney Spears, such behaviour is rooted in a similar flavour of complacency.
With major tours on the horizon, we hope Justin re-embraces what made him special and stops coasting by on hype. Because these toasty dry performances are not the business.