Today may mark the global release of Justin Timberlake‘s new album ‘The 20/20 Experience’, but the singer already has his sights set on its follow-up.
Over the weekend, Root’s star QuestLove sensationally revealed that a sequel for the ‘Suit & Tie’ led set is scheduled for November — touting the release of 10 tracks now, 10 tracks later (= 20).
With the news spreading like a wildfire, the singer had no choice but to address suggestion of ’20/20′ sequel at his iHeartRadio album release party last night in Los Angeles.
Find out what he said after the jump…
Talking to Ryan Seacrest during the live-streamed show, the 32 year old said:
“I’ve got to clear up the rumors. This whole thing about this only being the first part … is true. There is another half. I’m not giving you a release date” {Source}
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While it’d take a lot to convince us that this isn’t driven by a desire to race through record contract obligations (see: movies pay better and faster), we’d be lying if we said we aren’t amped. More so from a marketing standpoint than a musical one.
Releasing part 1 amidst the expected “comeback” hysteria (and a worldwide stadium tour) will likely see the project achieve blockbuster success between now and end of the year; part 2, we imagine, will come packaged with the first to beef up overall sales. Even if rolled-out as a standalone project, it’ll be able to compensate for the lack of “first album in 7 years” hype by piggy-backing on the success of its first instalment. Put simply, it’s a win-win — on paper.
Profit, of course, is always the main motiv for such releases, yet when artists and their teams find clever ways to mask and market this it reminds us that there are still creative folk at work in an often routinized industry.