Justin Timberlake has produced more than a few hit songs as a solo artist over the course of his illustrious career, and one that continues to penetrate the zeitgeist is 2006’s “What Goes Around... Comes Around”. The hit song has in some ways become something of a breakup anthem and, as a result, one rumor has been swirling around it for years. Many have speculated that the song is inspired by Timberlake’s split from Britney Spears. Now, Timberlake himself is clearing the air and explaining the real backstory.
As of late, Timberlake has been somewhat nostalgic, as he’s been looking back on his musical creations. The Grammy Award winner recently sat down with Complex for an interview (which is on YouTube) and ranked his best songs. While discussing “What Goes Around…”, Timberlake said that he felt compelled to address the long-standing rumor related to the tune. Apparently, the song is not about him but about another person’s experience, and he went on to explain how everything came together:
Maybe I should dispel a rumor at this point, which has gone around forever, which is like it's not a personal story from mine. It's actually a personal story from a friend that I asked permission to [use as] inspiration. Funny enough, I asked. I was like — he was just going through it. And he was telling me what had happened, and I said, ‘Do you mind if I write about this?’ And I quote, my friend said, ‘Yeah, torch that bitch. What goes around comes around.’
Now, if that last comment couldn’t be viewed as a sign, then I don’t know what could’ve. This is definitely an intriguing piece of lore on one of JT’s signature songs. What’s more is that while Timberlake has talked about the challenges of writing hit songs, his experience penning “What Goes Around…” sounds like a walk in the park:
I was like, ‘I have to go. Thank you. I have to go. I have to go.’ He's like, ‘What?’ I was like, ‘I got it. I got it.’ And I hung up the phone. And so I had the idea. I just went in and, again, this song was written in, I mean, damn near 20 minutes…. It was just flowing. The interlude that goes with it, like it's just — and then you put the video with it. There's a 10-minute video we shot for it. This just hit on all cylinders for me.
It was in 1999 that Justin Timberlake began dating Britney Spears, who he had previously worked with on The All-New Mickey Mouse Club. The pair became an it-couple during the early aughts, and the relationship eventually ended on a sour note in 2002. At that time, Timberlake allegedly sent Spears a breakup text message that she received while filming the “Overprotected: The Darkchild Remix” music video. In the aftermath, Timberlake released the hit 2002 track, “Cry Me A River” and, in 2011, he confirmed the Spears split inspired it.
Much has been said and written about the Spears/Timberlake relationship, and it has remained a topic of discussion. Spears herself even discussed aspects of the relationship in her best-selling 2023 memoir, The Woman in Me. In that book, Spears covered more than a few topics, including the abortion she had in 2000, which she said came after Timbelake told her he “didn’t want to be a father” at the time. While Timberlake has been honest about not saying sorry to “nobody,” he was allegedly concerned ahead of the book’s release.
Of course, at this point, both Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears are in different places in their lives. The pair don’t seem to be in regular contact, though Timberlake did apologize to Spears in 2021 for his role in the personal setbacks she experienced and expressed support ahead of her conservatorship ending. I don’t see the two getting back on regular speaking terms again. Still, at least the “What Goes Around... Comes Around” rumor is now cleared up.
