Boy makes me feel like I gotta dance. With my clothes off.
"Ladies and gentlemen / It's my pleasure to introduce to you / He's a friend of mine / And he goes by the name... / Justin"

Timberlake, that is. Not the guy from "American Idol." And so begins Justin Timberlake’s solo effort, Justified.

Like I Love Justified
Just as there are millions of fans who’d defend Justin to the death, there are millions more who would probably like nothing more than to fight the guy himself to the death, such is the intensity of their hatred for Justin Timberlake and his ilk.

I fall into the former category, so it’s perhaps unsurprising that I like Justified. He exhibits the same sort of versatility found on NSYNC albums, from belting out Jackofied high notes in the first single "Like I Love You" to crooning slow jams like "Never Again." The difference here is that there is none of that five-part harmony, and Justin’s affinity for R&B is blatantly obvious. His solo effort is not a one-man NSYNC album. You’d be hard pressed to find a song on Justified that sounded vaguely boy band-worthy. He assembled an army of hip hop and R&B top brass (The Neptunes, Timbaland, Clipse, Brian McKnight, Janet Jackson) to help him make the smooth transition. If I were a member of NSYNC, I’d be a little nervous because his solo effort could very well signal the end of the group. Did Michael need his brothers? No. Did George need Andrew Ridgeley? No. Why share the spoils when it can be all yours?

On the album’s release date, a local urban station played the tracks throughout the day, and after every play the DJ would praise the song in an almost orgasmic manner, which would send me into a fit of giggles because the guy sounded a lot like James Earl Jones. Think about it. James Earl Jones having an orgasm. You can’t help but laugh.

Old Dirty Bi'atch
Anyway, I feel not unlike a dirty old woman getting worked up over Justified. NSYNC has been around since the mid-’90s, when Justin probably hadn’t yet hit puberty. Now he’s all man, singing about hands rubbing on his body, the other Janet is ordering him to take her now, and he’s giving an ultimatum to strip naked on the best song of the album, "Rock Your Body."

"Better have you nekkid by the end of this song"

By the end? My clothes were on the floor by the second verse, baby.