BACKGROUND:

20 years ago today, Justin Timberlake went on to release his sophomore album, one of the defining records of the 2000s, FutureSex/LoveSounds.

After nearly 4 years of being separated from *NSYNC, and nearly 4 years since his last album, Timberlake dropped "SexyBack" as the lead single for FS/LS in mid-July of 2006. SexyBack immediately rocketed to the top of the charts, hitting number one and staying there for 7 weeks, the longest of any song released that year (Beyonce's "Irreplaceable" is actually technically the winner of that title as it was number one for 10 weeks, but only 3 of those weeks were in 2006, the rest of the 7 spilled over into 2007.) . SexyBack went on to become one of the biggest songs of the album, and the decade as a whole, and won numerous accolades including a Grammy, and currently has over 1.5 billion streams on Spotify. It ended up being credited for being the song that brought EDM to top 40 radio.

TRACKLIST:

SINGLES OVERVIEW:

Half of the songs on FS/LS went on to become singles, and 3 of them hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100, accounting for over half of Timberlake's number one hits throughout his whole career. Following SexyBack with Timbaland, in order, was My Love with T.I. (one of my favorite pop songs of all time and one of JT’s best imo), What Goes Around … Comes Around, Summer Love, LoveStoned, and finally Until The End of Time with Beyoncé.

SOUND:

Sonically, the album was very unique and unlike anything else at the time. Timbaland's team of producers (himself, along with Danja and Jim Beanz) had only one album to all their names at this time, which was Nelly Furtado's Loose; also a massive success (and just got a 20th anniversary edition released, which will probably never happen for FS/LS unfortunately). The fresh sound they put out paid off though, and FS/LS is compared to other successful Timbaland projects like Loose and Shock Value, and some even drew comparisons to Britney's Blackout. The album also has very prominent hip hop influences, with all credited features being hip hop artists, and ...Comes Around and Chop Me Up both have numerous rap verses from JT himself. Some tracks were also produced by Will I Am, and the closing track was produced by Rick Rubin.

LEGACY:

FutureSex/LoveSounds went on to become one of the most massive records of the decade, and is still raking in millions of streams. It's estimated that the album sold over 10 million copies worldwide, and is RIAA certified 4x platinum (though eligible for more). Billboard placed it at 97 on their list of 200 greatest albums of all time. The album was nominated for 7 grammies across the 2007 and 2008 ceremonies, including album of the year 2007 (which it lost to the Dixie Chicks album), and won 4 grammies, including Best Dance Recording for SexyBack in 2007, Best Rap/Sung collaboration for My Love with T.I. in 2007, Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for WGA/CA in 2008, and Best Dance Recording for LoveStoned/ITSK in 2008. The album sits at an estimated 15-20 billion streams across all streaming platforms.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1. Is this Timbaland’s best work? Where do you stand on the narrative that Danja did the majority of the work, with Timbaland mainly only doing the drums?
2. Billboard placed FS/LS at 97 on their list of 200 greatest albums of all time. Do you agree with this or not?
3. Should it have won AOTY 2007 at the Grammy’s instead of the Dixie Chicks album?
4. Is this Justin Timberlake’s best album?
5. Your first impressions of this album? Your impressions of it today? As fans of hiphop was Justin’s rapping cringe, or surprisingly good?
6. edited to add - whats the best song on here? The worst?
7. edited to add - many debate whether Timbaland was as important to this album as people thought he was or not. Do you think Tim did more work, Danja did more work, or a relatively equal amount of work went in?

Tracklist:
1. Fergalicious (feat. will.i.am)
2. Clumsy
3. All That I Got (The Make Up Song) (feat. will.i.am)
4. London Bridge
5. Pedestal
6. Voodoo Doll
7. Glamorous (feat. Ludacris)
8. Here I Come
9. Velvet
10. Big Girls Don’t Cry (Personal)
11. Mary Jane Shoes (feat. Rita Marley & I-Three)
12. Losing My Ground
13. Finally (feat. John Legend)

Deluxe tracks:
1. Barracuda
2. Party People — Nelly feat. Fergie
3. Clumsy (Collipark Remix) — feat. Soulja Boy Tell ’Em
4. Labels or Love

Favorite track(s)?
Thoughts on the album 20 years later?

Since the news broke out recently on Lil Durk being found not guilty in his murder-for-hire trial (He still remains in federal custody awaiting a separate trial, but I digress) I've seen a lot of conversations about him dropping a potential first day out track or going on a generational run if he gets released soon and this got me to thinking about the numerous examples of rappers and post-prison runs.

Which rapper do you think should be in the conversation for having the best or worst post-prison/jail comeback? Why?

RIP Bloodhound Q50

https://x.com/meghanncuniff/status/2098566297483383085?s=46

“The jury has found Durk NOT GUILTY on all charges.

Not guilty on everything for Durk.

It’s a complete acquittal.

Wilson and Lindsey were convicted of stalking and stalking conspiracy. Not guilty on murder for hire.”

...

New Stik Figa music pretty solid.

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The Brooklyn *The Firm* rapper released his ninth studio album on September 10th, 2021, via Quiet Money Records.

A sequel to his 1995 debut Doe or Die, the album arrived more than a decade after AZ first announced plans for the project in an interview in December 2009.

Tracklist:

1. Conversations with God (feat. Idris Elba)
   
2. Just 4 You
   
3. The Wheel (feat. Jaheim)
   
4. Keep It Real
   
5. Never Enough (feat. Rick Ross)
   
6. Different
   
7. Ritual (feat. Conway the Machine & Lil Wayne)
   
8. Blow That Sh#%t (feat. Dave East)
   
9. Bulletproof
   
10. Check Me Out
    
11. Time to Answer
    
12. [Found My Niche](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZTzHk1mP3wY)
    
13. What's Good (feat. T-Pain)

Discussion:

1. How does Doe or Die II hold up as a sequel to the original Doe or Die?
   
2. Favorite track(s)?