Justin Timberlake had a comical and heartfelt response to being called out for an early-career stage moment on social media.
Social media influencer Hannah Young shared a video titled “We don’t talk about Justin Timberlake beatboxing enough.”
“Because there was a moment in time where that man would be in the middle of a song and just, boots and cats, boots and cats,” she noted.
“And we were like, yes. There he is,” she added. “Nobody questioned it.”
“Nobody said, Justin, you know, we have drums. This is a professional recording studio. There are instruments available to you. But no, Justin Timberlake wanted to make space noises with his mouth,” she deadpanned to the camera, affectionately roasting him in the process.
“You couldn’t stop him. Award shows, live performances—you gave that man a microphone, and there was always a chance he was about to go boots and cats. Boots and cats.”
She went on to say that, as a generation, “we liked it,” noting that our reaction was, “Oh my God, what can’t he do?”
“I think about it often,” she concluded.
View this post on Instagram
Shots were fired, and while Young may not have expected Timberlake to weigh in, he did so with a perfect response.
Tapping into the comments section, the singer responded, “I often look back on that time as well.”
As to why he did it, he admitted, “I still haven’t come up with any answers. I don’t know how to apologize enough for whatever those ambitions were. Too many boots. Too many cats. I hope you can forgive me.”
Then, he revealed with humor, “Also, I can’t promise I won’t do it again. God help us all.”
“That’s honestly the best/funniest response,” one fan wrote.
“And stilll… here we are!! Years and years after all those boots and all those cats!!” another said, underscoring his longevity in music, which went from boy band ‘NSYNC to a successful solo career.
Timberlake’s beatboxing has been the subject of many conversations over the years, specifically his infamous line, “They call me Lake, T T T T Timberlake!!!!,” an impromptu beatboxing moment during a 2000s ‘NSYNC concert special that was accompanied by percussion.
He even used his “human beatbox” abilities during the recording of the band’s 2001 hit single, “Pop.”
As a lifelong Timberlake fan, I can attest that, at the time, his beatboxing sounded exquisite and ahead of its time. Maybe that’s just the 200s nostalgia talking, but if there ever were an ‘NSYNC reunion, I would pay big bucks to see Timberlake deliver his “Lake” line and drop a couple of “boots” and “cats” for old times’ sake.
Related: 26 Years Ago, Iconic ‘90s Group Dominated the Charts With One of the Biggest Album Debuts in Music History