Who says the pop star is lifeless? At his triumphant tour cease in Los Angeles Saturday night time, Justin Timberlake led a revival for the reigning Prince of Pop, with a setlist of best hits and new materials that proves the Grammy-winning entertainer is right here to remain.
Timberlake took the stage shortly after 9 p.m. at Kia Discussion board in Inglewood, for the tenth cease on his “Overlook Tomorrow” World Tour, and the second of two nights in L.A. The offered out tour, in assist of his sixth studio album, All the things I Thought It Was, was billed as an opportunity for followers to listen to songs from the brand new LP together with “everybody’s favourite hits,” and Timberlake expertly blended them right into a two-hour, feel-good fest.
Wearing a glittery black swimsuit and trousers, the singer opened with “No Angels,” a disco-lite minimize off EITIW that instantly had the group on its toes. Backed by a trio of background singers and a full band (together with a four-piece horn part), Timberlake and his “Tennessee Youngsters” adopted with a decent triple whammy of “LoveStoned,” “Like I Love You” and “My Love” earlier than slowing issues down with “Technicolor,” a seductive gradual jam that finds the singer worshipping his “modern-day” Marilyn Monroe.
Timberlake has made headlines over the previous few months for his off-the-cuff feedback, however on Saturday, the singer let his music do many of the speaking, whereas displaying off some slick choreography that proved he — actually — hasn’t missed a step. Playful, confident, and only a tad rambunctious, Timberlake was at his greatest on crowd-pleasers like “FutureSex/LoveSound” and “Summer season Love,” the latter of which gave the star an opportunity to bust out some rump-shaking strikes throughout a mid-song dance break.
A few third of the present was devoted to songs from Timberlake’s newest album, which debuted at quantity 4 on the Billboard 200, turning into the singer’s first album since 2002’s Justified to not take the highest spot. The gang was noticeably unfamiliar with the brand new materials, although Timberlake labored exhausting to include the tunes into the setlist, seamlessly transitioning from the call-and-response chant on new music, “My Favourite Drug,” for instance, into the crowd-pleasing call-and-response chorus from Justified’s “Señorita.” One other spotlight was “Drown,” a moody, slow-burning monitor that noticed Timberlake crooning over an atmospheric beat whereas a video of the singer being submerged in water performed on a rotating display screen above the stage.
Followers instantly leapt again to their toes when the acquainted piano opening of “Cry Me a River” started to play. “That bought your ass up!” Timberlake quipped about his controversial monitor, which got here surprisingly early on within the night time.
Timberlake didn’t say a lot else in the course of the live performance, although he did notice that it was “a particular night time,” with lots of his family and friends within the L.A. viewers. Spouse Jessica Biel wasn’t seen within the crowd, however an acoustic medley of ballads carried out on a facet stage included Timberlake’s current single, “Egocentric,” which the singer wrote about his longtime associate.
Certainly, Timberlake has been entertaining followers for a very long time too. “I really feel like we’ve grown up collectively,” the singer mentioned at one level of the night time, shouting out “a little bit group known as NSYNC” for giving him his begin within the music business (whereas NSYNC reunited for a one-off Timberlake present at The Wiltern in March, there was no reunion, alas, on Saturday).
“I’ve grown up with you and also you’ve grown up with me,” the singer mentioned. “I’m by no means going to overlook it and I’ve a lot gratitude for each considered one of you right here tonight.”
Timberlake closed out the live performance with “Mirrors,” suspended excessive above the group on the rotating display screen that had now turn out to be a cellular platform. The famous person singer towering over his adoring followers made for a placing picture, and one which felt aptly becoming after the rapturous reception he obtained: for a minimum of one night time, Justin Timberlake was again on prime.