FRESH AIR
Justin Timberlake has come a long way from the first time he stepped on a stage at the age of 8. “My mother sort of makes this joke that she’s surprised that I know what she looks like, because up until I … first stepped onto a stage, all I did was look down at my feet,” Timberlake explains. “As soon as I discovered the stage, it brought out a lot in me that I didn’t know I had. And it did it at a very young age, and it was one of the most fun things that I could ever do.” The versatile performer has since proven that he can sing — he has produced several hit solo albums, including Justified and FutureSex/LoveSounds — after leading the 1990s boy band ‘N Sync to become the third-highest selling boy band of all time. And he has demonstrated his acting chops, performing in both comedic and dramatic roles. Several digital shorts from his appearances on Saturday Night Live, including “Dick in a Box” and “Motherlover,” have become viral Internet sensations, while his recent performance as Napster founder Sean Parker in David Fincher’s The Social Network was lauded by both The New York Times and The New Yorker; in the latter, David Denby wrote that Timberlake’s “charm and physical dynamism … torque the movie even higher.” Timberlake’s success on the stage started when he was just 11 years old. He appeared on Star Search, then successfully auditioned for a part on the Disney Channel series The New Mickey Mouse Club alongside future stars Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera and JC Chasez, who would become his bandmate in ‘N Sync. MORE