Justin Timberlake Speaks out After Getting Roasted for Viral Dance Video

This time, Justin Timberlake didn't quite bring sexy back. In a lighthearted apology posted to Instagram on June 23, the 41-year-old apologized for his dance moves during his performance at Pharrell Williams' Something in the Water Music Festival in Washington, D.C., on June 18 during his hit song "SexyBack."

A video of the performance shows the Grammy winner telling the audience, "D.C., beat your feet!" Timberlake was referencing a traditional D.C. dance style, usually set to go-go music, that's supposed to resemble this.

During a video posted to his Instagram Stories, Timberlake stated, "D.C., I want to apologize for two reasons." He turned the camera and pointed to his Nike sneakers, "Here and here!"

"I had a long talk with both of them individually and said, 'Um don't you ever do that to me again,'" he quipped. "Maybe it was the khakis, khaki vibe. I'll make this up to you. I'm going to focus on these two guys right here and get them right," he said. "Love y'all." He then shared amusing TikTok videos of fans replicating his footwork and admitted they performed the choreography better than him.

The D.C. dance style known as "Beat ya feet" grew out of the go-go scene in the 1990s and 2000s. It was a local dancer called Crazy Legs who helped spread the dance across the world. The dance consists of a series of three-step moves and a bounce, unlike Timberlake's bungled (but definitely effort-filled) actions.

Black Twitter roundly mocked the former NSYNC member once a video of his dance went viral. Muriel Bowser, the mayor of the District of Columbia, even asked the city's residents if they should let the artist off the hook for his dance moves.

Something in the Water took place in Washington, D.C. last weekend over the Juneteenth holiday. It was initially scheduled for Pharrell's home state of Virginia, but after the murder of his cousin Donovan Lynch last year, he changed the location. The 49-year-old "Happy" singer told USA Today that the festival is to promote "unity and togetherness – not genres, but humans getting together." Other stars who performed at the event this year included Usher, Calvin Harris, Ashanti, Tyler the Creator, and Dave Matthews Band.

Cringeworthy moves aside, Timberlake's bank account is at least thriving. On May 26, news broke that the star sold his music catalog to Hipgnosis Song Management, backed by private-equity firm Blackstone. The agreement covers about 200 songs that Timberlake wrote or co-wrote. With the private equity company in charge, the musician's hit songs such as "SexyBack," "Can't Stop the Feeling," and "Mirrors" will be their property, reported Billboard.

The catalog sold for a little more than $100 million, according to The Wall Street Journal. Although Timberlake's camp requested a price tag in that range, the price was too expensive to them, according to Billboard sources.

Timberlake's catalog revenue had declined since its peak between 2016 and 2018 when he co-wrote the song "Can't Stop The Feeling!" for the Trolls movie soundtrack. Billboard has estimated that from 2019 to 2021, his catalog has generated an average of $3.3 million in NPS annually (the outlet said sources familiar with the deal confirm this).

NPS refers to the amount of royalties received by a music publisher minus the amount paid out to writers, performers, and others involved with the royalties. Music publishing catalogs are usually sold at multiples of NPS.

According to Billboard, sources said Timberlake's camp was hoping for a $100 million payday, or at least a 28 times NPS multiple. The multiple was seen as too high by some potential bidders because of the uncertainty over the decay rate for the catalog's current biggest songs and rising uncertainties about the impact of interest rates. Sources said a bid of about $70 million to $75 million was more realistic.

Despite reports to the contrary, they say it's more likely the Timberlake catalog was sold for about $85 million at most. Sources told Billboard. CEO Merck Mercuriadis of Hipgnosis Songs Management told the publication the company is under [non-disclosure agreement] and have not divulged any numbers.

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