After seven long years, six time Grammy winner Justin Timberlake is making a statement with his latest album, The 20/20 Experience. While most of the songs consist of repetitive beats and vocals, a few tunes allow his uniqueness to shine.
In “Pusher Love Girl”, Timberlake repeatedly sings, “Pusher love/so high I’m on the ceiling baby/you’re my drug/so gon’ and be my dealer baby.” While this makes for a smooth tune for a dance party, the lyrics get old and make the listener want to skip the song.
Most of Timberlake’s songs from The 20/20 Experience seem to reflect the pop-style that he has produced for others in recent years. They include plenty of seductive lyrics and an auto-tuned sound on the background singers and rap solos by featured artists such as Jay-Z. This style may be a way to present Timberlake’s general audience with what they expect, but in a few songs, he changed his style, marking his overall maturity in musical taste.
His now famous “Suit & Tie” single shows how Timberlake is trying to get into the old-time Rat Pack-era of the mid-1960’s. When the song is performed live, he has the cleaned up look of a Frank Sinatra inspired singer, with his backing band, the Tennessee Kids, playing behind him. However, “Suit & Tie” is still categorized as a Top 40 hit due to its rap solo and modern dance rhythm.
In “Blue Ocean Floor”, Timberlake took a calming tune and beautified it with his signature falsetto voice. The music in the background magnifies the purity of his vocals, unlike many of the songs on the album. As a musician, it is well-known to try and give the audience what they want and are used to, but sometimes one has to show that they have grown as an artist. With “Blue Ocean Floor”, Timberlake has excelled at showing how he has changed after seven long years.
As one listens to the beginning of the album, they might believe Timberlake is back to his old popish ways of 2006, thanks to the tone he sets with the first two-thirds of the album. However, as the audience listens to the last tracks, they realize how much he has grown as a musician. The emotion he paints with the overall sound of the songs shows Timberlake is not only looking to bring a new sound to modern-day music, but also to bring back the suit that reminds the world of the Rat Pack-era.
