Singer-songwriter Justin Timberlake is in Minnesota before his half-time performance at the Super Bowl and says about the state, “Minnesotans have completely debunked the rumor that us Southerners thought that people from the North were not as nice as us, because it’s like everyone’s been, it’s been just great. I mean, I wish you would turn up the heat a little bit.” Timberlake’s spouse, Jessica Biel, is from Ely. He says he went to a well-known Minneapolis restaurant, “ate my weight in steak and slept for about 12 hours.”
Timberlake says Sunday’s halftime show will not be an N’ Sync reunion and neither Janet Jackson nor Chris Stapleton will be special guests — just his current band which he calls the Tennessee Kids. The only other thing Timberlake divulged is that his 2016 blockbuster, “Can’t Stop the Feeling,” will be part of the performance.
He called Prince the greatest all-around musician in popular culture: “The time that I got to spend around him, with him, talking about music, those are memories that I will take with me forever because he’s always been such a big idol of mine…. So it feels nice to be here.” He attended a Thursday night listening party at the Prince estate, saying he’s truly honored to “walk the hallowed, sacred ground of Paisley Park…. There’s like a lot of bucket list things that are happening this week for me, and that’s definitely at the top of that list as well.”
There’s speculation that one of the lyrics on his forthcoming album — “I love your pink/You like my purple” — was inspired by Prince, but when asked where the line came from, Timberlake told the reporter, “That’s none of your business, sir.”
And which team is Timberlake rooting for Sunday? “Go Pack Go,” he said, as some in the audience cheered.
Audio from Thursday’s Q&A with reporters: