Forget the Fireworks Timberlake's London Gig is a Bang

First Night: Justin Timberlake, The O2 Arena, London
Talented Timberlake states his case as the new King of Pop
By Alice Jones
Published: 05 July 2007

Justin Timberlake certainly knows how to work a crowd. Even before his entrance up through the middle of the stage, shrouded in gauzy curtains and flanked by his four gangster-and-moll style backing dancers, he's milking the 20,000 capacity audience like he's been doing it all his life. Which he has, really: ever since his first gig, aged 10, as a mousketeer on the Disney Channel, through the frizzy-haired years of boy band stardom in *NSync to now, the slim 26-year-old in the three-piece suit and trainers from Memphis, Tennessee has lived and breathed showbusiness.

He teases his fans unashamedly - stopping his first solo hit, "Like I Love You", half-way through, allowing just enough time for the odd boo to ripple through the crowd before picking it back up, at a more frenzied pace than before. Then there's the patter - "If I'm going to be away from home, there's no place I'd rather be than London" - every sentence of which is greeted with ear-splitting screams. There's a slightly odd moment when he toasts "our troops who continue to fight for our freedom". But no one really minds, they're not here to see Timberlake talk.

This is The 2007 FutureSex/LoveShow, tied to last year's concept album, FutureSex/LoveSounds, whose main concept was to "bring sexy back" with a heaving mass of testosterone-fuelled tunes produced by Timbaland, Black Eyed Peas' Will.I.Am and Rick Rubin, among others.

Timberlake performs tracks from it, along with a few favourites from his 2002 debut, Justified, on a propeller-shaped stage whose four protruding tongues allow him to get up close and personal with his fans. He's backed by a crack team of street dancers - none of whom come close to Timberlake's own effortless gliding across the stage - a pleasingly chunky band featuring no less than three drummers and four excellent backing singers.

Aside from a revolving stage, occasional projections and the odd laser beam, there's a refreshing lack of trickery. The show is really all about Timberlake, who uses the evening to showcase his myriad talents. Aside from his breath-taking dancing he sings with style, he beatboxes (on "Cry Me a River" - by far the biggest song of the night) - and he plays a bewildering array of instruments. "He'll be on the bongos next," remarked my companion, a little wearily.

Luckily for us there's an interval. Timberlake re-emerges wearing a trilby and combat trousers, but - weirdly - the same shirt.

By the time he had played "Sexy Back" you leave wondering whether this hugely talented showman really could fill the gap left by that erstwhile King of Pop, Michael Jackson. -
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