Britney Spears‘ memoir, The Woman in Me, is finally out—and she has more to say about Justin Timberlake.
The memoir’s audiobook is narrated by actress Michelle Williams (not the singer), which made one particular section about Timberlake extra entertaining.
Spears recounts how when she and Timberlake were dating, they were walking down the street in New York City when Timberlake ran into the rapper Ginuwine, and said: “Oh yeah, fo’ shiz fo’ shiz. Ginuwine, what’s up, homie?”
Timberlake apparently wasn’t embarrassed (then), but hearing Williams’ impression of him is a joy. So is hearing her call NSYNC “so pimp.”
“Michelle Williams is doing performance art here, you see,” said @CharlesPulliam.
“(white) Michelle Williams doing an impression of Britney doing an impression of Justin Timberlake doing an impression of a Black person – this is art,” wrote @OteghaUwagba.
Williams already has a Golden Globe and has been nominated for several Oscars, but people wondered if she could be nominated for the memoir. (Technically, she could get a Grammy nomination.)
@caseythomasbrown Michelle Williams deserves an EGOT for this… #britneyspears #thewomaninme #michellewilliams ♬ original sound – Casey Thomas Brown
The clip was circulated on X and TikTok, as were other chapters from the memoir. Before The Woman in Me was released, it was revealed Spears had an abortion while she and Timberlake were dating, and fans claimed she alluded to this in 2003’s hit “Everytime.”
That section was posted to TikTok, and Spears says she took abortion pills at home in order to keep the procedure a secret from family, friends, and media.
In the excerpt about Timberlake and Ginuwine, Spears recalls that NSYNC sometimes “tried too hard to fit in” with hip-hop artists.
Timberlake has been accused of cultural appropriation throughout his career and has apologized for some instances, like his 2016 response to Jesse Williams’ BET Awards speech.
The 2004 Super Bowl is one oft-cited incident; a “wardrobe malfunction” interrupted Janet Jackson’s career, while Timberlake’s took off.