Is Justin Timberlake’s Drown about Britney Spears? Lyrical breakdown

Justin Timberlake’s new single ‘Drown’ appears to reference a failed past relationship – and some fans think the singer is referring to ex Britney Spears.

“Drown” was released on Friday, February 23 and the track will be featured on his upcoming album, Everything I thought it waswhich will be released on March 15.

The lyrics of ‘Drown’, which Timberlake co-wrote Louis Bell, Henry Walter, Amy Allen And Kenyon Dixonthink about a romance that once crashed and burned after a former partner “showed” him who they “really were.”

“You left me alone in the dark with all your demons,” Timberlake sings in the song’s first chorus. “I got caught in the tide of all the tears you cried / You know I was blinded by my heart, sinking from the beginning / I should never have followed you this far, now I’m in the deep end.”

In the second verse, Timberlake shouts that he should have never followed his ex this far, but was “blinded by his heart” – and is now stuck in the “deep end.”

The topic has led some fans to speculate whether the former boybander is referencing his messy breakup with Spears, 42, on the track. The couple dated from 1999 to 2002 before calling it quits amid rumors that Spears cheated on Timberlake with choreographer Wade Robson.

Timberlake also wonders if the romance could have worked if things had been different. “Sometimes I sit and fantasize / Maybe someday in another life / We could have done it right, could have done it right,” the bridge concludes.

Although Timberlake never officially confirmed who the song was about, the release comes nearly four months after Spears dropped her tell-all memoir: The woman in me. In the book, Spears revealed details about her and Timberlake’s romance, including claims that she had an abortion and that Timberlake had cheated on her multiple times and broke up with her via text message. (After the book’s release, a source said We weekly that Timberlake had no idea he would appear so often in the book.

Related: Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake: a timeline of their ups and downs

Alexa, play “Cry Me a River” by Justin Timberlake – then put on “Everytime” by Britney Spears. Timberlake and Spears called it quits 20 years ago, but fans are still invested in their rocky romance. The former boy bander and pop princess met in the early 1990s during the recording of The Mickey Mouse Club. In […]

“Justin thought Britney could talk about their ups and downs in more general terms — and not air their very personal, dirty laundry,” the insider explained in October 2023. “He is disappointed that she took this route decades after they broke up.”

Another source claimed that Timberlake – who shares sons Silas and Phineas – with his wife Jessica Biel – feels remorseful, but hopes they can get over this.

“Justin regrets hurting Britney. He was young,” the second source said Us. “He believes Britney has every right to tell her story and hopes they can now move forward.”

While Timberlake faced backlash following Spears’ memoir, she appeared to invite him An apologies last month.

“I want to apologize for some of the things I wrote about in my book,” Spears captioned an Instagram post at the time, which included a clip of Timberlake performing during a “Classroom Instruments” segment on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. “If I have offended anyone I really care about, I am deeply sorry. I also wanted to say that I’m in love with Justin Timberlake’s new song “Selfish.” It’s so good and how come I laugh so hard every time I see Justin and Jimmy together???

Shortly after Spears appeared to say sorry, Timberlake performed a concert in New York. While introducing his 2002 song “Cry Me a River,” which seemingly references his split from Spears, Timberlake addressed the crowd.

‘I would like to take this opportunity to apologize absolutely no one” he said, according to images shared on social media.

Spears quickly retracted her apology afterward.

“Someone told me someone was talking about me on the street!!!” the singer wrote on February 1 via Instagram. “Do you want me to take it to court or are you going to go home crying to your mother like you did last time??? I’m not sorry !!!”

“Drown” wouldn’t be the first time Timberlake would sing about his divorce from Spears. “Cry Me a River,” from his 2002 album Justified, seemingly accused the pop star of infidelity, with Timberlake casting a Spears lookalike as the female lead in the music video. “What Goes Around… Comes Around”, the record’s second single, also seemed to reference their relationship.

Spears said he was the subject of Timberlake’s early ’00s music The woman in me, and said Timberlake gained “power” by “shaming” her over the breakup. Spears wrote that although her managers tried to portray her as “an eternal virgin” — despite losing her virginity at age 14 — she was subsequently labeled a “cheating slut” and a liar after Timberlake publicly confirmed that their relationship was sexual.

For his part, Timberlake shared in his own 2018 memoir: Hindsight: and all the things I can’t see, that he wrote “Cry Me a River” after feeling “scorned” and “pissed” about the breakup. “The feelings I had were so strong that I had to write it, and I translated my feelings into a form that people could listen to and hopefully relate to,” he wrote. “People heard me and understood because we’ve all been there.”