Lace on Race

Racial Equity Anti Hero: Justin Timberlake

Intro to Series: laceonrace.com/2021/02/04/racial-equity-anti-hero-series/

Tiffany Washington talks her shit from the backwoods of Alabama. Her work appears on Facebook because she’s already been rejected by The Root.

See, I was going to call him out before the Super Bowl, but the spirit of my ancestors tapped me on the shoulder and said “no, my child: he will show his ass during the halftime show.” Glad I listened.
Today, in Black History, we highlight the accomplishments of this Bass Pro Shops model.
He literally looks like he hitchhiked from Wyoming to the Super Bowl with everything he owned in a New Kid’s On the Block pillowcase.
But that ain’t the point. We could sit here and talk about his “we are all the same “ tweet when he was called out for cultural appropriation.
We could discuss how white people like him use black culture like a mask to become more “edgy” and then run “back to their roots” as soon as their cash flow dries up.
We could talk about how this mutha fucker disrespected the hell out of Prince last night, knowing that man didn’t want to have any holograms made of him after his death. We know Justin will come out later saying “well, it was a projection” but fuck you, you knew what you were doing.
Just like you knew what you were doing when you exposed Janet Jackson to the entire world and still try to play innocent Timmy until this day.
And just like you knew what you were doing when you actually dissed Prince in a song years ago, but now wanna act like y’all used to sit in the woods together looking at TV screens and sipping on tea brewed with grass. But, isn’t this natural whiteness? Use black people, black culture, black everything to get a couple bucks and a few hand claps and then disrespect and demean them on your way out?
If you don’t getcho “you not from ‘round here, issya” lookin ass back to them damn woods and have a seat.

-Tiffany Washington

Collaborating Writers

3 responses to “Racial Equity Anti Hero: Justin Timberlake”

  1. Michelle Wicks Cypher Avatar
    Michelle Wicks Cypher

    I had commented on this before but had not signed in. I cannot find it anywhere. I do remember my focus ended up being al on the incident with the “wardrobe malfunction”. I didn’t see either of the super bowl shows he was in, but I watched the video after I read this initially a few days ago. I had, of course, heard of the incident, but only remember it being Janet Jackson’s wardrobe malfunction, nothing about Justin being a part of it. It looked pretty deliberate – what he did to her clothes. How could Janet Jackson get all the back lash and blame for that and he is all innocent?? But, she is a Black woman and he is a white male. I initially posted the reality that I normally would have gone to the gender part first – her being a woman and him a male explaining a lot of how he got away with it. Seeing through the new lens, adds another layer that she was buried under. Race is a bigger issue than the gender, because I can see it going in a similar manner with a white woman and a white man – but it would have gone very differently if it was a Black man and a white woman. He would have been vilified and the world would have rushed to her defense as she cried. If Janet cried, it would be met with skepticism and derision.

  2. Emily Holzknecht Avatar
    Emily Holzknecht

    I am a pop culture dunce in many ways, so I am perhaps not connecting to these specific performers the way others might. That doesn’t excuse me from thinking about this topic though. Reading more about Justin Timberlake and Prince was an expansion on what Tiffany Washington already said Timberlake was and continues to be disrespectful, using Black people as it suits him. I must keep the North Star in view and continue to find and weed out the ways in which I still participate in appropriation whether that’s appropriation with a capital A or other ways that use Black and brown people for my own gain.

  3. Rebecca McClinton Avatar
    Rebecca McClinton

    Justin’s actions in his career really speak to the way white appropriation is not just about theft, but about intentionally tearing down, benefiting significantly from that tearing down, and then shifting blame to absolve consequence. If Justin were Black and Janet were white, that super bowl incident would have played out completely differently. I recently finished listening to a book by a Black author on appropriation, and a large chunk of it had to do with music. It enhanced my understanding of how this has happened again and again in music. I remember watching the Prince tribute, but not realizing or acknowledging at the time how Justin was using that for his own gain. I too, fell in that crowd thinking he was honoring his legacy. All too often that cloak gets used in white supremacy, making appropriation look like ‘building up’ or honoring something it’s actually stealing.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *