Feel old? This meme reminds us that an entire generation has no idea who Justin Timberlake is

Singer, dancer, and actor: Justin Timberlake wears many hats. At least, as far as millennials are concerned, he does. 

Perhaps it has been longer than we may like to think since boy band Juggernaut released anything of relevance. Sure, his *NSYNC days were decades in the past, but he had a successful solo career following that. There was also a significant period of time when the performer dabbled in acting, remember? His role in David Fincher’s acclaimed movie, The Social Network, wasn’t that long ago, was it? Realizing that the 2010 film was a decade and a half ago has prompted us to start looking for grey hairs, along with the spot of legal trouble that the “Cry Me a River” singer found himself this summer.

We recently learned that while he was in the Hamptons, Timberlake was booked for driving under the influence. But what really traumatized those of us who grew up knowing all the lyrics to “It’s Gonna Be Me” came from the officer who arrested the mogul. According to a source for Page Six, he had no idea who Timberlake was at the time of the arrest. 

“The cop didn’t know who he was at first. Justin said under his breath, ‘This is going to ruin the tour.’ The cop replied, ‘What tour?’ Justin said, ‘The world tour.’”

This anecdote set the internet on fire and was the source that launched a thousand memes. Of course, Timberlake is no stranger to being memed as he appears on social media on the first day of May every year. These new memes, however, are a little less lighthearted. Fans have placed quotes from the exchange and superimposed them over famous scenes. Most entertaining is the following image from the horror film Pearl, posted by @deadmeatjames on X (formerly Twitter).

Many others have opted for similar tactics, including some considering using Timberlake’s comments as a colloquialism from now on.

Timberlake released a new album in March 2024, entitled “Everything I Thought It Was,” which he was planning on performing for the Forget Tomorrow World Tour. This will surely impact the artist’s plans, but maybe not in the way that he thought. Already, he has more than enough press to drive fans to google what this tour is all about, even if what fans really want is just to see a *NSYNC concert again.