“Justin Timberlake, 32, is playing the long game. He’s the Kasparov of showbiz. He has survived far longer than most artists, tracing an arc from pop-culture absurd — first appearing on the Mickey Mouse Club at age 11 — to pop-culture sublime, a solo career that has triumphed at a time when entertainment, and celebrity, have become more disposable than ever…
Timberlake, it has been said, has gone far on likability, which is also a way of mildly patronizing him…But what has let him bridge over multiple iterations and now three generations of fans has been a certain kind of generationally specific decorum: gracious, polite, patient, deferential. He may have you naked by the end of this song, but he will do so using Antioch rules.”
(Timberlake) ‘Y’know, life doesn’t happen in black and white.’ The gray area is where you become an adult . . . the medium temperature, the gray area, the place between black and white. That’s the place where life happens.”
~ The New York Times Style Magazine: The Enduring, Multigenerational Appeal of Justin Timberlake
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Live & Learn 
he always seemed ‘likable’ to me, flying a bit under a radar, a good thing for a celeb i think, but hard to do i’m sure. funny, i just told my friend that i live ‘in the gray’ of life, rarely going into the black or white zones.
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Y es, the article goes on to say that he seemingly “floats above it all.” (above high profile entertainer flotsam that we see on the tele.) I’ve just recently tip-toed into the gray. Previously living a life of black and white.
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i have always believed that most of life is in the gray zone, though society and tradition would have us believe otherwise, welcome, and fully jump on in when you are ready and able.
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It’s a deep pond…
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just float…
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LOL, like Shinto?
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am i showing my shinto slip again by accident?
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I told you. You are in Master Class. Playing (way) above the rest of us.
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aw, i’m just traveling through and doing the best i can not to get lost, same as the rest of us )
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He is a versatile singer.
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He is…
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I’ve enjoyed the banter between you and ksbeth! And a nod of approval about this JT (as opposed to James Taylor who is the first JT) – he’s a talented man, and I think a smart one.
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Yes, he’s not THE JT. That’s right. KSbeth, she’s Shinto-Lady…
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A very funny guy too. I’ve always thought he was funny when hosting SNL….
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I missed SNL. Need to see if I can find that episode…
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I have never liked his rap music, but then he sang “Hallelujah” with Matt Morris in the fundraiser for Haiti show a few years ago, so I know he CAN sing and has a gorgeous voice. What I love is his sense of humor–the way he plays around with Jimmy Fallon, his “All the Single Ladies” spoof. And he’s developing chops as an actor. Yes, a SMART man.
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Wow, I didn’t know he rapped. You sound like a groupie based on your vast knowledge. I’m impressed.
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“He may have you naked by the end of this song…” Well, probably not me… 🙂 Anyway, yes, I like Justin Timberlake, and I do agree that he seems gracious and polite and real.
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He she comes. Picking out the one controversial line. I even thought about cutting that line out of the excerpt but then that wouldn’t leave my Carol with anything to shoot down. 🙂
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I spoil everything…don’t I? 🙂
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🙂
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so aptly headlined — the long game — the game worth playing
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Yes…manners matter (listen up Miley Cyrus)
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she is lost to me
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And completely lost to me.
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Love that quote. Very profound.
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Me too Sylvia, thanks.
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