Justin Timberlake has finally revealed that his hit 2006 song, \u201cWhat Goes Around\u2026 Comes Around,\u201d was not written about ex-girlfriend Britney Spears.<\/p>\n
Since its debut, many have believed that the song was about Spears, as it came out around the time the pop star was divorcing Kevin Federline. However, that\u2019s just not the case, according to Timberlake.<\/p>\n
\u201cMaybe I should dispel a rumor at this point, which has gone around forever, which is like, it\u2019s not a personal story from mine,\u201d Timberlake said during a recent appearance on Complex\u2019s \u201cRe-Rank\u201d YouTube <\/a>series.<\/p>\n Justin Timberlake, pictured here performing in Los Angeles in January 2026, clarified that his hit song \u201cWhat Goes Around\u2026 Comes Around\u201d was not inspired by Britney Spears. Getty Images for The Recording Academy<\/p>\n Timberlake dispelled rumors that his 2006 single was written about their high-profile breakup. Pictured above: Spears in April 2017. Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s actually a personal story from a friend\u2019s that I asked permission [to use],\u201d he said of the track, which was a single off his 2006 album, \u201cFutureSex\/LoveSounds.\u201d<\/p>\n Timberlake, 45, explained that the song was informed by a friend\u2019s breakup.<\/p>\n \u201cHe was just going through it and he was telling me what had happened, and I said, \u2018Do you mind if I write about this?\u2019 And I quote, my friend said, \u2018Yeah, torch that bitch. What goes around comes around.\u2019 And I was like, \u2018I have to go. Thank you,\u2019\u201d Timberlake recalled.<\/p>\n The \u201cMirrors\u201d singer said that he wrote the song in \u201cdamn near 20 minutes.\u201d<\/p>\n Timberlake, pictured here with Spears in 2002 at the \u201cCrossroads\u201d premiere in Hollywood, said the song was inspired by a \u201cpersonal story\u201d from a friend. Getty Images<\/p>\n \u201cHe was just going through it and he was telling me what had happened, and I said, \u2018Do you mind if I write about this?\u2019 And I quote, my friend said, \u2018Yeah, torch that bitch. What goes around comes around,\u2019\u201d Timberlake, pictured above on \u201cThe Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon\u201d in January 2024, said of the friend. Todd Owyoung\/NBC via Getty Images<\/p>\n Paired with the 10-minute long music video, he said it \u201chit on all cylinders\u201d for him. In the YouTube show, Timberlake ranked the song as number \u201cone or two\u201d in his discography.<\/p>\n However, while \u201cWhat Goes Around\u2026 Comes Around\u201d is not about Spears, 44, another one of his songs might be \u2014 and that\u2019s \u201cCry Me a River,\u201d from his 2002 debut album, \u201cJustified.\u201d<\/p>\n In the music video, he sings alongside a Spears look-alike, who is portrayed to have been cheating on him.<\/p>\n Timberlake, seen here attending an event in Los Angeles in October 2026, said he wrote \u201cWhat Goes Around\u2026 Comes Around\u201d in \u201cdamn near 20 minutes\u201d and considers it number \u201cone or two\u201d in his discography. FilmMagic<\/p>\n However, Timberlake\u2019s song \u201cCry Me a River\u201d is heavily speculated to be about Spears, as the music video featured a look-alike of the pop star, as seen above. Jive<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\tWant more celebrity and pop culture news?\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tStart your day with Page Six Daily.\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\tThanks for signing up!\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n Timberlake and Spears, who\u2019d first met on \u201cThe All-New Mickey Mouse Club\u201d as children, began dating in 1999 and broke up after three years, in 2002.<\/p>\n However, in her 2023 memoir, \u201cThe Woman in Me,\u201d<\/a> the \u201cToxic\u201d singer claimed that the media storm that followed the \u201cCry My a River\u201d music video\u2019s release made her look like a \u201charlot who\u2019d broken the heart <\/a>of America\u2019s golden boy.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI was comatose in Louisiana, and he was happily running around Hollywood,\u201d she shared.<\/p>\n In the book, she also claimed that Timberlake had cheated on her \u201cseveral times,\u201d though she didn\u2019t name anyone in particular.<\/p>\n Spears and Timberlake, seen here at the American Music Awards together during their relationship, dated from 1999 to 2002. WireImage<\/p>\n Spears praised Timberlake\u2019s song \u201cSelfish\u201d in a since-deleted Instagram post from January 2024. The two are seen above at a pre-Grammy party in Los Angeles in February 2002. Getty Images<\/p>\n