Justin Timberlake took a step back from the drama as he performed his 2002 hit “Cry Me a River” this week.
The singer used a brief message to preface the song, which was seemingly inspired by his breakup with Britney Spears, as he performed at Fontainebleau Las Vegas on Wednesday.
“No disrespect,” Timberlake told a crowd that featured his wife, Jessica Biel, as well as other stars such as Kim Kardashian and Tom Brady.
He proceeded to launch into an interpolation of Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” before performing the Timbaland and Scott Storch-produced song.
It was Timberlake’s second performance since the release of Spears’ memoir “The Woman in Me,” Billboard noted.
Spears, who addressed “Cry Me a River” and its music video in her memoir, wrote that the visuals — which features a woman who resembles Spears — and the media backlash that followed turned her into a “harlot who’d broken the heart of America’s golden boy.”
“I felt there was no way at the time to tell my side of the story,” she wrote.
“I couldn’t explain, because I knew no one would take my side once Justin had convinced the world of his version. I don’t think Justin realized the power he had in shaming me. I don’t think he understands to this day.”
Spears also revealed in the memoir that she had an abortion during her relationship with the *NSYNC star, whom she dated between 1999 and 2002.
Timberlake has publicly backed Spears in recent years, sharing his support over X (formerly Twitter) amid her legal battle to end her conservatorship.
“Regardless of our past, good and bad, and no matter how long ago it was.. what’s happening to her is just not right,” he wrote, “No woman should ever be restricted from making decisions about her own body.”
He apologized to Spears as well as Janet Jackson that same year, writing that he cares for them, respects them and knows that he failed.
“I also feel compelled to respond, in part, because everyone involved deserves better and most importantly, because this is a larger conversation that I whole heartedly want to be part of and grow from,” he wrote.