FutureSex/LoveShow

The FutureSex/LoveShow was the third concert tour by American singer Justin Timberlake, launched in support of his second studio album, FutureSex/LoveSounds (2006). The tour began on January 8, 2007, in San Diego, with shows across North America, Europe, and Oceania. It concluded on December 6, 2007, in Abu Dhabi, comprising 121 shows. While Pink and Fergie served as the opening act for the North American leg, with the latter serving as the opening act for the European leg, Paris Wells served as the opening act for the Australian leg and Unklejam, Kenna, Natasha Bedingfield, and Esmée Denters for the European leg. It grossed a total of US$126.8 million, making it the third-highest-grossing concert tour of 2007.

SexyBack Dance Club

A limited number of tickets were released, which gave fans access to a bar/club area around the stage known as the SexyBack Dance Club. There were two types of these tickets available: Seating and Standing. The seating tickets gave fans access to this area as well as a seat integrated into the stage itself. The standing tickets gave access to the same area without a seat.^[2]

Critical reception

Rolling Stone editor Laura Checkoway, who attended the tour at the Madison Square Garden in April 2007, called the show "strictly grown and sexy" in her review.^[3] After attending the second Madison Square Garden date in August, Sia Michel from The New York Times thought "since his last tour, for 2002's multiplatinum Justified, he has learned how to project sex-symbol edge. During an ambitious, well-oiled spectacle of nearly three hours, this New Justin cursed, gyrated and mimicked bedroom acts with his lingerie-clad dancers."^[4] After attending the tour's Air Canada Centre show in August 2007, Jason MacNeil of Jam! gave it three-and-a-half stars out of five, and said that "while the set itself was identical to damn near every other show he's done on his current world tour, the two-hour-plus show has plenty of eye candy to keep even the casual fan interested".^[5]

Chris Willman of Entertainment Weekly, who attended the tour's first ever show at the iPayOne Center in San Diego, gave it a B+ and said, "Though the show could have used some tightening (FutureSex needn't be performed in its entirety — here's to losing Losing My Way), when Timberlake locked into some James Brown-esque footwork, you didn't want it to end".^[6] After attending The O2, London date, musicOMH's Jonny Carey wrote, "Tonight proved that as well as being responsible for some of this decade's best pop moments, Justin Timberlake is among the best performers and will be continuing to headline venues of this stature for years to come."^[7]

Opening acts

• Pink (North America) (select dates)
• Fergie (North America & Europe) (select dates)
• Unklejam (Europe) (select dates)
• Kenna (Europe) (select dates)
• Natasha Bedingfield (Europe) (select dates)
• Esmée Denters (Europe) (select dates)
• Paris Wells (Australia) (selected dates)

Set list

1. "FutureSex/LoveSound"
2. "Like I Love You"
3. "My Love" (contains excerpts from "Let Me Talk to You (Prelude)")
4. "Señorita"
5. "Sexy Ladies"
6. "Until the End of Time"
7. "What Goes Around... Comes Around"
8. "Chop Me Up"
9. "Rock Your Body"
10. Medley:
    1. "Gone"
    2. "Take It from Here"
    3. "Last Night"
11. "Damn Girl"
12. "Summer Love"
13. "Losing My Way"
14. "Cry Me a River"
15. "LoveStoned/I Think She Knows (Interlude)"
16. "SexyBack"

Encore

17. "(Another Song) All Over Again"

Shows

Notes

1. ^ The score data is combined from the three shows held at the Acer Arena on October 31, November 1 and 13 respectively.
2. ^ The score data is combined from the four shows held at the Rod Laver Arena on November 5, November 6, November 17, and 18, respectively.

Broadcast and recordings

In May 2007, it was announced that Timberlake signed a deal with the HBO network to broadcast the live concert. Timberlake previously appeared on an HBO special, which aired the *NSYNC Live From Madison Square Garden concert in 2000. FutureSex/LoveShow was taped on the second night at the Madison Square Garden on August 16, 2007. The footage was broadcast by HBO on September 3, 2007, and later on September 6 due to demand.^[21] On November 20, 2007, a two-disc edition of FutureSex/LoveShow: Live from Madison Square Garden was released on DVD and Blu-ray formats that were sold exclusively by the retailer Best Buy. The release included extra footage, including a song-by-song commentary by Timberlake and pre- and post-show clips.^[22]

In 2008, the broadcast earned Timberlake an Emmy Award in the category Outstanding Picture Editing For A Special (Single Or Multi-Camera).^[23] For Timberlake's performance of "What Goes Around... Comes Around" at the Madison Square Garden, Josh Tyrangiel of Time magazine ranked it second on its list of top ten live performances in 2007. Tyrangiel writes, "It's a little on the long side, but Timberlake earns this symphonic take on What Goes Around from his HBO special."^[24] On October 31, 2007, Billboard magazine announced the finalists for the 2007 Billboard Touring Awards, which was based on actual box-office performance from January 1, 2007, to September 30, 2007. Timberlake was nominated in the categories Top Tour, Top Draw and Breakthrough Artist;^[25] he won the latter that was announced during the awards show on November 15, 2007.^[26]

References

1. ^ Waddell, Ray (December 13, 2007). "The Police Score Top-Grossing Tour Of '07". Billboard. Archived September 6, 2015 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved December 14, 2008.
2. ^ "Ultimate Sexy Back Auctions & Dance Floor Club". Ticketmaster. March 25, 2007. Archived March 25, 2007 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved February 29, 2016.
3. ^ Checkoway, Laura (August 17, 2007). "Justin Timberlake Brings 'FutureSex' to Madison Square Garden: Live Report". Rolling Stone. Archived February 3, 2013 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved February 12, 2020.
4. ^ Michel, Sia (February 9, 2007). "He's Bringing Commitment Back (and Not in a Box)". The New York Times. Archived June 30, 2017 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved February 29, 2016.
5. ^ MacNeil, Jason (August 20, 2007). "ACC, Toronto – August 20, 2007". Jam!. Retrieved March 25, 2026.^{[dead link]}
6. ^ Willman, Chris (January 12, 2007). "In Concert: Justin Timberlake". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on February 5, 2007. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
7. ^ Carey, Jonny (July 10, 2007). "Justin Timberlake". MusicOMH. Archived April 24, 2010 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
8. ^ "Official Justin Timberlake Fanclub Tour". justintimberlakefanclub.com. Archived from the original on January 1, 2007.
9. ^ "Boxscore". Billboard. Vol. 119, no. 6. February 10, 2007. p. 69. Archived July 23, 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
10. ^ "Boxscore". Billboard. Vol. 119, no. 13. March 31, 2007. p. 16. Archived July 23, 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
11. ^ "Boxscore". Billboard. Vol. 119, no. 16. April 21, 2007. p. 18. Archived July 23, 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
12. ^ "Justin Timberlake's 2007 FutureSex/LoveShow World Tour UK and European Dates Added". Jive Records. October 25, 2006. Archived from the original on October 29, 2013. Retrieved October 27, 2013. – via PR Newswire
13. ^ "Justin Timberlake Announces Special Guests to His 2007 FutureSex/LoveShow World Tour: Fergie, Natasha Bedingfield, Kenna". Jive Records. May 7, 2007. Archived from the original on July 6, 2015. Retrieved October 27, 2013. – via PR Newswire
14. ^ "The O2 :: Home". The O2. Archived from the original on May 22, 2013. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
15. ^ "Boxscore". Billboard. Vol. 119, no. 22. June 2, 2007. p. 16. Archived July 23, 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
16. ^ "Boxscore". Billboard. Vol. 119, no. 27. July 7, 2007. p. 40. Archived July 23, 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
17. ^ "Justin Timberlake Announces 2nd U.S. Leg of His 2007 FutureSex/LoveShow World Tour Kicking Off in His Hometown of Memphis, Tennessee". Jive Records. March 26, 2007. Archived from the original on July 6, 2015. Retrieved October 27, 2013. – via PR Newswire
18. ^ "Official Justin Timberlake Fanclub". justintimberlakefanclub.com. Archived from the original on November 16, 2007. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
19. ^ "Boxscore". Billboard. Vol. 119, no. 41. October 13, 2007. p. 17. Archived July 23, 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
20. ^ "Boxscore". Billboard. Vol. 119, no. 45. November 10, 2007. p. 18. Archived July 23, 2022 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
21. ^ La Rocco, Claudia (September 5, 2007). "For Pop Stars, Big Reputations Can Rest on the Smallest of Movements". The New York Times. Archived August 30, 2011 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved September 11, 2011.
22. ^ Orzeck, Kurt (November 7, 2007). "Beyonce, Fall Out Boy, Nine Inch Nails, Nirvana, U2 And Gorillaz Kick-Start The Holiday Rush, In New Releases". MTV News. Archived from the original on November 8, 2012. Retrieved September 11, 2011.
23. ^ "Justin Timberlake: FutureSex/Loveshow". Emmy Awards. Archived October 3, 2012 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved September 11, 2011.
24. ^ Tyrangiel, Josh (December 9, 2007). "Top 10 Live Performances: #2. Justin Timberlake". Time. Archived from the original on July 28, 2010. Retrieved September 11, 2011.
25. ^ Waddell, Ray (October 31, 2007). "Police, Timberlake Among Billboard Touring Award Finalists". Billboard. Archived from the original on May 21, 2011. Retrieved September 11, 2011.
26. ^ Waddell, Ray (November 15, 2007). "The Police Win Big At Billboard Touring Awards". Billboard. Archived July 11, 2024 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved September 11, 2011.