Justin Timberlake

Even television viewers accustomed to ad-skipping have doubtless caught the latest Target commercial promoting Justin Timberlake's third album, "The 20/20 Experience. "  A new online video takes viewers behind the scenes, showing the candid -- by that we mean, excited to the point of tears -- reactions of the 20 JT fans drafted to perform his newly released single "Mirrors. " The amateur performers thought they were on stage to sing the song, but had no idea they would meet the pop music icon.

One of the key traits of Justin Timberlake's new “The 20/20 Project” is its length. The majority of its songs run longer than seven minutes, adding both volume and density. Produced by Timbaland with his longtime collaborator Jerome “J-Roc” Harmon, the record's big, bold songs suggest a nod to prog-rock epic-ness. It's a notion that was confirmed during a recent conversation with Harmon, who has worked with Timbaland for nearly a decade, first as a keyboardist and now as one of his key co-producers.

He didn't quite hit the million-sold mark, though he came awfully close. Capping a whirlwind promotional run that included hosting "Saturday Night Live," performing on five consecutive episodes of "Late Night With Jimmy Fallon" and playing an intimate club gig at the South by Southwest music festival in Austin, Texas, Justin Timberlake enters the Billboard 200 album chart this week at No. 1. Billboard reported late Tuesday that "The 20/20...

Justin Timberlake's comeback album has sold nearly 1 million units its first week out. Nielsen SoundScan announced Tuesday that the singer's "The 20/20 Experience" has moved 968,000 units. It is the 19th album in Nielsen's 22-year history that has sold more than 900,000 albums in a single week. "20/20" is Timberlake's third album and the follow-up to his multiplatinum, Grammy-winning 2006 album, "FutureSex/LoveSound. " The new CD features the pop hit "Suit & Tie. " FOR THE RECORD: Justin Timberlake sales: A Quick Takes item in the March 27 Calendar section about first-week sales for Justin Timberlake's album "The 20/20 Experience" said that it was the 19th album in Nielsen SoundScan's 22-year history to sell more than 900,000 albums in a single week.

He's already hit the top spot in the United Kingdom, where "The 20/20 Experience" entered the album chart Sunday at No. 1 -- and in the process became the fastest-selling disc of the year so far there. Now Justin Timberlake is almost certain to repeat the feat in the United States when Billboard reveals its new charts on Wednesday, reflecting U.S. sales through Sunday night. But can the pop superstar sell 1 million records in a week? REVIEW: Justin Timberlake's "The 20/20 Experience" Writing Sunday in Billboard , Keith Caulfield said music-industry sources were estimating that first-week sales of "The 20/20 Experience" will wind up between 950,000 and 975,000.

At  South by Southwest in Austin, Texas, last week, Justin Timberlake diverted a huge amount of attention from the kind of up-and-coming acts the music fest was founded to spotlight. But if the pop superstar's intimate club gig Saturday night prevented someone from seeing the latest Animal Collective clone, well, I'm OK with that. The latest Animal Collective clone probably isn't any good. More troubling is the way Timberlake's album "The 20/20 Experience," which I like very much , is overshadowing another adventurous soul record released Tuesday: "More Than Words" by Brian McKnight, the R&B veteran who beyond his own work has written and produced for Timberlake, in both his solo career and during Timberlake's days with 'N Sync, as well as other artists including Alicia Keys and Boyz II Men. The imbalance in acclaim is as thorough as it is inevitable.

Another day, another component in the Justin Timberlake promotional juggernaut. Around the same time Tuesday night that The CW was airing a one-hour special memorably titled "Target Presents the iHeartRadio Album Release Party with Justin Timberlake," Vevo premiered the music video for "Mirrors," the second single from "The 20/20 Experience. " Timberlake's third solo album -- which marks his return to music following a six-year break -- arrived in stores Tuesday, though it had been available to stream on iTunes since March 11. On Saturday he performed at the South by Southwest music festival in Austin, Texas, and last week he appeared for five nights straight on "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.

In case you missed it over the weekend, Justin Timberlake wrapped up his five-night residency at "Late Night" as we all knew he would: by teaming up with Jimmy Fallon on the fourth installment of the "History of Rap," their popular ongoing collaboration. This time around, the duo performed a medley of hits from at least four different decades, though '90s nostalgists in particular will be thrilled by the inclusion of songs like "Gin and Juice," "Shoop" and "Rump Shaker. " The performance culminated with Fallon and Timberlake doing their own version of Eminem's 2002 hit "Lose Yourself," complete with a triumphant run up the stairs.

Booking Justin Timberlake for South by Southwest is like riding a limo to a garage sale. Just because you can doesn't mean you should.  Timberlake, in the middle of a multimillion-dollar media blitz to support his new record, “The 20/20 Experience,” landed in Austin on Saturday night to perform for an overflowing crowd new and old music in a sweaty little warehouse space. Replete with a full band -- horns, background singers, percussionists included -- he did so like a pro, hitting all his cues, pumping up a crowd drunk on free vodka and singing his sexy jams.

Justin Timberlake is certainly making up for lost time. This week he released “The 20/20 Experience,” his first new album in six years, and christened it with a double-whammy hosting/performing stint on "Saturday Night Live" and a full week of performances on "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.” REVIEW: Justin Timberlake's "The 20/20 Experience" He'll conclude the week with a midnight performance in Austin, Texas, as...