The 2023 MTV Video Music Awards were quite eventful, as a number of major moments earned buzz. Taylor Swift turned heads while dancing with Demi Lovato, while Selena Gomez became a meme due to her facial expressions. A particularly big highlight of the night, though, was the *NSYNC reunion between all of the iconic boy bands members, including Justin Timberlake. The “Cry Me a River” singer had his own viral moment when he crossed paths with fan-favorite rapper Megan Thee Stallion backstage. A video of the encounter seemed to give the impression that the meet-up wasn’t positive. However, the “WAP” performer is now setting the record straight.
Amid Justin Timberlake’s reunion with Joey Fatone, Lance Bass, Chris Kirkpatrick and JC Chasez, the group came across Megan Thee Stallion while she was getting her hair touched up. Video footage showed Megan responding to them very enthusiastically, and some social media commentators surmised that she wasn’t happy at the time, given her gestures. Interestingly though, Timberlake and Fatone were seen chuckling as they responded to her, and that arguably made for even more of a head-scratcher.
ET finally received some clarity on the matter when it caught up with the “Savage” rapper in promotion of her collaboration with Frito-Lay’s Flamin’ Hot. As it turns out, there wasn’t any beef between the 28-year-old star and her fellow Grammy winner. The songstress explained that she was so lively in that moment not because she was angry but because she desperately wanted a do-over of the high-profile meet-up:
Kellon is doing my hair and I got my in ears in and I’m telling Kellon I’m already nervous, just stop touching on me. Then Justin Timberlake walks by, he’s like, ‘It’s nice to meet you,’ [and] I was like, ‘No, no, first of all I can’t hear you so, no.’ Take it back, this is not how I’m gonna meet Justin Timberlake, OK? And JC was back there looking cute! I said, ‘Hold on, y’all need to relax. Wait until I get off stage and then Ima be ready for y’all.’
This account actually matches up with some of the comments that were shared by insiders in the days immediately following the VMAs. It’s honestly somewhat funny to think that people assumed Megan Thee Stallion was unloading on Justin Timberlake and co. when in actuality, she was just fangirling out. Despite the confusion, she doesn’t seem to be too upset by the narrative kick-started by the video. She actually says she and Timberlake can both find the notion of a beef to be humorous:
We were really crying-laughing because it was like, ‘In what world is Megan Thee Stallion beefed out on Justin Timberlake? I’m in the back tussling with *NSYNC? That sounds crazy! I just I thought it was so funny because I talk with my hands and my nails are so long so I know this looks crazy, like you almost thought I was coming for you and I was coming for him. But, yeah this is just how I talk.
It’s certainly great to hear that this situation was merely a misunderstanding. With that settled, fans can focus their attention on other matters, like the fact that *NSYNC is set to collaborate on a new single for Trolls Band Together, and millennials are freaking out about it. It’s unclear as to whether the group might go on tour again but, at the very least, it would seem the “Body” singer is down to collaborate with the “Mirrors” performer at any time.
A hot single certainly would be a great way for Megan The Stallion and Justin Timberlake to build on the hype surrounding their encounter at the VMAs. Only time will tell if it actually happens but, hey, if *NSYNC can reunite to make new music, I’d say that almost anything is possible.