Janet Jackson breaks her silence and subtly acknowledges Justin Timberlake's apology

Janet Jackson has broken her silence after Justin Timberlake’s apology where he admitted he had ‘failed,’ both she and his ex Britney Spears.

Jackson, 54, posted an emotional video to social media on Saturday where she graciously thanked her fans for their support throughout the years.

She did not directly reference the former boy-bander’s mea culpa, but did seem to acknowledge the apology in the form of a subtle exchange with singer Tinashe on Twitter.

Timberlake issued a statement on Friday in response to overwhelming fan outrage resulting from the recently released Framing Britney Spears documentary. 

He has been slammed for torching Spears’ name in the media following their breakup in 2002 while portraying a ‘nice guy image’, – a pattern which seemingly continued in the aftermath of his controversial 2004 Super Bowl performance with Jackson.

Jackson posted a 45-second video of herself on social media that she captioned, ‘Thank U.’

She began, ‘I was at home just the other day by myself and I began to cry. I was crying because I was so thankful for all that God has blessed me with. All that he has given me. For Him being in my life.’

Janet continued, ‘And I am so thankful for all of you being in my life. You’re so special to me.’

Finding an outpouring of support professionally following Timberlake’s now scrutinized past behavior, she shared her gratitude over the fact that her 1986 album Control is now number one. 

‘I want to thank all of you for making Control number one once again after 35 years. I never in a million years, I would never think that this would happen. I really appreciate you and I love you so, so much. Thank you.’ 

Tinashe seemed to lend a hand in getting Janet to coyly acknowledge the apology on Twitter as she wrote: 

‘Anyone who knows me knows Britney Spears and Janet Jackson are literally my two biggest idols in the whole universe and I just hope they know how much they mean to me/us.’

When a fan prompted her to name her favorite Janet album she said, ‘The velvet rope album is my favorite album of all time,’ to which Jackson replied to her with a ‘heart,’ alluding to having seen the exchange where her name was aforementioned next to Spears’.

The 2 On singer continued to show her support to Janet for acknowledging the social media exchange as she wrote ‘We love you, Queen.’

During their infamous 2004 Super Bowl performance, Timberlake ripped off Jackson’s costume and exposed her breast in a scandalous incident that has been dubbed ‘Nipplegate.’ 

Jackson’s career was damaged over the incident, despite the fact that the flesh-exposing incident followed the line ‘Bet I’ll have you naked by the end of this song,’ from Timberlake’s song Rock Your Body. 

Following the scandal, her videos and songs were blacklisted from all Viacom owned stations including MTV, VH1 and all the radio stations under their umbrella. 

Additionally her invitation to present at the 46th Annual Grammy Awards was rescinded and she was reportedly pressured into skipping the ceremony all together with some calling her a ‘disgraced flash dancer.’ 

Timberlake on the other hand was allowed to attend, even snagging two awards for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance and Best Pop Vocal Album, also getting an invitation to perform at the Super Bowl in 2018. 

When asked about the incident in various interviews, Timberlake chalked it up to a ‘wardrobe malfunction’ while telling Access Hollywood in 2004, ‘Hey man, we love giving y’all something to talk about.’

He seemed to change his tune quickly calling the incident ‘regrettable’ and ‘not intentional,’ taking some level of blame for it in 2007 when he told MTV: ‘In my honest opinion now… I could’ve handled it better.’

‘I probably got 10 percent of the blame, and that says something about society. I think that America’s harsher on women … And I think that America is, you know, unfairly harsh on ethnic people.’

He also apologized in 2009 to Entertainment Weekly saying: ‘I wish I had supported Janet more. I am not sorry I apologized, but I wish I had been there more for Janet.’ 

His latest apology over both the Spears and Jackson incidents came in the form of a mea culpa after the Framing Britney Spears documentary aired last Friday, as he wrote: ‘I specifically want to apologize to Britney Spears and Janet Jackson both individually, because I care for and respect these women and I know I failed.’ 

He owned up to using the ‘heartbreak’ of his four year relationship with Spears (1998 – 2002) to promote his music and garner publicity, after playing up rumors that she had cheated on him, despite her virginal image at the time. 

In one interview when he was asked ‘did you f**k Britney Spears?’, he laughed, sighed, and then said: ‘Oh man, OK I did it’. 

Like Jackson, Britney was vilified for her actions, while Timberlake endured more career successes. 

Now, 19 years later he wrote: ‘I’ve seen the messages, tags, comments and concerns and I want to respond. I am deeply sorry for the times in my life where my actions contributed to the problem, where I spoke out o f turn or did not speak up for what was right.

‘I understand that I fell short in these moments and in many others and benefited a system that condones misogyny and racism. I also feel compelled to respond, in part, because everyone involved deserves better and most importantly, because this is a larger conversation that I wholeheartedly want to be a part of and grow from… 

‘The industry is flawed. It sets men, especially white men, up for success. It’s designed this way. As a man in a privileged position I have to be vocal about this. Because of my ignorance, I didn’t recognize it for all that it was while it was happening in my own life but I do not want to ever benefit from others being pulled down again.

‘I have not been perfect in navigating all of this throughout my career. I know this apology is a first step and doesn’t absolve the past. I want to take accountability for my own missteps in all of this as well as be part of a world that uplifts and supports.

‘I care deeply about the well-being of the people I love and have loved. I can do better and I will do better.’ 

Though many took the interview as forced and a ploy to save himself from cancel culture, a source told Page Six, ‘He did this on his own, and it’s really from the heart. This isn’t about publicity,’  

Spears is currently under an ongoing 13 year conservatorship held by her father Jamie Spears, with the #FreeBritney movement working to release her from it.