Justin Timberlake found himself in a wrangle with Black Twitter on Sunday night [June 26], when a tweet he sent out in support of Jesse Williams' speech at the BET Awards backfired. JT was one of the millions of viewers who were moved by the Grey's Anatomy star's honoring of Black women and the evoking of Black lives befallen to police brutality, writing "@JesseWilliams tho...," and hashtagging #Inspired. While the salute earned the likes of thousands and was retweeted many times over, it also triggered some to call into question its authenticity.

On a night throughout, which Prince was remembered with several tributes, any reference made to the ceremony was sure to incur some kind of reaction, as he is noted for once clashing with the legend. Prince's presence at the 2007 post-Emmy's bash drew headlines when during a performance he cast shade over JT's 2006 hit ["Sexy Back"], stating: “For whoever is claiming that they are bringing sexy back, sexy never left!” Justin would respond on a track titled "Give It to Me," in which he boasts: "now if se-sexy never left, then why’s everybody on my shi-i-it." By '06 Justin's standing among Black music lovers had already taken a hit with his handling of the blowback over his 2004 Super Bowl half-time show controversy with Janet Jackson; many believing he threw Jackson under the bus after benefiting from the exploit. Followers brought such incidents back to Timberlake's attention after his acknowledgment of Williams.

Beyond what many would consider bad timing though, was the fact that Williams' speech focused largely on the exploitative effects of cultural appropriation, with the Humanitarian Award winner poetically stating, “this invention called whiteness uses and abuses us, burying black people out of sight and out of mind while extracting our culture, our dollars, our entertainment like oil—black gold, ghettoizing and demeaning our creations then stealing them, gentrifying our genius and then trying us on like costumes before discarding our bodies like rinds of strange fruit.” As one of the artists most celebrated all the while scorned for his success as a white man delivering R&B music, contempt over him rearing while fans rejoiced over Williams' statement, seemed a reaction to him usurping the moment. He'd throw fuel on the fire when he responded to a tweet which implied that he was in the likeness of those ridiculed by Williams, with a comment that read, "Oh, you sweet soul. The more you realize that we are the same, the more we can have a conversation."

Before the social media spat could become a PR nightmare, JT would later return to implement a measure of damage control, saying he felt misunderstood and reiterating his appreciation for Williams' words "because I really do feel that we are all one... A human race," he said before issuing a formal apology. "I apologize to anyone that felt I was out of turn. I have nothing but LOVE FOR YOU AND ALL OF US."

  Source: thedailybeast.com