There has been talk of bad blood between superstars Kanye West and Justin Timberlake ever since, Kanye dissed the hit JT single “Suit & Tie”–which, incidentally, also featured West’s buddy Jay-Z. West’s declaration during a performance that he didn’t “f–k with that ‘Suit & Tie’ s–t” prompted a subliminal diss from Timberlake during his own SNL performance in March. The pop singer changed some of the song’s lyrics (“”My hit’s so sick, got rappers acting dramatic”), in a not-so-subtle dig at Kanye’s commentary.
But in a recent interview with Shade 45s “Sway In the Morning,” Timberlake revealed that he and Kanye had run into each other at the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards last week and there were no hard feelings. In fact, he said that he went out of his way to make sure Kanye knew just how much he admires his music.
“I told [Kanye West], ‘I f–k with you in a way you probably don’t even understand,'” Timberlake recalled. “We’ve never worked together so I don’t know that he fully understands what it is that I can do. That’s fine. As a matter of fact, Jay said the same thing. That’s okay. What I do agree with, is I would have loved to have had him as a part of the [recording] process…I hope something spawns out of that [conversation].”
“[Kanye] said the exact perfect thing, which was, ‘Well, the best way I know how to do that is just for us to sit down and just play music,'” continued Timberlake. “And I said, ‘Exactly…’ I love ‘Ye so I feel like I understand what he’s doing. I love Yeezus, I love that album. I think he’s ahead of a lot, especially in his genre. He’s ahead of a lot, all the time. You have to at least listen and give him the benefit of the doubt because he’s earned that and I get it. I think people are going to appreciate it a lot more in the future.”
Timberlake also shared a moment from earlier in their careers, when Kanye revealed to him that Timberlake’s “Sexy Back” influenced West’s “Stronger.”
“I remember when he came out with ‘Stronger’ and he was talking to me about ‘Sexy Back’ and that was an influence,” Timberlake said. “I don’t know if he’d say that still, but that’s the way I remember the conversation. I played Staples Center in L.A. and brought him out on stage and said, ‘Come perform the song in the middle of my show.’ We did ‘Stronger’ together at Staples Center.”
“Look at me,” Timberlake said. “I’m not the guy who’s going to have beef. And if we do, that’s fine. But I have too much respect for him. I have too much respect for him as an artist.”
