The 20/20 Experience

The 20/20 Experience is the third studio album by Justin Timberlake, released in March 2013 on RCA Records and produced by Timbaland and Jerome 'J-Roc' Harmon, the commercial and artistic successor to FutureSex/LoveSounds after a six-year absence from studio recording, characterized by Timberlake's acting career during the interim. Timberlake co-wrote all material; the album's most distinguishing feature is its song format, most tracks run seven to nine minutes, with extended post-chorus sections that were intentionally anti-radio in their construction, as a statement that the album was designed as a complete listening experience rather than a singles platform. 'Mirrors,' 'Suit & Tie' (featuring Jay-Z), and 'Tunnel Vision' were the principal singles; 'Mirrors' spent two weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100. The 20/20 Experience debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 with 968,000 first-week sales, the largest opening week for any album in three years, and has been certified five-times platinum in the United States. The album's extended format and soul-orchestral production were praised as artistic ambition; critics noted both the formal ambition and the commercial risk of releasing long-form tracks in a radio marketplace dominated by sub-four-minute hits.