Can we all just come together and work towards a common goal? That shared goal should be “the Best Song Oscar going to literally anyone else besides Justin Timberlake.” At this point, I don’t even have to see Lin-Manuel Miranda win (although how amazing would that be??). If the Oscar goes to one of the La La Land songs, so be it. I’ll be fine with that. It’s not that I think JT is a bad singer or performer or songwriter. It’s just that “Can’t Stop the Feeling” is the worst and Justin has literally been hustling for his Oscar nomination (if not the Oscar) for MORE THAN A YEAR. And now that we’re in the final weeks, he’s still hustling. I mean, really? The cover of the Hollywood Reporter? Shouldn’t THR give this kind of space to Lin-Manuel?? Ugh. Anyway, you can read the full THR piece here. Some highlights:

On being a father: “You go through your life with your own traumas, big and small, and think, ‘It’s not that bad, I have a lot to be thankful for, my parents did the best they could.’ But then you have a child of your own, and suddenly it opens all the floodgates, and you’re like, ‘No, no, no! That childhood trauma really did f— me up!’ ”

On knowing Ryan Gosling since they were kids: “We aren’t the closest of friends, for whatever reason.”

On why he bailed on NSYNC: “We were on a stadium tour, and I just felt like the whole thing was too big. It started as a fun snowball fight that was becoming an avalanche. And, also, I was growing out of it. I felt like I cared more about the music than some of the other people in the group. And I felt like I had other music I wanted to make and that I needed to follow my heart.”

On his next album: “It sounds more like where I’ve come from than any other music I’ve ever made. It’s Memphis. It’s Southern American music. But I want to make it sound modern — at least that’s the idea right now.”

On straddling the worlds of both music and film: “I want to do both things. I really do idolize the golden era of Hollywood, when actors were required to sing and move. But I’m just following my gut in the decisions that I make about what I’m going to do next. I’m mostly just glad this is all working out because I really can’t do anything else. I’m not gifted at anything else.”

On going on tour: “Going on tour is a circus. You set up the tents, you play the show, you tear the tents down and go on to the next place. It’s like Groundhog Day. After the 125th show, you feel debilitated.”

On if his child wanted to pursue a life of fame: “Would I want my child to follow my path? You know, I haven’t been able to answer that question in my mind. If he wanted it bad enough, I suppose I could teach him a lot about what not to do.”

[From THR]

“I really can’t do anything else. I’m not gifted at anything else…” And some/many would argue that he’s not really good at one of those things anyway. Let’s not pretend that Justin Timberlake is a master thespian. He is not. I don’t know if he’s actually taken acting classes or if he’s just winging it, but brosef needs to just spend some time focusing on his music, because that’s his strength.

Incidentally, I didn’t make it through this whole THR interview because I got so annoyed with him in the first few paragraphs. He refuses to talk about the Janet Jackson Super Bowl incident even now, when Janet has historically gotten the blame for all of it. And he seems a bit butthurt about how the Grammys didn’t nominate “Can’t Stop the Feeling.” You know why they didn’t nominate it? Because they’re not suckers. He isn’t even going to the Grammys this year because they “snubbed” him. He’ll be playing golf instead.

Photos courtesy of Miller Mobley/The Hollywood Reporter.