It’s been 21 years since *NSYNC said “Bye Bye Bye” to us as a recording act.
But the wait for the boy band’s much-anticipated reunion is finally over with Friday’s release of “Better Place,” the group’s first single since 2002’s “Girlfriend.”
And Justin Timberlake, JC Chasez, Lance Bass, Joey Fatone and Chris Kirkpatrick sound just in sync as ever on this buoyant bop from the “Trolls Band Together” soundtrack, which indeed takes you to a “Better Place.”
After a whistling intro — a hook that repeats throughout the song — it opens with what could be a statement about how they’re still better together after all these years: “It’s some kind of love, it’s some kind of fire/I’m already up, but you lift me higher.”
While other members of the group sing lead in the verses, it’s Timberlake who owns the chorus with his familiar falsetto. And when he sings “I’m so excited to see you excited” over the bass-bumping disco groove, it’s as if he knows exactly how giddy this track is making *NSYNC fans all around the world.
Timberlake, who also voices the character of Branch in “Trolls Band Together,” co-wrote and co-produced “Better Place” with Shellback, and the track is a satisfying sequel to their previous collaboration on the 2016 “Trolls” smash “Can’t Stop the Feeling!”
Like it’s predecessor, it’s the perfect summer song — except it’s arriving at the beginning of fall.
But there’s no denying the sunny pop sheen of “Better Place.” And though it feels more like a Timberlake song than an *NSYNC one, it’s not all about the “SexyBack” singer — as those creamy harmonies attest.
The tune previews the “Trolls Band Together” soundtrack” — with Timberlake returning as executive music producer — which will be released on Oct. 20. The album features JT on other tracks as well as his fellow “Trolls” Anna Kendrick, Troye Sivan, Camila Cabello and Kid Cudi.
In the film, which hits theaters a month after the soundtrack on Nov. 17, Timberlake’s character Branch seeks to reunite with his brothers, who were once in a boy band with him called BroZone.
And if it’s anything like this *NSYNC reunion — which was first teased after the quintet appeared at the MTV Video Music Awards together earlier this month — then it should be more warm-and-fuzzy feels.