Justin Timberlakes halftime show performance drew attention and controversy before he even hit the field on Sunday night, mostly because of two things: Janet Jackson, and his increasingly tenuous relationship with black people.

Last year, Timberlake caught heat when he decided to weigh in on black issues on Twitter, making an All Lives Matter pitch that prompted many black social media users to not only call him out but question his authenticity: Hadnt he, after all, built an entire career by essentially copying black music, black dance, and black swag?

Then there was the infamous wardrobe malfunction, in which, many people argued, Timberlake managed to emerge largely unscathed while Janet Jacksons career took a heavy and humiliating hit, partially because he failed to come to her defense in the wake of the scandal.

These things certainly did not help Timberlakes pop culture standing. Nor did his recent rebranding as a Man of the Woods for his forthcoming album a hodgepodge of rustic, down-home Tennessee imagery of Timberlake in the nature wearing artfully weathered denims and confusing singles like Filthy which sound, for the most part, like watered down versions of the tracks hes been making for the last 10 years.