Justin Timberlake: ‘Michael Jackson Pushed me to go Solo’

JUSTIN Timberlake says Michael Jackson pushed him to leave ‘N Sync and go solo.

The singer kicks off the brand new season of the Emmy nominated series Oprah’s Master Class this Sunday, and, for the first time, reveals he originally penned the band’s hit song Gone for Jackson — and it was Michael who inspired him to start a solo career.

“I originally wrote that song for Michael Jackson. I just got word that it wasn’t, you know, that they had turned the song down so we decided to cut it, but it was one of those songs where it felt a little more personal to me cause I had written it for the like the biggest artist of all time,” he said.