Justin Timberlake comes back around to Instagram after arrest drama: 'We had to do it'

Justin Timberlake's bringing interacting-with his-fans-on-social-media back, (yeah).

The "SexyBack" and "What Goes Around ... Comes Around" singer returned Tuesday to Instagram to show off exclusive tour merchandise commemorating the Madison Square Garden stops on his Forget Tomorrow World Tour — yes, that world tour. Timberlake made his social media comeback a week after he was arrested on suspicion of driving while intoxicated in the Hamptons.

Timberlake's Instagram reel shows the Grammy winning singer, 43, holding up a dark blue tour shirt with bright and bold orange text detailing his New York concert dates. "This is so important right now," he says, perhaps with a bit of sarcasm. "Let's go."

"Got y'alls Knicks colors," he continues, referring the NBA team that calls Madison Square Garden home. "We had to do it."

Timberlake will continue his MSG takeover Wednesday before heading over to Boston for two shows. Before hitting the East Coast this week, the "Trolls" star performed in Chicago, where he broke his silence on his recent arrest.

The former NSYNC frontman got candid for his Windy City fans, telling them, "It's been a tough week."

Then he added: "But you're here and I'm here. Nothing can change this moment right now. I know sometimes I'm hard to love, but you keep on loving me and I love you right back. Thank you so much."

Timberlake was arrested early June 18 in Sag Harbor Village, on the eastern end of Long Island. Police officials told The Times last week that the singer failed to stop at a stop sign and failed to remain in his lane.

Since then, several reports have shed light on the arrest. CNN published surveillance video of Timberlake driving in the Hamptons, and Page Six reported that the singer allegedly told a cop unaware of his celebrity that the arrest was "going to ruin the tour." When the officer asked "What tour?" Timberlake replied, "The world tour." The report quickly went viral with social media users meme-ing the singer's remark.

A bartender for the hotel where Timberlake allegedly drank before his arrest confirmed the singer's claim that he had only one martini before his arrest, People reported.

"If he was drinking more, it wasn't here," another hotel employee told the outlet.

Timberlake launched his Forget Tomorrow World Tour in late April amid the release of his latest album, "Everything I Thought It Was." L.A. Times critic Mikael Wood wrote in his review that Timberlake's latest release is "larded with glib disco-funk tracks and morose, One Republic-style pop-rock tunes" but also offers "a handful of gems" including the songs "Love & War" and "What Lovers Do."

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(L.A. Times staff writer Nardine Saad contributed to this report.)

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