It's Gonna Be Me

In 1999, Max Martin, Andreas Carlsson, and Rami Yacoub went to Key West, Florida, to write another single after NSYNC finished recording "Bye Bye Bye" (2000). After Carlsson whistled the eventual melody of "It's Gonna Be Me", Martin told him to include it in the track. Carlsson was inspired by the love triangle in Rupert Holmes' "Him" (1980) and by Joe Jackson's "Steppin' Out" (1982), which influenced the melody of the lyric "You don't want to lose it again, but I'm not like them". They also traveled to Stockholm, Sweden, where they recorded additional vocals in Cheiron Studios. Rami said Zomba Group founder Clive Calder told Justin Timberlake to over-pronounce the lyric. ==Composition==

"It's Gonna Be Me" is a pop song, Timberlake performs the lead vocals on the song, elongating the word "me" with a "funkadelicized vibrato". Carlsson compared the way Timberlake sung the note to the Backstreet Boys song "It's Gotta Be You" from their 1999 album Millennium, which the opening line "baby" was pronounced as "Bay-bay" instead of "Bay-bee". He opined that Martin's vocal style originated from his time in the Swedish band It's Alive. NSYNC altered the way each consonant and vowel was pronounced in the song in order to provide it with energy. The letter "l" was specifically emphasized on the word "lose" so that the lyric would be sung as "You don't wanna NLUUSE" instead of "You don't wanna lose". The crashing piano stabs were incorporated in order for the beat to sound harder, while synthesizers were used throughout the electronic-based song. Each tense verse consists of beatbox-sounding vocals, which is followed by a slow escalation into an explosive chorus containing several layered vocals. moves to the post-chorus, "all that I do, is not enough for you", before concluding with a climax that follows the song's quiet-loud-quieter-louder structure. The lyrics of "It's Gonna Be Me" describe a man attempting to persuade a woman to start a new relationship as she recovers from a breakup. ==Critical reception==

Chuck Taylor wrote in Billboard that "It's Gonna Be Me" was "a finely crafted example of why pop music continues to excel on the top 40 airwaves", stating that the members used constructive layers of harmonization on top of an "avalanche of meaty beats". Sputnikmusic emeritus Morrissey described the song as "captivating in its menacing bent". David Browne of Entertainment Weekly was more critical, stating that "they stretch out words like 'babe' into 'bayyyyb', resulting in unintentional parodies of R&B singing". Anna Rahmanan of Consequence of Sound opined that "It's Gonna Be Me" was catchy, but contained "meaningless yet understandable lyrics" in a formulaic song. In 2015, Rolling Stone staff ranked it as the 15th-greatest boy band song of all time. They said "the lyric juxtaposes the hesitancy of the song's love interest with the determination of an eager-to-please beau represented by both JC Chasez and Justin Timberlake". Comparing the then-15th anniversary boy band albums No Strings Attached and Black & Blue, Ariana Bacle of Entertainment Weekly ranked "It's Gonna Be Me" as the second-best song behind "The Call" (2000). She wrote that it was the "NSYNC discography's real star", claiming that the "relatively simple melody and Justin’s slightly menacing vocals" resulted in "an irresistible three minutes that climaxes with a bridge highlighting the kind of overlapping harmonies that define boy bands". "It's Gonna Be Me" was ranked at number 18 on Billboards The 100 Greatest Songs of 2000 list, stating that it is "the epitome of a song that endures". ==Commercial performance==

"It's Gonna Be Me" first appeared on the US Top 40 Tracks chart on the May 6, 2000, issue of Billboard at number 33, after it was distributed as a promotional record. It was then released in continental Europe on June 12, 2000. Consequently, this caused "It's Gonna Be Me" to reach number one on the July 29, 2000, issue, scanning 91,000 units. It was the second song released by Jive Records to reach number one since Britney Spears' "...Baby One More Time" in 1999, as they were one of the only singles to be released on CD and cassette formats. The song remained at number one on the Hot 100 for two consecutive weeks, charting from the July 29–August 5, 2000, dated issues of Billboard. It was the only number one single released by NSYNC, despite six of their singles appearing in the top 10 of the chart. The song also reached number one on the Mainstream Top 40 after spending eight weeks on the chart, dethroning Spears' "Oops!... I Did It Again" (2000). In Canada, it debuted at number 18 on the RPM Top 100 Singles chart dated June 5, 2000. The song peaked at number one on the July 10, 2000, issue, replacing "Oops!... I Did It Again" which had then spent 11 weeks on the chart. "It's Gonna Be Me" was certified platinum by Music Canada (MC) on August 31, 2023, for track-equivalent sales of 80,000 units in the country. "It's Gonna Be Me" bowed on the UK Singles Chart at number nine after charting for 12 weeks. It was certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) on December 12, 2025, for selling 400,000 equivalent sales units. On the Swedish Sverigetopplistan chart, the song peaked at number six on August 31, 2000, and remained for 10 weeks before receiving a gold certification for sales of 15,000 equivalent units. It reached the top 20 in Italy, Norway, and Scotland. In Australia, "It's Gonna Be Me" debuted at number 15 on the ARIA Singles Chart on June 25, 2000. It peaked at number 11 and charted for 12 weeks, before receiving a platinum certification by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) for shipping over 70,000 equivalent units. The song peaked at number seven on the New Zealand Singles Chart after charting for 19 weeks, where it was certified gold by Recorded Music NZ (RMNZ) for track-equivalent sales of 5,000 units in the country. ==Music video==

Background and development The music video for "It's Gonna Be Me" was directed by Wayne Isham, and filmed from April 26 to 28, 2000, in Los Angeles Center Studios, with additional footage shot at Play Co. Toys on Soledad Canyon Road in Canyon Country, Santa Clarita, California. NSYNC decided to expand upon the puppet motif used in their album No Strings Attached by being portrayed as dolls that fight other toys in a toy store. Isham visited Play Co. Toys, which he duplicated by creating multiple shelves on the set that formed a regular shelf. The store was chosen by a production company scouting for stores, as it provided the film crew with more freedom to rearrange and dismantle objects. Isham decided to bring back model Kim Smith from the "Bye Bye Bye" music video to link the two. The music video used limited computer-generated imagery (CGI) as Isham wanted it to appear authentic. Life-sized dominoes were used, which were shot falling across the floor. Instead, makeup artist Screaming Mad George used prosthetic makeup to transform NSYNC into dolls in six hours. NSYNC then placed against a green screen at the suggestion of Isham, after he saw a Slim Jim advertisement. The band were filmed at 12 frames per second, on a base of 24, to make them resemble dolls animated by stop-motion. Consequently, both the song and dancing members needed to perform at half speed due to mathematical problems, which was also attributed to the set scaled 7.2 times larger than the real world. During the scene when the dolls are scanned at the checkout counter and reverted to human size, several shots of each member were superimposed in front of a green screen, which was animated by Radium through the use of Inferno steadily growing each doll back up to human height. The company also assisted in creating digital effects using Inferno, such as the constant "morph zooms" used to move between scenes. and made its first appearance on Total Request Live on May 23, 2000. In addition, it received the awards for Choice Music Video and Choice Summer Song at the 2000 Teen Choice Awards. In 2017, viewership on YouTube garnered five times as many daily views on April 30 as they did in mid-April, seven times as many searches, and 23% more views across all NSYNC music videos, in reference to how Timberlake's lyrics sound like "It's gonna be May". The music video has also consistently received the most traffic on April 30 each year. ==Live performances==

NSYNC debuted the live performance of "It's Gonna Be Me" at the 2000 MTV Movie Awards, which was described by MTV.com as "mega-explodo". Billboard editor Carla Hay stated that "the tightly choreographed performance" elicited "the most enthusiastic response from the audience". They also performed an uptempo remix of the song at the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards as a medley with "This I Promise You" and "Bye Bye Bye"; the latter included a video-head breakdown with their bodies dancing in time with their heads displayed on the five big screens. Each member performed a quick costume change from the previous song "Bye Bye Bye", wearing leather outfits with few sleeves and a parachute vest. "It's Gonna Be Me" was remixed and re-choreographed with a rap introduction, and included a planned momentary pause from Joey Fatone after pausing halfway through the performance to regain his breath. NSYNC performed "It's Gonna Be Me" on several television programs worldwide throughout 2000, such as Good Morning America and ''The Rosie O'Donnell Show in the United States, and Top of the Pops in the United Kingdom. When the band appeared on Japanese music television show Pop Jam'', Ultraman posed with them onstage during an interview segment before they performed the song. During the Super Bowl XXXV halftime show on January 28, 2001, NSYNC performed "It's Gonna Be Me" as part of a back-and-forth medley with Aerosmith. The members wore outfits containing pyrotechnics sparking out from their hands, before Aerosmith lead singer Steven Tyler screamed the last line of the chorus. Adam Graham of The Detroit News wrote that the halftime performance "made a lasting impression" with its blend of teen pop, classic rock, comedy and celebrity cameos in comparison to other performances. The song was also included on PopOdyssey, where each band member rode go-karts, shot Nerf guns, and played with several over-sized toys. Five female dancers appeared on the stage littered with giant crayons, blue bouncing balls, scooters and red wagons, while Lance Bass entered with a stuffed bear attached to him. On the Celebrity Tour, "It's Gonna Be Me" was performed with its full dance choreography near the beginning of each concert following "Do Your Thing" and "Bye Bye Bye". ==In popular culture==

Throughout "It's Gonna Be Me", Justin Timberlake pronounces the word "me" such that it sounds more like "May," particularly at the conclusion of the song. A Tumblr user first posted an image of Timberlake with the words "It's Gonna Be May" captioned underneath on January 29, 2012. The meme eventually caught on across the internet, which became an annually recurring joke throughout the month of April. It was acknowledged by former United States president Barack Obama, morning television show Good Morning America, and Timberlake himself. To mark the song's twentieth anniversary in 2020, it was temporarily renamed "It's Gonna Be Me (It's Gonna Be May)" on digital platforms such as Spotify and Apple Music. American rock band Fall Out Boy released a third music video for their song "Irresistible" on January 5, 2016, which featured American singer Demi Lovato, and was also directed by Isham. It contained cameos from NSYNC members Chris Kirkpatrick as an assembly line worker and Fatone as a toy store employee. On the March 1, 2018, episode of Lip Sync Battle, Puerto Rican singer Luis Fonsi performed a lip sync of "It's Gonna Be Me" while competing against Joan Smalls. He impersonated Timberlake by wearing a blonde curly wig, and performed the song's dance choreography. NSYNC's official Twitter page retweeted the performance among other memes of the song on April 30, 2019, with Christian Allaire of Vogue acknowledging that the band fully embraced the meme. American television series Supergirl played "It's Gonna Be Me" in "The Bottle Episode", the 2020 tenth episode of its fifth season, where critics questioned the song's appropriateness in its accompanying "bar fight" scene. American rock band All Time Low interpolated the chorus of "It's Gonna Be Me" in the song "Clumsy", which is included in their eighth studio album Wake Up, Sunshine (2020). Lead vocalist Alex Gaskarth acknowledged that he accidentally added the "oscillating melody" into the pre-chorus, although he intended to include a pop reference. "It's Gonna Be Me" is used in the first trailer for American animated film Turning Red (2022), which Gizmodo writer Charles Pulliam-Moore opined that the song's inclusion piqued his interest in the film. ==Track listings==

US limited edition cassette and CD single US 12-inch single Remixes maxi single European CD single International maxi single ==Credits and personnel==

Credits are adapted from the back cover of "It's Gonna Be Me". Recording • Recorded at Cheiron Studios in Stockholm, Sweden, and Battery Studios in New York City, U.S. Personnel • Max Martin songwriter • Rami songwriter, producer • Andreas Carlsson songwriter • Chris Trevett recording engineer • Charles McCrorey assistant engineer • John Amatiello Pro Tools engineer • Justin Timberlake human beat box • Chaz Harper mastering ==Charts==

Weekly charts Year-end charts ==Certifications==