On February 1, 2004, Justin Timberlake and Janet Jackson performed together as part of an all-star MTV-produced Super Bowl Halftime Show, and you already know what happened. The grand finale was Timberlake, a surprise guest at the show, singing “Rock Your Body” with Jackson. In the final moment, as Timberlake sang that he would have you naked by the end of this song, he reached over and ripped away part of Jackson’s top, briefly exposing her nipple to everyone watching the show live. The ensuing fallout is generally credited with ruining Jackson’s long hitmaking career, as CBS chief Les Moonves carried out a years-long vendetta against her. For his part, Timberlake was back on CBS a week later, performing at the Grammys.

Last night, the night before the 20th anniversary of the whole Nipplegate fiasco, Justin Timberlake played a small show at New York’s Irving Plaza. The show was a 43rd-birthday celebration for Timberlake, and it was also part of the early promotional run for his forthcoming album Everything I Thought It Was. Introducing “Cry Me A River,” Timberlake told the crowd, “I’d like to take this opportunity to apologize to absolutely fucking nobody.” Hmm. Interesting.

@britneyplanetitalia Justin Timberlake seemingly shades Britney Spears while performing tonight in NYC #britneyspears #justintimberlake #perte #fyp #britneyarmy #britneyspearsfan ♬ suono originale – Britney Planet Italia

Britney Spears appeared to have responded on Instagram on Thursday: “Someone told me someone was talking shit about me on the streets !!! Do you want to bring it to the court or will you go home crying to your mom like you did last time ??? I’m not sorry !!!”

In the past, Justin Timberlake has taken plenty of opportunities to apologize. At the post-Nipplegate Grammys, Timberlake told the world, “What occurred was unintentional, completely regrettable and I apologize if you guys are offended.” In recent years, Timberlake has offered public apologies to Janet Jackson and his ex Britney Spears. He’s also apologized to his wife Jessica Biel, to the city of Washington, DC, to anyone offended by his comment on Jesse Williams’ BET Awards speech, and to the Take Back The Night Foundation. Right now, he should apologize to me for having to write this blog post.