There is much that goes on behind the scenes when it comes to music production. Before getting to enjoy the final product, fans are often completely in the dark about which songs almost didn’t make the cut, or even when tracks once belonged to entirely different artists. Some examples include Ariana Grande’s R.E.M. once existing as a demo recorded by Beyoncé, or Pharrell Williams‘ solo debut “Frontin’” being written with the intention for Prince. With that, there is an entire album that was supposed to be a major pop R&B pivot for Michael Jackson, yet it landed in an entirely different artist’s hands.

Justified, Justin Timberlake’s hit debut solo album, cemented a time in history. Not only did it mark Timberlake’s departure from NSYNC, but it also set a tonal shift for the pop industry at large. However, Pharrell, who produced the album as one half of The Neptunes, shared a pretty major revelation regarding the project’s journey. The album, which housed career-defining hits like “Rock Your Body,” “Cry Me a River,” and “Like I Love You,” was originally written entirely for Michael Jackson.

Justin Timberlake’s ‘Justified’

As one of NSYNC’s most prominent voices, Justin Timberlake felt a duty to prove his capabilities outside of a group dynamic. Making the executive decision to put the band on an indefinite hiatus before venturing down a solo path, he felt a longing to produce a different kind of sound. A sound more mature and R&B leaning, signifying his evolution from boy to man.

Recorded in a six-week period, Justified served as Timberlake’s flag on the moon, who at the time was going through a very public breakup with fellow pop star Britney Spears. The album intimately explored betrayal and desire, love found and love lost. Aside from The Neptunes, Justified was also crafted by Timbaland while featuring guest appearances from Janet Jackson, Clipse, and Bubba Sparxxx. It went on to earn Timberlake four Grammy Award nominations, winning the award for Best Pop Vocal Album. Yet, in another universe, his debut album would have actually been just another Michael Jackson project.

At the time, Jackson had come off the heels of HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book I, which housed his past biggest hits while offering new classics like “Scream,” “You Are Not Alone,” and “They Don’t Care About Us.” When it was time to decipher what was next, he was approached by Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo of The Neptunes with a batch of songs that would later make up the entirety of Justified. However, Jackson reportedly turned down the songs because he felt they sounded too similar to his existing work, and he was looking for a new direction at the time. “John McClain was Michael Jackson’s manager at the time,” Pharrell explained during an interview with Drink Champs. “We sent him pretty much all the stuff y’all are hearing on the Justified album. That’s all the Michael stuff. All but one song, they were all written for Michael.” However, despite getting it through to his team, the deal ultimately ended in rejection. “John McClain was like, ‘Man, Michael don’t want that s**t.”

Michael Jackson Releases ‘Invincible’

So what did Jackson choose to put out instead? Justified was released on November 5, 2002. At this time, Jackson was still in the thick of rolling out Invincible, which was released the year prior. The project’s lead single, “You Rock My World”, ended up serving as the final hit single of his career. Alongside Jackson, Invincible features productions by Teddy Riley, Babyface, and R. Kelly. The Neptunes were nowhere near the project, though Pharrell’s intended creative direction for Jackson was seemingly spot on. Songs like “Butterflies,” “Heaven Can Wait,” and “Break of Dawn” leaned towards the pop R&B fusion that Justified also embraced. Though Jackson had pushed Justified away, it was pretty sonically aligned with where he ended up, regardless.

Pharrell’s confession of Justified’s original intentions was also coupled with the news that Britney Spears‘ “I’m a Slave 4 U,” another hit Neptunes production, was actually meant for Janet Jackson. In fact, Janet Jackson even recorded her own version of the song, though it was never released. It all only proves that while Williams and Hugo have both crafted catalogs with a vision of who they would belong to in mind, the music will always find its rightful home, even if it’s somewhere completely unexpected.