Cry Me A River (Justin Timberlake Song) - Release and Response

Release and Response

"Cry Me a River" was released as the second single from Justified. Jive Records solicited the song for airplay on contemporary and rhythmic radio in the United States on November 24, 2002. On December 23, 2002, three remixes of the song were released on a 12-inch single in Canada and France. On January 5, 2003, the song was sent to urban contemporary radio stations in the United States. "Cry Me a River" was released on a CD single in Germany on January 23, 2003. The single contained the album version of the song and the remixes previously included on its 12-inch single release. A CD single that consisted of the Johny Fiasco remix of the song and two additional remixes of "Like I Love You" was released on February 3 and February 6, 2003 in the United Kingdom and Canada respectively. "Cry Me a River" was released as a CD single in the United States on February 18, 2003. The single featured the album version of the song, its instrumental and four remixes.

Following its release, media speculated that Spears had written a song as a response to "Cry Me a River"; however, she denied the rumors, explaining, "You know, it's funny. I read that I wrote this song and I wrote these lyrics, and that's not my style. I would never do that." Despite denials, a track titled "Everytime", which appeared on Spears' fourth studio album, In the Zone (2003), was written in large part as a response to "Cry Me a River", according to the song's co-writer Annet Artani. When asked if "Everytime" was about Timberlake, during an interview with Diane Sawyer in PrimeTime, Spears responded, "I'll let the song speak for itself."