This man of the woods is now flying solo. Justin Timberlake has parted ways with his publicist, Sonia Muckle, after two decades, multiple sources confirm to Us Weekly exclusively.
“Justin wasn’t happy with Sonia after the Super Bowl,” one source says, adding that “the last straw” was the mixed reviews that followed the February 2 release of the singer’s fifth album, Man of the Woods.
A second source tells Us that Muckle is “obviously hurt, but she is refocusing her energy to other projects and clients.”
Timberlake worked with Muckle since his days as a member of ‘NSync. The now-defunct boy band (which also consisted of Lance Bass, JC Chasez, Joey Fatone and Chris Kirkpatrick) was formed in 1996 and released its fourth and final album, Celebrity, in 2001.
The publicist continued representing the “Cry Me a River” crooner when he started his solo career in 2002 with the release of his album Justified. She was by his side through the many ups and occasional downs that followed, from his controversial 2004 Super Bowl Halftime performance with Janet Jackson to the 2012 release of his comeback album, The 20/20 Experience, to his return to the NFL stage this February.
Muckle previously worked as a publicist for Timberlake’s ex-girlfriend Britney Spears.
The “Can’t Stop the Feeling!” singer is currently in the midst of his Man of the Woods tour, which kicked off in Toronto on March 13. The 110-date trek is set to conclude in Denver on January 29, 2019.
During his time on the road, Timberlake’s wife, Jessica Biel, and their 3-year-old son, Silas, have come first and foremost. “Gone is the partying and hanging out until all hours of the night,” a source recently told Us exclusively. “Justin is a very different man this tour around. He has been a family man. … He’s 100 percent dad.”
Us Weekly has reached out to Muckle for comment.
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