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Justin Timberlake reveals his shocking Lyme disease diagnosis, giving the most shocking finale to his two-year tour. The legend commenced The Forget Tomorrow World Tour in February 2024, hitting locations across North America, Europe, and South America. Launched in support of Everything I Thought I Was, his sixth studio album, the crooner concluded the tour with a final performance in Istanbul, Turkey, on July 30, 2025. While it broke the records as the singer’s fastest-selling concert tour yet, The Forget Tomorrow World Tour would forever be remembered for something far scarier after his latest revelation.
Taking to Instagram on Thursday, the 44-year-old opened up about his health issues in an appreciation post commemorating his just concluded tour. Timberlake began by sharing his incredible experiences embarking on his tour these past months, and how much he looked forward to the future. He described the tour as his most “fun, emotional, gratifying, physically demanding, and at times grueling experience,” also acknowledging friends, family, and everyone who supported him through the journey.
Timberlake Shares Struggles With Lyme Disease
Justin Timberlake then proceeded to share his shocking Lyme disease diagnosis, and the impact it’s had on his life and career. He reflected,
“I want to tell you a little bit about what’s going on with me. Among other things, I’ve been battling some health issues, and was diagnosed with Lyme disease.”
The Better Place crooner clarified his intention for sharing the crushing diagnosis with fans despite his preference for privacy. According to Justin Timberlake, he felt the need to reveal his Lyme disease to the world not to incite pity, but to shed light on his struggles behind the scenes. He added,
“If you’ve experienced this disease or know someone who has — then you’re aware: living with this can be relentlessly debilitating, both mentally and physically.”
Going further, Justin Timberlake shared his first reaction to discovering his Lyme disease diagnosis, saying he felt “shocked for sure.” However he felt relieved to finally understand the mystery behind the “massive amout of nerve pain,” dizzyness, fatigue and sickness” he often felt while on stage. This realization put him face to face with one of the most life-defining decisions he ever had to make. Faced with the “personal choice” to stop touring or keep going and figure it out, Timberlake chose the latter, knowing the joy and fulfilment he got from performing outweighed the toll it took on his body amid his health issues.
Why Justin Timberlake Shared His Health Issue
The decision to push himself helped the crooner prove his mental tenacity to himself while creating cherished memories with fans across continents throughout his tour. On why he hesitated to disclose his painfully debilitating condition at first, Timberlake explained that his upbringing encouraged him to keep such things to himself. However, he hoped maintaining transparency about his struggles would help avoid misrepresentation. Timberlake concluded,
“Sharing all of this with the hope that we can all find a way to be more connected. I’d like to do my part to help others experiencing this disease, too.”
The heartfelt post about his Lyme disease diagnosis comes days after the Can’t Stop the Feeling hitmaker came under fire for underperforming at this year’s Electric Castle, an annual music festival held in Romania. Clips of Timberlake’s performance shared online showed the crooner trailing off in the middle of performing the hit song, and urging attendees to “sing, c’mon,” barely carrying the crowd along. While the crooner did not explicitly blame his seemingly “poor “lazy” performance at the festival on his disease, a good guess wouldn’t be far off.
Is Lyme Disease Curable?
Over the years, several famous people have shared their struggles with Lyme disease and how it affected their performance, career, relationships, and life as a whole. Celebrities like Justin Bieber, Bella Hadid, Ben Stiller, Shania Twain, and Ozzy Osbourne’s daughter, Kelly Osbourne, have been candid about these struggles, sharing their excruciating ordeals with the world. With so many famous people living with Lyme disease, one can’t help but wonder if it is curable.
The Centers for Disease Control describes Lyme disease as a “bacterial infection spread to people through the bite of blacklegged ticks,” most common in certain regions of the United States, like the Northeast, upper-Midwest, and mid-Atlantic. The earliest symptom includes erythema migrans, a reddish rash with a bullseye appearance expanding outward from the bite site. Other symptoms like fever, headache, muscle pain, fatigue, eventually follow, and in severe cases, could progress to heart problems, joint inflammation, and neurological symptoms. While curable, early treatment with antibiotics remains the only way to ensure full recovery without complications.
