At the time, Janet was essentially uninvited from the Grammys, whereas Justin joked about the situation, telling Access Hollywood, “Hey man, we love giving ya’ll something to talk about.”

However, Justin’s faced backlash over the incident in recent years. In a since-deleted 2021 Instagram post, he apologized, writing, “I am deeply sorry for the times in my life where my actions contributed to the problem, where I spoke out of turn, or did not speak up for what was right. I specifically want to apologize to Britney Spears and Janet Jackson both individually, because I care for and respect these women, and I know I failed. The industry is flawed. It sets men, especially white men, up for success. It’s designed this way. As a man in a privileged position, I have to be vocal about this. I care deeply about the wellbeing of the people I love and have loved. I can do better and I will do better.”

In her 2022 documentary Janet Jackson, Janet said, “Honestly, this whole thing was blown way out of proportion. Of course, it was an accident that should not have happened, but everyone is looking for someone to blame, and that’s got to stop… Justin and I are very good friends, and we will always be very good friends. We spoke just a few days ago. He and I have moved on, and it’s time for everyone else to do the same. We talked once, and [Justin] said, ‘I don’t know if I should come out and make a statement.’ And I said, ‘Listen, I don’t want any drama for you. They’re aiming all of this at me.’ So I said, ‘If I were you, I wouldn’t say anything.’”