Justin Timberlake breaks his silence at Chicago concert after being arrested for drunk driving

Justin Timberlake spoke publicly for the first time after he was arrested for drunk driving in the Hamptons this week and his glassy-eyed mugshot went viral around the world.

“It’s been a rough week,” the “Cry Me a River” singer told the crowd at Chicago’s United Center Friday night as he resumed his “Forget Tomorrow” world tour, his first performance since Tuesday’s embarrassing drunken driving arrest.

Timberlake had reportedly already apologized to his stage crew, but his comments from the stage marked the first time the 43-year-old ten-time Grammy winner publicly acknowledged the incident.

“I know it’s hard to love me sometimes, but you always love me too,” the former NSYNC member continued from the stage as the audience showered him with cheers.

The “SexyBack” singer, who has two tour dates at Madison Square Garden on June 25 and 26, downed a strong $21 Vesper Martini at the American Hotel, where he was “having dinner with some friends,” sources said.

After driving his gray 2025 BMW around 12:15 a.m., Timberlake nearly ran a stop sign, authorities said, prompting police to stop him outside the charming hotel – a celebrity favorite where rooms cost up to $625 a night.

According to court documents, he was charged with drunk driving, ignoring a stop sign and failing to stay in his lane.

According to sources, the police officer who stopped the world-famous singer was “so young that he didn’t even know” who Timberlake was, as he didn’t recognize him or his name.

When he complained that running into the law would “ruin the tour,” the police officer replied, “What tour?”, as seen in bodycam footage.

Timberlake told arresting officers he had only had one drink but refused to take a breathalyzer test three times. He attempted to pass a breathalyzer test but failed and was taken into custody, court documents show.

A witness at the bar told The Post that the former “Mickey Mouse Club” member was “drunk” and even grabbed someone else’s drink from the table and drank it while the owner went to the bathroom.

Timberlake appeared in court later that morning looking unkempt, wearing a black baseball cap, a gray T-shirt that read “Live Circuit,” and a black short-sleeved button-down shirt. He was released without bail.

The “In Time” star admitted to having suffered from “excessive alcohol consumption” in the past.

He has two children with actress Jessica Biel, whom he married in 2012.

Biel, 42, who was in Manhattan for filming according to sources, told Us Weekly she was “shocked” and “extremely dismayed” by the news that her husband had been arrested for drunk driving.

If convicted, he faces up to a year in the Suffolk County Jail. However, experts told the Washington Post that this sentence is highly unlikely given Timberlake’s clean criminal record.

More likely, however, he will be fined $500 and have his Empire State driver’s license suspended for 90 days.