Production was handled by Timberlake himself, Danja, Federico Vindver, Calvin Harris, Timbaland, Louis Bell, Cirkut, Ryan Tedder, Rob Knox, and others.

The album also reached the top five in several other countries, including Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.

[9] Timberlake had also worked with Calvin Harris, producer of "Fuckin' Up the Disco" and "No Angels," on his song "Stay with Me," alongside Pharrell Williams and Halsey.

[10] A few months after the release of the singles, the singer-songwriter unveiled a trailer for an upcoming project titled Everything I Thought It Was on January 19, 2024, narrated by actor and Reptile co-star, Benicio del Toro.

[16] On January 19, 2024, Timberlake performed a free one-night-only concert at the Orpheum in Memphis where he live-debuted his new single "Selfish" after teasing a new project on social media in previous days.

[11] On January 25, 2024, Timberlake appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon; he announced the release of "Selfish" and revealed that the album had taken four years to produce.

[17] Timberlake appeared as a musical guest on the January 27, 2024, episode of Saturday Night Live, singing "Selfish" and "Sanctified".

[22][23] Timberlake then appeared on Complex Networks Sneaker Shopping on March 11, 2024, and mentioned the release of his new album at the end of the video.

The show featured a surprise reunion with his NSYNC bandmates, with the group playing a medley of hits and the new album track "Paradise."

[26] In the weeks leading up to release, Timberlake also revealed the vinyl LP's "deluxe edition", which included a limited edition merchandise, as well as a look at the LP's exclusive artwork, influenced by Federico Fellini's 8½[failed verification], as well as the album's back cover, which was inspired by Mel Stuart's 1971 film Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory, an adaptation of Roald Dahl's novel, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

[42] On May 20, 2024, Pollstar announced that nine additional shows were added due to "overwhelming demand" and reported that over 1 million tickets were already sold, becoming Timberlake's fastest selling tour to date.

"[48] Pitchfork editor Owen Myers noted that the album "is less of a faceplant than a comfortable rehash of past glories.

"[54] Everything I Thought It Was debuted at number four on the US Billboard 200, earning 67,000 album-equivalent units, calculated from 31.13 million on-demand streams and 41,000 pure album copies.