Singer Justin Timberlake confirms he'll help write and produce the new album by the 1980s pop sensation Duran Duran.
"We've got some good stuff happening here," said frontman Simon LeBon. "We are in a very good space."
Duran Duran, which hit the charts with songs such as Rio, The Reflex, Hungry Like the Wolf and A View to a Kill, recently split with one of its founding members. Guitarist Andy Taylor left in October.
Current members now include keyboardist Nick Rhodes, John Taylor on bass and Roger Taylor on drums. The Taylors aren't related.
Roger Taylor said Andy Taylor's departure had been "empowering" and "quite freeing" for the group, originally formed in 1978. The band has sold more than 70 million records worldwide, with thirty songs hitting Top 40 on the UK charts.
Over the years, different members have left for solo efforts and returned. LeBon and Rhodes were always the mainstays.
The 25-year-old Timberlake, once a member of boy band N'Sync, is expected to inject some modern sounds into the band. Timberlake's current hits from his FutureSex/LoveSounds album are Sexyback and My Love.
LeBon said the group is also working with American hip-hop producer Timbaland, who is behind Nelly Furtado's latest album Loose, with the mega-hit Promiscuous. Timbaland, born Timothy Mosley, has created tracks for the likes of Ludacris, Jay-Z, Lil' Kim and also Timberlake.
"We've done three tracks with Timbaland; we've collaborated in a writing and production manner on one of those tracks with Justin Timberlake," said LeBon.
Duran Duran has been in Europe and the U.S. for the past few weeks.
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