‘It’s been a tough week,’ Justin Timberlake says to crowd in first concert following his DWI arrest

By Virginia Langmaid and Paradise Afshar, CNN

(CNN) — Justin Timberlake returned to the stage Friday night for his first concert since being arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated in Sag Harbor, New York on Tuesday.

“It’s been a tough week, but you’re here and I’m here, and nothing can change this moment right now,” Timberlake told a cheering crowd at the United Center in Chicago. “I know sometimes I’m hard to love but you keep on loving me and I love you right back.”

Timberlake will hit the stage again Saturday for a second night of the “Forget Tomorrow” world tour in Chicago.

Sag Harbor police said Timberlake was observed “operating his vehicle in an intoxicated condition,” around 12:37 a.m. Tuesday morning after visiting a local hotel restaurant and bar. He was driving a 2025 BMW when he allegedly failed to stop at a stop sign and failed to maintain in his lane of travel, police said.

Timberlake had told police he “had one martini and followed my friends home,” according to court records.

A Sag Harbor Village Police Department officer described him as “unable to divide attention,” adding “he had slowed speech, he was unsteady afoot and he performed poorly on all standardized field sobriety tests.”

Timberlake rejected a chemical test three times. He was placed under arrest and held overnight for arraignment, according to police. He was released without bail and his next court appearance is scheduled for July 26.

CNN reached out to representatives for Timberlake for comment.

After this weekend’s shows, Timberlake is scheduled to return to New York with his tour for performances at Madison Square Garden on June 25 and 26, before heading to the TD Garden in Boston. Concerts will be held in several countries, then the world tour will make its way back to the US and end in Missouri in December.

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CNN’s Marianne Garvey contributed to this report