Justin Timberlake performs “Mirrors” during the encore of his concert at Spectrum Center in Charlotte on Thursday night.

You don’t need me to tell you that Justin Timberlake is a heckuva good dancer.

But I will: At Spectrum Center in uptown Charlotte on Thursday night — in the pop singer’s first concert here since before the pandemic — he kept *N pretty much perfect SYNC (see what I did there?) with his two male and three female backups. Together, they shimmied, shuffled, and swayed through more than a dozen choreographed routines; and then he trumped them all in the homestretch, with a show-stopping solo moonwalk that somehow looked both smooth and shaky at the same time.

You don’t need me to tell you that Justin Timberlake can be a goofball.

But I will: Exhibit A would include highlights from his five “Saturday Night Live” appearances, including the 2011 “What’s That Name?” skit that pokes uproarious fun at (here we go again) how out of SYNC he was with his former boy band mates at the time; and Exhibit B would include the banter he wedged Thursday night between his slow-mo re-creation of yesteryear smash “My Love” and his lustful rendition of “Technicolor,” a song off his new album.

“What does that say?” Timberlake asked a woman holding a sign in the first couple of rows. “‘Christmas List’?”

It did, and the first wish listed — with lines through it — was “D— In A Box,” the title of Timberlake’s most memorable sketch from “SNL.” The one that, uh, involves a holiday, um, package held, er … I mean, you know the one I’m talking about, don’t you?

“You crossed that out. Yeah, I see that,” he continued, then moving on to read the sign’s third and final line. “Oh! So the next best thing is my autograph?”

It was, and she had brought with her a Sharpie along with a piece of Justin Timberlake memorabilia. And as the items were passed up to him, he warbled a quick “D—” lyric — Girl you know we’ve been together such a long long time — before adding, in a sing-song-y voice: “It’s almost that time o’ year…”

After signing and returning, he zeroed in on another female fan, this one clad in a T-shirt that read “Fan of Jessica Biel’s boyfriend” (presumably a vintage tee, as Timberlake and Biel married in 2012 after four years of dating and a yearlong engagement). Her sign said, “Our Son Used To Call You Daddy” and “Draw My Tattoo?”

When she passed up a piece of paper so he could fulfill her request, he did a nice job thinking quickly and hilariously on his feet.

“Not Dad!” Timberlake wrote, then signed beneath it: “— Justin.”

“Just so we’re clear,” he explained, chuckling, as the crowd roared.

That’ll be some tattoo…

You also don’t need me to tell you too-too much about Justin Timberlake’s new tour itself, since he’s now performed the show more than 40 times in North America this year — and since both the setup and the setlist are identical in every city.

But I also will: Especially because Timberlake actually broke a little bit of local news at this one.

No, it’s not that he shouted-out North Carolina’s own Petey Pablo. He did that last time, too. It’s that he said this: “It’s a special night. … We just did two shows in Florida … and from those two shows and this show tonight, we’re pulling some proceeds from all the ticket sales to go to the hurricane relief.” He did not provide other specifics, but good on him.

More generally speaking, though — aside from the aforementioned sign-readings — Timberlake mostly ran the “Forget Tomorrow World Tour” playbook.

He spent three-quarters of the night on the main stage, to the rear of which loomed a massive video screen that was probably 100 feet wide, a high-tech monstrosity impressive enough just as a static screen. But then six songs in, the middle section separated from the rest of it to become a six-sided, 35-foot-tall-by-12-foot-wide-by-5-foot-deep, 3-D video rectangle that levitated above the floor and floated out to the front of the stage.

As Timberlake and his “Tennessee Kids” touring team navigated a stretch of new, lesser-known songs that might have otherwise amounted to a lull, we fans had a nice if slightly unnerving distraction in the form of this ginormous slab.

Whenever it was maneuvered into a position directly over Timberlake & Co., all my anxiety could think about was a faulty cable…

It was never not cool to look at, though. It also figured heavily into the encore, tilting forward to reveal J.T. fitted with a safety harness that he would remain in while singing “Mirrors” — and while the huge apparatus reoriented itself horizontally and floated out over the crowd. (More anxiety!)

Meanwhile, the other fourth of the show took place on the “bar stage” to the rear of the arena floor. The space was actually functional during the DJ’s warmup set, complete with bartenders pouring liquor. But by the time Timberlake got back there and broke into a series of songs that included hits “Suit & Tie,” “Say Something” and “Selfish,” the bar was for display only / for him to dance on.

As for his wardrobe choices, for those interested? Well, he rose from the beneath the stage to start the night in a black suit over a white tee and white sneakers, with dark sunglasses over his eyes and gold chains dangling from both his neck and his left hip.

For the “bar set,” he quick-changed into a more-casual black jacket and more-casual black pants; then — for the finale — the singer returned wearing what almost amounted to pajamas, or scrubs. Although maybe that’s what’s most practical for the finale’s centerpiece stunt.

It was hard, I should mention, not to compare J.T.’s production to Usher’s, given that 1) their shows came to Spectrum so close together (Usher was here just a few weeks ago) and 2) they have similarly exceptional dancing skills and a similar sex appeal. That said, in comparison, my main note is I think Timberlake’s production lacked some of the theatricality of Usher’s, which can feel by turns like a Broadway musical, a circus, or a carnival.

Whether you see that as a pro or a con depends, of course, on your tolerance for Broadway musicals, or circuses, or carnivals. Moving on…

Lastly and perhaps most importantly, you don’t need me to tell you that Justin Timberlake is getting older.

But I’ll do that, too: He’s 43 now. He’ll be 44 in January.

And with age he is also, naturally, becoming more reflective. “We’ve been out on this tour for most of the year,” he said late in Thursday night’s concert, “and there’s something that just keeps washing over me on this tour more than any one that I’ve done before. … I see so many faces that I’ve seen before, and it really hits home. … You guys keep coming out to see me. … I can’t tell you how grateful I am.”

The crowd cheered loudly, then he smiled and continued.

“Is there anybody in here that’s been rockin’ with me for, like, 25 years?” More loud cheers.

“I’m talkin’ ’bout, like, way back. I’m talkin’ ’bout, like, *NSYNC back.” Now deafening cheers.

“I don’t know, you know, maybe you (were) there my first solo album, … my second album, or so on and so forth. But so many of you come up to me and you say … ‘I grew up with you.’ To which I say, ‘Stop. Because that makes me feel old.’”

Timberlake laughed, and said he was kidding.

But even if stuff like that does make him feel old, he should sleep soundly. Because I feel sure that on Thursday night in Charlotte, Justin Timberlake spent two hours making about 18,000 people — many comprising couples but far more made up of groups of girlfriends — feel just one thing:

Young again.

Justin Timberlake’s setlist

1. “No Angels”

2. “LoveStoned” / “I Think She Knows”

3. “Like I Love You”

4. “My Love”

5. “Technicolor”

6. “Sanctified”

7. “Infinity Sex”

8. “FutureSex”/“LoveSound”

9. “Imagination”

10. “Drown”

11. “Cry Me a River”

12. “Let the Groove Get In”

13. “My Favorite Drug”

14. “Señorita”

15. “Summer Love”

16. “F—–’ Up the Disco”

17. “Play”

18. “Suit & Tie”

19. “Flame”

20. “Say Something”

21. “Pusher Love Girl”

22. “Until the End of Time”

23. “Selfish”

24. “What Goes Around… Comes Around”

25. “Can’t Stop the Feeling!”

26. “Rock Your Body”

27. “SexyBack”

Encore:

28. “Mirrors”