In August 2002 , after months of recording Justified , his debut solo album , Timberlake performed at the 2002 MTV Video Music Awards , where he premiered his first single , `` Like I Love You , '' a sparse dance track produced by The Neptunes . In August 2002 , after months of recording Justified , his debut solo album , Timberlake performed at the 2002 MTV Video Music Awards . He premiered his first single , `` Like I Love You '' , a sparse dance track produced by The Neptunes .