@ Ch, thanks for shedding some light on this matter.
@Jde97, You keep comparing Janet to Metallica and making the argument that time should not be a hinderance nor a reason for steady declines in status or sales. If you follow Metallica's success you will find that from 1983 to 1993 there sales continued to find a new peak (starting with their first album selling 3million in '83, continuing on to sell 5x in '84, 6x in '86, 8x in '88 to a staggering 15x in '93). You'll notice, however that after their huge success in '93 their steady dip in sales was consistent( 5x in '96, 3x in '97, 2x in '03). Everyone has a prime and then they reach a point where their 15minutes are up. It's just that some people are fortunate enough to that 15minutes stretch out into decades, while other may have only 1 year! Metallica studio albums don't stir up the same excitment it once did. It's still great that their finding some success and remaining relevant.

Janet would be in this same boat, but we all know that after the superbowl she was banned. It was immediate and dramatic. Janet and Dreamstreet were released before she was established, so expecting them to sale when she didn't make a name for herself yet is unreasonable. They did manage to sell 1million each after she did. You can call Damita Jo and 20Y.O. flops, but I'm sure that would sound preposterous to most people. Rihanna's Rated R didn't sell 3million world wide, Britney's sold 3.1, Mariah's E=MC squared did 2.5, Memoirs isn't even worth comparing... Janet's 3million is pretty impressive still. Again, this was after the superbowl - where the effects of the incident were first felt.

You can speak ill of Janet and find her Queen of pop status baffling - but it's quite simple actually... when you have broken many records that are still untouched and been a integral part of shaping pop culture and defining what it means to be an artist you may then see where the debate begins and why she has a legitimate claim to the title.