Love her or loathe her, Janet Jackson is Pop royalty.
At 45, the singer boasts a career spanning more than three decades, and a hit catalogue even the most established of acts would be envious of. Indeed, in every which way, Jackson is iconic.
However, after a lengthy spell at the top, her success has slowed notably over the last 7 years; a fact, no doubt, attributable due to her infamous “wardrobe malfunction” at the 2004 Super Bowl and the bevy of starlets who established themselves since then.
Yet, with the success of her recent ‘Number Ones: Up, Close, & Personal Tour’, many are itching for new material from the youngest of the Jackson clan.
As such, That Grape Juice took to the streets of Hollywood to hear what the people think of Ms. Jackson. What went wrong with her career? Can she make a comeback? Should she even bother? This is ‘The Word…On Janet Jackson’.
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KING JANET!
YASS! THE QUEEN/KING JANET JACKSON!!!
4ever Janet…..Iconic and amazing artist
Janet is the best!
First, I want to say – NO, it’s not too late!!!!!!!!
She just needs to work with the right people and make sure her output is true to her, her age, etc…
The Feedback single/album could have been the bomb. All the right elements were there, but something was missing. I know, for one, the video lacked dancing. There was a video she did after that which was very cute and futuristic, and one other video for that album just didn’t go with the song. It wasn’t innovative. During that time period, that album, I felt that Janet still had it, but maybe not the other people working on the project.
I agree about her not needing to be raunchy, but illusive, instead.
I would like to see her comeback as someone genuinely seasoned, not someone trying to be young or hip – just true and real to her evolutionary path and age.
One thing I like about Janet is her ballads, like ‘Come Back To Me’, “Let’s Wait Awhile”…she could do something heart felt like those.
Perhaps, she could take example from, or people could consider, performers like Sade, Tina Turner, Josephine Baker, Chaka Khan, Patti LaBelle, Eartha Kitt, Grace Jones, Prince…these performers drew/still draw crowds even though they are/were considered past their “prime”. For example, with the right people/machine behind her, IMO, Chaka Khan could probably out do someone like ‘Rihanna’ in filling a stadium. Let’s put Sade up against Beyonce – Sade would outsell Beyonce for a concert show.
There are a lot of OTHER older artist who can, or could, draw crowns, but it seems that the industry and ‘the people around them’ make this seem like it’s not possible. I think this expectation ends up halting their evolution as artists, which is not fair. Who says you can’t evolve in art, as an intellectual, in life, etc… after age 25? Who ever said that?
People’s voices get strong, they understand those instruments better, the stage becomes their second skin, well executed and innovated dance becomes like breathing…if people are allow to evolve naturally as artists.
I feel that there have been, and still are, a whole lot of people working in entertainment who should be non-factors, because they ruin the possibility of unique, quality, genuine and innovated artistic expression for everyone, esp. the artists and their fans.
When I look at an artist who made songs I once liked, be it when I was younger or now, I don’t get why them aging would take away from the fact that they are a good artist; that God gave them the gift of expression, song, writing, etc… They shouldn’t get worse, they should get better, and I should love their art more as they grow older. An example would be someone like Janell Monae. I can see how someone like her could ever be told she’s too old, too unique, too good, and too much of a true artist to ever stop making good music.
I’m all for social evolution in regards to ‘age’. I think it’s time for the entertainment industry to stop with this age discrimination.
It’s the whole media/commercial industry, really. They commercialize and hyper-sexualize the youth, and then discard them after age 23-25, or so. I think, in many cases, the youth actually have a bit too much voice in regards to the arts.
I notice that in the African music industry the older artists are more respected and regarded – they still have an assured place in the music industry as popular artists. No one tries to discard them. If anything, they get more respect, support, the older they become in age and the more seasoned (they get better) they are as artists and entertainers. I guess the other aspect of that is that many older African artists are also tradition/culture bearers. You can’t do anything, but respect and support those types of individuals, coming from those cultures.
But the same should go for Janet Jackson and so many other older artist. In a way, they are cultural bearers of American music. We should cherish them, and allow them to continue to evolve without trying to discard or disregard them. And, YES, this can be done while allowing new artist to emerge. It makes no sense that you have to stomp older people out for the younger ones to shine, or vice-versa.
The media should not be artificially manipulated so that only artists of a certain age range, or record sales history for that matter, be heard while the rest are not. That is part of the lingering problem, right now, with main stream media. Luckily, the internet has changed that a bit. However, it seems that big companies even want to control the impact the internet has made in evening the playing field.
The comeback of both Prince and Sade really say something about the old school musicians and artist, their work ethic and their artistic standards and popularity. I think the internet is part of the reason for their success.
Mainstream media seems to only give the youth credit for evolving music, creating new genres and new sounds/movements, or have the ability to do so. I think that’s a big mistake, especially considering the years of exposure to music older musicians have – they’ve heard more. They have a bigger mental library from which to draw and make something new from. I think there are good examples older musicians parking artistic movements in genres like Latin music and jazz.
How can the music indsutry put more value on a 20-something year odl artist who borrows from 1920’s popular music stylings to create an innovative new sound and a hit single, but not consider that a musician born in the lat 1960s could also do the same given their vass exposure to different types of music and genres?
We need to allow older artists to continue shining and influencing the masses.
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Along with continuing to support older artists, we should also support the development, and maintenance, of music and art education programs in public schools. The art and music programs in this country for K-12 public school students have decreased drastically in the past 50 years. There are not enough of these programs available, and there is not enough funding.
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The one lady said she thinks Janet is the most normal Jackson of the bunch. I disagree.
After I got over Michael (during the 1990s) and started learning more about the other siblings, I concluded that Rebbie and Marlon are the most normal of all the siblings. Janet falls in the middle.
Most-to-least normal
1) Marlon
2) Rebbie
3) Jackie
4) Tito
5) Janet
6) Randy
7) Jermaine
8) LaToya
9) Micheal
Most-to-least successful ‘as entertainers’
1) Michael
2) Janet
3) Rebbie
4) Jermaine
5) LaToya
6) Tito
7) Marlon
8) Jackie
9) Randy
Hey, I just wanted to speak to you for a minute. I am a Michael Jackson Fan. But I am also a fan of humanity before anything else. Let me just say this, I have NEVER in my life witnessed a person in exsistence like Michael Jackson. And I am not talking about his talent so to speak, but his SPIRIT. The depth that that mans soul possed was blessed, their is not another living creature on this earth that could ever even come close to matching what was given to Michael. I am not saying this to be objective to what you are saying, nor am I trying to be disrespectful, but what I am saying is that If you ever want to know about the REAL Michael Joe, PLEASE look at the facts, – Not saying that you dont- BUT – bassed on your most to least chart, I promise you, youve got it all wrong. Michael was one of the most loving and purest human beings that ever existed on planet earth. I really mean that. I dont know if you have ever read the court transcripts from his 2005 trial or even anything that has happened with him before or after that, but I can assure you that what you will find is Greed and Mafia all over the place, NO MICHAEL. What you will see is that he was under constant assasination threats throughout his entire adult life, and not for being envolved with the wrong people but for being EXTREMELY successful and BLACK. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE check in to it, all the FACTS are very disturbing and hurtful, and what will happen is that they will actually turn out to be the absolute most haneous and digusting racists attack against someone, a living human being at that, that you’ll probally ever witness in your life. I have been reading up and YouTubing all things MJ for some years now and I can tell you, honestly, that I never expected to uncover what I did about Michael. I truly believe that God did not make Michael by accident nor did he gift him by accident, follow the money follow the Beatles catalog and you will see just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to what Michael Jackson had to put up with and deal with. Very very very disturbing and bothering. It was purposely done to him and he did not deserve that, not only was he innocent but he was actually just a really great human being and I have found myself really bothered by all the lies and dirt that was thrown on him which was without a doubt untrue, check out the court documents and FBI ivestigations, and I just find myself honestly trying to understand why such a purely wonderful and talented human being had to be so torted and misstreated. All I can ask is that you really check things out, you wont believe what youre reading and you will find yourself angry with this country and the justice syetem because they allowed it to happen. Crooked and corrupt, America and Tommy Matolla & Sony, honest and pure Michael Joe Jackson. Lies run sprints, but the truth runs marathons – Michael Joe Jackson. — I Love You and I love youre coment and I meant no harm, I just wanted you to know about our brother and the truth… All that I can hope is that you will see how loving and generous and honest that he is, with that being said everthing else will fall into place naturally. Michael didnt deserve what he went through, and he surelly does not deserve this. Hes an amazing human being, please get to know him…
I am sorry for all the incorrect spelling, but it is all trully from my heart. I hope that you feel it because it is honest…
Janet is a legend and she will be forever remembered as an amazing performer
Janet is a legend you like it or not, she’s not the best but absolutely one of the best. Her voice is not like Whitney but that you have high notes doesn’t mean you be loved by everyone, (Example) Mariah Carey has a great voice with high notes but i don’t like her voice but i like Whitney Houston voice and i love Janet Jackson voice so weak and s*** is a matter of taste. Janet is an amazing performer.
Lol @ that idiot saying her dancing in her last video was mediocre. Dude, NO female artist out there is outdancing Janet right now. Certainly not Beyonce.
How some Beyonce stan gonna say her dancing was mediocre in her last video, it was a hell of a lot better than Beyonce’s dancing in any of her videos no disrespect to her though, B is a beast when it comes to singing, but she ain’t a dancer like Janet.
Janet is a flop, has-been!
Janet is the Best !!
I love you queen/king Janet , miss Jackson if you’re nasty 😛
you are my life , please come to Brazil
we love you
janet Jackson’s nephew AUSTIN BROWN WILL BE ON PERFORMING HIS NEW SINGLE ALL I NEED ON GEORGE LOPEZ ON THE 27 WED. AND YOU CAN WATCH HIS TRAILER 85 ON YOUTUBE DIRECTED BY THE PEOPLE WHO DID TRANSFORMERS AND XMEN. IT FANTASTIN. AS FOR JANET JACKSON SHE IS THE BEST AND HER VOICE IS SO PURE AND MORE LISTENABLE THAN ANY BIG VOICED SINGER.
@Magicpaint: I couldn’t have said that any better myself.
It’s great to see the love for Janet. I think she is definitely at a crossroads in her career and could definitely see an uptick in success from her most recent releases. I don’t think the problem has ever even really been her music…yes there have been some misses in terms of singles released, but as a whole composition, her music has never been bad. The problem with the latest releases was promotion and effort. Janet used to be in a position (and was there for a long time) where she could put out a release and the record labels didn’t have to work for it to sell…but the game has changed and the blackballing from MTV and Radio (due to the Superbowl) put her in a bad spot. It’s amazing to see how LA Reid put so much effort into Rihanna’s projects but when it came to Janet, he just gave up on her, although Rihanna’s first week sales were lower than Janet (and Mariah for that matter) but yet she gets 5-7 singles per album and her albums still don’t sell as well as they should given the promotion and effort put into marketing them (not to mention her horrible live performances and voice).
But all in all, if Janet never released another album or song, she still holds a place in the history of Music because of her impact and records that still have yet to be broken. She is the consumate performer and artist and so humble and gracious, which makes her that much more special. #TeamJanet4Ever
Diddo!!!
Comeback from where? She never left. Damita JO and 20 Y.O were platinum albums. Discipline was Gold. Janet is the ultimate ICON.
Where do people get their ideas from, like, seriously?
Just cause she’s been away a couple years and a number of artists have developed to their peaks, does not mean that she can’t make a massive suprise comeback. As she herself said once, “there is room for everyone”. I’m not going to make comparisons, but I don’t need to, its Janet! Janet’s music has always been great, what’s been lacking in recent years is support…support from radio, general media and even fans, which is such ashame cause she’s still got it, above these current ones. All she needs is the support, and momentum and more hits are guareenteed. Currently, things are on the up with support, and she’s on a successful tour. No, Janet doesn’t ‘need’ to make a comeback cause she has done a lot, but that’s just a silly comment! She’s only 45, she’s a legend and as long as she still wants it, she will have no problem shutting u lot up with more hits on the charts.
I love and will always love Janet. I’ve seen ever concert and she’s knows how to keep you on your feet. NO ONE, AND I MEAN NO ONE, …. has yet to be able to do that. Janet is and will always be an icon. She’s the one that Rihanna, Beyonce, Kelly Rowland, Britney Spears, Keri Hilson, are all striving to compare to. She did it 1st. And she can out perform, out dance and one of them any day.
I can’t wait and pray that she starts putting out some new music. I love her music from way back (Dream Street), to now (Make Me). “)
What some people don’t realize is that beYAWNcy, rhianna and ciara, and the rest of those chics live in the house that Janet built. Janet is 45 years old and wealthy enough that she doesn’t have to ever perform another day in her life, but she has die-hard fans young and old who love her and want to see her and that’s why she chose to do her Up close and Personal Tour to sell out crowds. She’s like Diana Ross who is performing all over the world to sell out crowds, it’s in them to want to perform, because that’s why they got into the business in the first place. Janet is inspirational, she’s deep, she’s s***, she’s a performer, entertainer, actress, writers, dancer, singer, model, who has taken us from the Little Mae West in her families Variety Show to Little Penny on Good Times, to her Poetic Justic, opposite Tupac, to Dr. Doolittle Roles, Why Did I Get Married 1 and 2, To For Colored Girls. Her Rhythm Nation cd dealing with Social Issues, and working with Colin Powell, and her unrelentless contribution to H**/A***, through her sexuality on the Velvet Rope and touring, to writing True You, Miss Jackson is an Iconic/Legendary figure in American Pop Music. There’s no denying that as long as Legends still walk the face of this earth that this is what they’ll be, and noone can discredit them for their sacrifices, but when dealing with the youths of today, the disrespectfulness that they personify, it’s very easy for them to uplift the beYAWNcy’s and the Rhianna’s because they have no respect for who laid the ground work for those who they admire. Janet will always be LEGENDARY.
Janet is the most consistent female artist of the past 25 years……more consistent then Madonna, Whitney, and Mariah. I rarely hear people say that any one of these three artists influenced them. I hear artists all the time mention that Janet has been one of their primary influences. Janet Jackson’s music never fell off…….puritanical American’s left her because of a nipple, which is one of the most ridiculous non-events in the history of television. I just saw Janet three times in London…….she simply hasn’t missed a beat in 25 plus years of entertainment! She is a genius in song-writing, dancing, performance and entertainment!
Janet Jackson is, has been, and will always be on another level that many artist will never reach. Regardless of Janet’s vocal range, that does not define Janet’s artistry, for many artists it does, that’s why we don’t see many albums from them. Janet is not only one of the greatest performers I’ve ever seen she does have a beautiful voice. Not every singer will be a powerhouse (see Michael Jackson)… but Janet makes us for those lesser suits in performance quality and music. I will always be a Janet Jackson fan and will continue to support every single project that’s she’s involved with.
For the commenter in the video who said, “Her time is up… and her dancing in “Feedback, Rock With U and or Make Me” was mediocre… I would like to see your definition of “superior” dancing.
Janet Jackson will remain a legend and the 1st MTV iCON as long as the industry lives. There’s so many artist that take pages from Janet’s performances and people think that they created it… but as far as Janet coming back, she’s never really left beside leaving music. Discipline was released in 2008 and release three films after that and is now on a ‘Number Ones’ tour and plans to release an album 4th quarter of 2011. Janet is showing no plans of slowing down now.
Note: I hate for fans of others feel the need to disrespect other artists who have paved the way for their favorite artists to be able to be in this industry. It’s completely unnecessary and ugly. Saying ugly s*** about another artist does not make your artist seem greater in some else’s eyes…
QUEEN OF POP
She is the best.
Janet is the queen of music 😉 I love her . ;xoxox from Poland
Janet is the queen.
Beyonce is a chameleon. She has taken some Janet+Shakira+JLO+Eartha Kitt+Josephine Baker (the latter probably by Mama Knowles suggestion) shook it up in a jar and that is her color. Random thought: JLO used to dance for Janet back in the day (That’s the Way Love Goes video). But get near Beyonce and she will definitely try to absorb your flava. Done.
LMAO!!!! At the comment that bey stan made towards JANET’s recent video, REALLY? #FAIL! There is NOT 1 video that JANET has medeocre dancing inm he musta meant Feedback had a bit if a simple dance routine and not so over the top but itz a futuristic vid lol with a mid uptempo beat, what did u expect? back flips and s*** in the middle of the choreo? lol ANYWHO LIKE U GAUYS SAID! KINGJANET! #POW!
Janet is the Queen of Pop and i actually like her voice, its soft but very distinctive. She actually has a pretty good range, anyway if Janet does make a comeback us Janet fans will be here to support her and buy her album.
Janet is an ICON. But Robert, you’re tellin me you don’t hear people cite Whitney as an influence but they cite Janet??? REALLY…. you’re reaching.
Janet is ICON, whatever she does is history. She paved the way for other artist in which her and the Jackson family did. New records are a gift because she is truly a Legend and many artists don’t make as much material as she has. The media is all for who is the most popular or current. Janet Jackson, however is a legend that has been gifted and will continue to inspire.
I’ve been waiting for this. Thanks TGJ. It’s great to see the love for Janet. And of course it would be a Beyonce fan that would make the lamest comment. LOL @ all of those damn “umm’s”. NEXT. JANET has cemented a place in music history FOREVER. She is INCOMPARABLE. ICON. LEGEND. Love you Jan.
I LOVE YOU JANET!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Say what you want about her, but Janet Jackson is a LEGEND!
Janet has NOTHING to prove!! CLASS ACT!
Stood her test of time.
Was a dominate force as a female entertainer in her main era.
Acts and is a quiet storm humble diva who knows what she likes but not big headed.
She had songs that were perfect for her vocal ability and videos that meshed well to give her that all roundedness.
Janet Jackson will NEVER be an unknown quantity in the world of the industry PERIOD!
Hope to see her in more movies.
GREATNESS!
Antertain I don’t appreciate ur use of the past tense. I’m not dumb to ur shade.
Can Janet come back???? SHE HAVEN’T BEEN ANYWHERE…ALWAYS WILL BE THE QUEEN….
She is a legend and still doing what she loves.
I think she should retire and marry her fine ass boyfriend and have babies.
Majority rules. Janet is a legend and has nothing else to prove.