As jurors deliberate the fate of the man accused of killing her brother Michael, Janet Jackson returned to Australia this week to resume her sold-out ‘Number Ones’ tour.
Greeted by a horde of her ever-loyal fans, the superstar engaged with them before heading back her hotel ahead of her next show in the country.
The worldwide trek finally has its curtain call in February next year; which couldn’t come sooner if you ask us. This tour was necessary in that it allowed her to re-build relationships with promoters following the drama caused by the ill-fated ‘Rock Witchu’ trek. What’s more, it also enabled her to rebuild her international presence. However, it’s quite simply time to move on.
At 45, as phenomenal as she looks, she faces an uphill struggle. A struggle which ultimately becomes that much steeper with every year she delays a return to the studio. For, as much as we despise the industry age bias, it’s there – alive and kicking. One needn’t look further than mainstream radio, iTunes, and the Billboard Hot 100, for proof.
Then again, who’s to say Ms. Jackson even wants to be the chart-topping force her fans so wish her to be (again). After all, there’s more money in touring, and this jaunt has re-raised her stock as a high-grossing travelling act.
If that is indeed the case, I’m going to need Janet to stop teasing us with news of “new music”, so as for me to lay certain day-dreams of mine to rest.
You know, the ones where she re-teams Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis, and Darkchild. The ones where she hires a new choreographer (or at least gets help with the current one). The ones where she looks at the success of Madonna‘s latter career and takes note. The one where she remembers she can actually sing, and returns to projecting her voice instead of whispering. The one where she signs with a major label who fully believe in and back her. And the one where she realises that the market-place is different today and it’s increasingly difficult to rest on the laurels of who you were. A boy can dream, ay….