Janet Jackson Biography
Biography
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After a brief marriage to James DeBarge, Jackson set out to
find her own identity. Janet collaborated with producers Jimmy
Jam and Terry Lewis, and the trio created Jackson's breakout
album, Control (1986) and the socially-focused follow-up, Rhythm
Nation 1814 (1989). In the early 1990s, Jackson signed a
record-breaking recording deal with Virgin Records for the
s--ually-charged album janet. (1993) which proved to be a larger
success than its two predecessors. Jackson also returned to
acting, starring in Poetic Justice (1993).
By the end of the 1990s, Janet Jackson's relationship with Rene
Elizondo Jr. was coming to an end. In early 2000, the couple
announced their divorce; though Jackson and Elizondo had kept
their marriage a secret for nearly a decade. While filming Nutty
Professor II: The Klumps (2000), Jackson continued to work on
All for You (2001), which gained success on the Billboard
charts.
In 2004, Jackson made headlines for her Super Bowl halftime show
performance during a duet with Justin Timberlake when he exposed
Jackson's right breast. The event became a media controversy and
put a damper on the release of her album Damita Jo (2004), which
failed to yield any hit singles. The same year, Jackson was
ranked as the ninth most successful artist in the history of
rock and roll, and the second most successful female artist of
all time according to Billboard magazine in 2004. Jackson is
currently dating and collaborating with producer Jermaine Dupri
and will release her ninth studio album, 20 Y.O., in September
2006.
Janet was born the youngest of nine Jackson children in Gary,
Indiana to parents Joseph and Katherine Jackson. Living in a
two-bedroom house with eight older siblings, Janet's father,
Joseph, worked as a crane operator in a steel mill, and before
she became a devout Jehovah's Witness, her mother Katherine
worked as a store clerk for Sears. Before Janet's birth, her
father decided to try a hand at a music career fronting the R&B
band The Falcons, but never got as far as the top nightclubs in
Indiana. According to reports, Janet's father was gregarious and
stern while her mother was deeply religious and saintly.
By the time she was a toddler, Janet's older brothers Jackie,
Tito, Jermaine, Marlon and Michael had already begun to perform
on stage at nightclubs and theaters as the Jackson 5. In March
1969, the group signed to Motown Records, and by the end of the
year, the group recorded their first of their four consecutive
number-one singles. By the time the Jackson 5 had achieved
success, the entire family was re-located to Southern
California, and eventually settling in a gated mansion they
named Hayvenhurst in Encino, CA in 1971.
Aspiring to be a horse jockey, Janet Jackson had no intention of
entering show business. However, after the success of the
Jackson 5 began to diminish, Joseph decided to bring the rest of
his children into the spotlight, including Janet. On April 9,
1974, Janet made her public debut performance at the MGM Grand
in Las Vegas with nearly all nine members of the Jackson family.
Janet quickly became the star of the show, emulating various
celebrities of the day such as Cher, Marie Osmond, Toni
Tennille, and Mae West.
By 1976, the Janet Jackson family's Vegas act had caught the
attention of CBS president Fred Silverman. The network was
desperately trying to find a new variety act to replace the
recently ended Sonny & Cher Show, since ABC had a competing show
featuring Donny and Marie Osmond. Debuting on June 16, 1976, The
Jacksons show became the first African-American family to have a
variety show on TV. The show lasted only two seasons and was
canceled in 1977.
Jackson always had an interest in music, writing her first song
at the age of nine, but she never aspired to be a professional
singer. Nonetheless, she agreed to participate in music to help
her family. Her first ever recording was a duet with her brother
Randy on a song titled 'Love Song for Kids' in 1978. She would
participate in her family's other recordings, particularly with
sister LaToya and brother Michael.
In 1981, Janet Jackson and her two older sisters
LaToya and
Rebbie had wanted to start their own musical group, but
disagreements between the older sisters forced the group to
disband before ever making a record. Instead Janet was featured
on LaToya's 1981 album called My Special Love on the song "Camp
Kuchi Kaiai".
Although she was asked by her father Joseph to start a singing
career, Jackson was uncomfortable with being in the recording
studio, feeling she was not as vocally talented as her sister
Rebbie or her brother Michael, who was becoming a solo pop
superstar. Nonetheless, at the age of sixteen, she released her
debut album, entitled simply Janet Jackson (1982), though the
teenager protested that her last name should not have been on
the cover. Produced by soul singers Angela Winbush, Rene Moore
and Leon Sylvers of the famed Sylvers family music group, the
album reached the top ten of the Billboard R&B album charts, and
spent forty-five weeks in the top fifty of that chart but was
much less successful on the Billboard pop albums chart. The
album yielded three singles, "Young Love," "Say You Do" and
"Come Give Your Love to Me." Janet Jackson sold over 250
thousand copies at the time of its release.
In 1984, Janet Jackson, then 18, released her second album,
titled Dream Street. It marked a musical progression from her
debut, with funkier, up-tempo production by brother Marlon and
famed disco producer Giorgio Moroder, producer of songs for
artists such as Donna Summer. The album failed to make the top
one hundred of the Billboard pop album charts but did reach
number nineteen on the R&B chart. Though Dream Street scored a
Top 10 R&B hit with "Don't Stand Another Chance", sales of Dream
Street were about half of her debut's. Critics soon began to
dismiss Jackson's career as a pop star.
Around the same time, Jackson fell in love and eloped with James
DeBarge, a member of the Motown family group DeBarge. The
marriage was annulled in March 1985, with DeBarge's drug habit
often cited as the reason. After the marriage was annulled and
after years of dealing with being a member of a world-famous
family, Jackson began to search for independence. It has long
been alleged, but not conclusively proven, that Jackson and
DeBarge produced a daughter who was born after their breakup.
Control, released February 1986, became a hit, spawning five Top
5 singles, including her first number one single "When I Think
Of You". The album became a breakthrough record for Jackson
partly due to the singles' music videos that showcased dynamic
dance moves choreographed by Paula Abdul. Janet trademarked
herself, wearing an earring with a key. Janet Jackson later
revealed that the key belonged to the animal cages at her
family's estate.
Control featured "What Have You Done For Me Lately", "The
Pleasure Principle", and the ballad "Let's Wait Awhile". The
album went to the top of the Billboard 200 album chart and sold
over five million copies in America by the end of 1986. Control
was awarded a Grammy nomination for Album of the Year, six
Billboard Music Awards, four American Music Awards, three MTV
Video Music Awards and three Soul Train Music Awards including
Album of the Year. That same year, Jackson took a step towards
her independence: she fired her father-manager, Joseph Jackson.
Producers Jimmy Jam, and Terry Lewis, originally wanted the
album's more upbeat tracks to be housed on the first half on the
album, with the socially-conscious material featured on the
second half. Jackson disagreed. She thought the album had an
important message and pushed it to be the record's main focus.
Released in September 1989, Rhythm Nation 1814 went to number
one on the Billboard 200 album chart, and R&B album chart. The
first single, "Miss You Much", went to number one. A long-form
video which included "Miss You Much", "The Knowledge" and
"Rhythm Nation" was shot by director Domenic Sena (See also
Rhythm Nation 1814 Film). The video represented a coming
together of all people, and took a social stance on issues such
as bigotry, ignorance, and education. "Miss You Much" and
"Rhythm Nation" were shot in black and white and featured
elaborate military-style choreography and costumes. The set went
on to win a Grammy Award for Best Long Form Video.
Rhythm Nation 1814 sold six million copies by the end of the
following year, and became the first album to spawn seven Top 5
singles, as well as four number one singles: "Miss You Much",
"Escapade", "Black Cat", and "Love Will Never Do (Without You)".
In 1990, Billboard awarded the album with the #1 Selling Album
of the Year award. Jackson won multiple awards including fifteen
Billboard Music Awards, five American Music Awards, four Soul
Train Music Awards, three MTV Video Music Awards, and her first
Grammy Award.
Jackson went on a tour, Rhythm Nation 1814 Tour, to promote the
album. Janet Jackson became the first artist to score a #1 hit
simultaneously on the Billboard Hot 100 and Mainstream Rock
singles chart with "Black Cat" in 1990. The song's rock
influence was a departure from her other work. The video served
as a behind-the-scenes glimpse at the Rhythm Nation 1814 Tour.
The album scored four number one singles on the Billboard Hot
100, and the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart and three number
one singles on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart.
In an effort to take a turn with her image, Janet Jackson
decided to shoot a s--y video with photographer Herb Ritts, for
the final single, "Love Will Never Do (Without You)." The video
proved to be a turning point for Jackson. She was no longer the
shy little girl that the public had known. Instead, she was a
fully developed woman who had carved out her place in music
history.
In 1991, Janet Jackson and long-time boyfriend, Rene Elizondo
Jr., were secretly married in a private ceremony. Both hid their
marriage from the public for almost a decade.
Before Janet Jackson released her follow-up to Rhythm Nation
1814, she was freed from her contract with A&M Records. When
Jackson signed to Virgin Records in 1992, it was a media event.
Her $40 million was the largest recording deal in history. It
set the stage for her Virgin debut, the album, titled janet., or
janet period. The eclectic set featured everything from pop, to
rock, to dance and funk, and even opera. Janet's long-time
partner, Rene Elizondo, was quoted as saying, "this album is so
hot, it should be packaged with a condom." Jackson, wanting to
be recognized in her own right, dropped the surname 'Jackson.'
After the mega-success of the "Janet album"; Janet released her
10TH Anniversary/Greatest Hits album "Design of a Decade"
distributed by A&M records. "Design of a Decade" achieved
multi-platinum status and spawned the #1 Billboard Hot 100
single, "Runaway". Virgin Records eventually signed Janet to a
(4) album record deal, for a reported $80 million dollars.
In July 1993, Janet made her screen debut in the John Singleton
directed, Poetic Justice. Janet's most successful ballad,
"Again", was featured on the film's soundtrack. The single went
to number one and garnered Jackson a Golden Globe and Academy
Award nomination for Best Original Song From A Motion Picture.
janet. became the first of the Nielsen SoundScan era to debut in
the U.S. at number one, and it reached number one in twenty-two
countries, sold seventeen million copies and won several awards,
including a Grammy Award. It was the fourth best-selling album
of the year in the U.S., and the eighth biggest selling album of
the following year on the year end Billboard Top Albums chart.
The album spawned other five Top 10 hit singles: "If", "You Want
This", "Again", "Any Time, Any Place", and "Because of Love".
Jackson produced a racy video for the single "Any Time, Any
Place" featuring herself in numerous s--ual positions with
another actor. Jackson included a message of safe s-- in the
video. The song stayed afloat at the top of the R&B charts for
10 weeks.
In September 1993, Jackson appeared topless on the cover of
Rolling Stone magazine. The cover became one of the most
celebrated photos ever taken of a rock artist, and Rolling Stone
named it their 'Most Popular Cover Ever' in 2000. In a precursor
of her Super Bowl controversy, Jackson was criticized for the
explicitness of the photograph, but she shyly insisted that the
male hands covering her breasts belonged to her husband.
We have the kind of night when morning comes too soon. We use
the light from a flickering candle across the room to make the
kind of shadows that only one thing could make.... Love.
The janet. Tour began in November 1993 and played for 12 full
months to packed audiences all around the globe, ending in April
1995.
After years of reservations, Janet Jackson decided to
collaborate with her brother, Michael Jackson, on the 1995
single, "Scream," the lead single from his first greatest hits
collection. The song lashed out at the media, and a futuristic
music video was created with the help of director Mark Romanek,
showing off both artists' style of dance and fashion.
In October 1995, she released her first Greatest Hits package,
Design of a Decade 1986/1996. The album focused primarily on her
A&M period, but contained one Virgin Records track, "That's the
Way Love Goes." Two new songs were recorded for the package,
"Runaway," and "Twenty Foreplay."
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In 1996, Janet Jackson re-signed with Virgin for a reported
$80 million, which made her the highest paid female recording
artist of all time. Around the same time, she was trying to
create a concept for her fifth album, and had suffered clinical
depression. The result was a dark, self-revealing project, The
Velvet Rope (1997). In September 1997, the album's lead single,
"Got 'Til It's Gone" was released. The single sampled the Joni
Mitchell classic, "Big Yellow Taxi" and featured a guest spot by
rapper, Q-Tip.
Jackson returned with a new image, which included piercing, and
tattoos, one of which, the Sankofa, an Akan symbol meaning, we
must go back and reclaim our past so we can move forward, was
featured on the inside of her wrist.
Fans were taken aback by the album's content. Songs dealing with
domestic abuse, depression, low self-esteem, isolation, and S&M,
made up the bulk of the album's content. Velvet Rope's cover,
shot by photographer Ellen von Unwerth, featured Janet with her
head down, in a defeated-like pose, with only the word, Janet,
glazed over top of the image. Many speculated stories behind the
songs, but Jackson has remained quiet. Rope became her fourth
number-one album on the Billboard 200. In 1998, Jackson set out
on a world tour, The Velvet Rope Tour, hitting Europe, North
America, Africa, and Asia.
The album yielded a total of four hit singles. The second single
"Together Again", an upbeat, musical tribute to her friends who
had died of AIDS, became a hit. A portion of the sales from the
single, were donated to AIDS research. The funky, "Go Deep", and
"I Get Lonely", were both successful. The last single, "Every
Time", produced a stunning music video, with Jackson being
filmed underwater.
As her world tour in 1999 came to a close, Janet Jackson
guest-vocaled on songs, "Luv Me, Luv Me," with Shaggy, for the
How Stella Got Her Groove Back soundtrack, and the
Grammy-nominated, "What's It Gonna Be," with Busta Rhymes.
Jackson also contributed vocals on the Blackstreet song,
"Girlfriend/Boyfriend," and dueted with Elton John for the song,
"I Know The Truth." With her newfound exposure to Hip Hop,
Jackson toyed with the idea of doing a full album focusing
musically on the genre. As 1999 ended Billboard Magazine ranked
Jackson as the second most successful artist of the 1990s,
behind Mariah Carey.
In mid-2000, Jackson returned to the big screen, with her second
film, Nutty Professor II: The Klumps, with Eddie Murphy. Jackson
also contributed to film's soundtrack with the hit, "Doesn't
Really Matter." During this period, the public learned of
Jackson's secret longtime marriage to Rene Elizondo. The couple
announced that they were separating.
In March 2001 Janet Jackson was awarded a top honor American
Music Award 'Award of Merit,' and was named MTV's first 'Icon',
which resulted in performances featuring Destiny's Child, N'Sync,
Christina Aguilera,
Usher,
Britney Spears and others.
I'm 'bout to change my vibe. Today the sun's gon' shine. 'Cause
I made up my mind that today will be the start of better days.
Leavin' old sh.. behind and move on with my life. The
blindfold's off my eyes and now all I see for me is better days.
Shortly after, Janet Jackson's seventh album, All for You, was
released in that same year. The album's number-one title track
helped the album debut at number one, her fifth, in its first
week of sales with more than 605,000 copies sold in the U.S. All
for You would go on to sell more than three million copies in
America, and spawned the Billboard hit "Someone To Call My
Lover". By the end of the year, All for You won Jackson her
fifth Grammy Award.
In 2001, Rene Elizondo later sued Jackson for spousal support.
Their court battle ended in 2003 with the divorce finalized and
Elizondo receiving half the multi-million dollar pay-off he was
hoping for.
After scoring a top forty single with "Son of a Gun (I Betcha
Think This Song is About You)" featuring Carly Simon, the last
off the album, remixed by rapper Missy Elliot, and performing
her concert All for You Tour in Hawaii in 2002, she collaborated
with reggae singer Beenie Man on the song "Feel It Boy." Jackson
began working on her next album the following year, and accepted
an invitation to join that following year's Super Bowl
festivities.
In 2002, Janet Jackson began a relationship with hip-hop
producer Jermaine Dupri.
Jackson's "wardrobe malfunction".During the halftime show of
Super Bowl XXXVIII on February 1, 2004, Jackson performed with
Justin Timberlake
to a live audience of more than one hundred million people.
During the performance, Jackson sang along with Timberlake on
his song "Rock Your Body". When Timberlake sang the lyric "gonna
have you naked by the end of this song," he tore open Jackson's
top; exposing her right breast, which was partially covered by a
nipple shield. Timberlake called the incident a "wardrobe
malfunction." Jackson apologized, calling it an accident and
that Timberlake was supposed to pull away the bustier and leave
the red-lace bra intact; however, she later said to an
interviewer for Genre magazine that she wishes she had not
apologized at all.
CBS, the NFL, and MTV (then one of CBS's corporate siblings),
which produced the halftime show, denied all responsibility
under a hail of controversy. Jackson and Timberlake confirmed
those denials, but the FCC continued an investigation. As a
result, CBS invited Jackson to appear at the 2004 Grammy Awards
ceremony to make another public apology. She declined, but
Justin Timberlake apologized and appeared as both a performer
and a presenter.
Jermaine Dupri, Jackson's boyfriend, left his post on the Grammy
Awards committee after Jackson refused to apologize again for
what happened at the Super Bowl. Since 2004, there have been
rumors that the couple married, though they have constantly
denied these reports. Dupri appeared in Jackson's video for "I
Want You", while Jackson returned the favor by appearing in
Dupri's video for his 2005 single, "Gotta Getcha".
In April 2004 Janet Jackson released her eighth studio effort,
Damita Jo, with a debut at number two and opening week sales of
nearly 400,000 copies. The songs released from the album,
including the Prince-inspired "Just a Little While," the
Motown/Supremes-inspired ballad "I Want You," and "All Nite
(Don't Stop)," also performed modestly on the charts. Jackson
described the album as a portrait of the many personalities
living inside her. Damita Jo sold over three million copies
world wide and received nominations from the American Music
Awards, Billboard Awards, Source Music Awards, BET Music Awards
and Grammy Awards including Contemporary R&B Album of the Year.
We're vulnerable. We're sensitive and we're complicated people
too. So many people rolled into one. We contain so much. So much
creativity. So much energy. So many contradictions. So much
confusion. So much clarity. So many moments of faith and fear.
So many different characters live within us. All looking for
love.
Jackson appeared as a host on Saturday Night Live on April 10,
2004, where she performed a skit that parodied the Super Bowl
incident. Jackson also appeared in the sitcom Will & Grace
playing herself as Jack auditioned to be her back-up dancer.
On June 15, 2005, Janet was awarded a Humanitarian Award by the
Human Rights Campaign, a national gay, lesbian, bis--ual, and
transgender civil rights organization on behalf of her work and
involvement in raising money for AIDS charities. She accepted
the award saying, "what I've learned in these recent months is
that there is a light at the end of the tunnel, and it's real,
it's a beautiful light that both comforts our minds and
strengthens our souls. Tonight my heart is filled with gratitude
for that light. I'm so grateful that prayers are answered, that
faith is rewarded and tolerance is celebrated as a virtue. I'm
grateful that God is of unconditional love."
Janet Jackson is currently preparing to release her ninth album,
scheduled for a September 26, 2006 release. Jermaine Dupri, one
of the executive producers, said the new album would be titled
20 Years Old, a nod to the 20th anniversary of Control, and
references to how old Jackson "currently feels". Janet Jackson
officially changed the title of the album to 20 Y.O. after a
fans suggestion during the "Design Me" contest to design a cover
for a limited release.
On May 1, 2006, Jackson revealed a remade song, "Weekend," on
her official website, along with a message stating that she had
finished working on 20 Y.O.. The next day, Jackson left a new
message saying that "Weekend" would not appear on 20 Y.O., and
that the first single "Call on Me", a duet with Nelly, would be
released on June 19, 2006. The single eventually premiered on
Z100 radio on June 17, 2006. It was reported that a tour in
support of the album is being planned.
Jackson celebrated her 40th birthday on May 16, 2006, with a
birthday bash at Shereen Arazms Shag in Los Angeles. Many of her
former dancers attended. Jackson was serenaded by singer Stevie
Wonder.
In May 2006, Janet Jackson was quoted saying, "I love this
album, and I hate to say, 'expect an album that you'll love' –
which I just said, but I love this, so hopefully everyone else
will enjoy it ... and it's different, it's a little reminiscent,
yet it's new and fresh." Jackson's appeared on the cover of Us
Weekly in June 2006 and it became the magazine's best selling
issue ever, beating issues with Angelina Jolie and Jessica
Simpson on the cover.
On July 11, 2006, in a live radio interview on Los Angeles radio
station Power 106, Jackson, along with producer Jermaine Dupri,
revealed that a show is being planned where Jackson would
perform only songs from the Control album in celebration of its
twentieth anniversary. No specific date was given. Dupri has
also revealed that Jackson will have her own reality show, via
her official MySpace page, although he did not specifically say
what it will be based on.
On July 18, 2006, Janet launched a contest giving fans an
opportunity to create the artwork for her ninth studio album 20
Y.O. The Design Me contest requires participants to download
images of Janet, create proposed album covers, and to post the
creations on the contest page. Janet hand-picked dozens of
images, new and old, to be used in the contest. Janet is now
selecting her top four favorites, which will be used for the
first one million copies of 20 Y.O.
Jermiane Dupri also stated that "So Excited" will be the second
single from 20 Y.O. On July 31, 2006, in a live appearance on
the BET show 106 & Park, Jackson revealed that she plans to
release a fitness book and video, detailing how she has lost
weight.
In 1977, 11-year-old Jackson's enthusiasm for acting caught
television producer Norman Lear's ear. Lear was looking for
someone to reawaken one of his shows from TV ruin - the family
sitcom Good Times. Lear cast Jackson in Good Times as an abused
child named Penny Gordon Woods. The show's star, J.J. Evans,
played by Jimmie Walker, was the apple of Penny's eye on the
show, a fact the character would make known every time she saw
him. Jackson became one of the show's cast members during the
1977-1978 season, and would remain in the show until it was
canceled in 1979.
Janet Jackson continued her acting career, appearing briefly in
a short-lived but Emmy Award nominated sitcom titled A New Kind
of Family which also starred Rob Lowe, but was cancelled in
early 1980. In 1981, she landed a recurring role on another
sitcom, Diff'rent Strokes, playing Charlene Duprey, the love
interest of Willis (played by Todd Bridges). In 1984 Jackson
reluctantly took the role of Cleo Hewitt in the musical series,
Fame. She later told interviewers that her father told her to do
the role. After a year, Jackson asked to be let out of her
contract and did not appear in another television series for
nineteen years.
Janet Jackson was given a chance to resume her acting career
when director John Singleton allowed her to audition for his
film Poetic Justice, as a tough, poetic hairdresser from South
Central, Los Angeles. Jackson won the role in the romantic
drama, starring opposite rapper Tupac Shakur. The film opened at
No. 1 in 1993, and depicted a different image of Jackson than
what had been seen before; her character cursed and even
threatened people who ever crossed her. This coincided with a
change in Jackson's music as she entered the studio to record
her fifth album, whose music was brashed and more s--ually
charged than her previous work. The movie grossed $27 million in
the US.
In 2000 Janet Jackson starred with Eddie Murphy in Nutty
Professor II: The Klumps, the film grossed $142.7 million at the
box office. Jackson recorded a single for the film's soundtrack,
"Doesn't Really Matter", which reached number-one on the
Billboard pop charts, earning a gold disc. She was paid $3
million for Nutty Professor II: The Klumps, and paid an extra $1
million for the song "Doesn't Really Matter" for the film's
soundtrack.
In 2006, Jackson was prepared to play the lead in the Lee
Daniels' film, Tennessee, but due to scheduling conflicts,
Jackson dropped out and the lead was recast with Mariah Carey.
Jackson, who had been learning guitar and had gained weight for
the role, said in an interview in 2006, that she and Daniels
plan to work on a film project again in the near future.
Albums
- Janet Jackson (1982)
- Dream Street (1984)
- Control (1986)
- Control: The Remixes (1987)
- Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814 (1989)
- janet. (1993)
- Janet. Remixed (1995)
- Design of a Decade 1986/1996 (1995)
- The Velvet Rope (1997)
- All For You (2001)
- Damita Jo (2004)
- 20 Y.O. (2006)
This Janet Jackson Biography Page is Copyright The Planets © 2004 - 2006 Chuck Ayoub