|
|
Janet Jackson Jumps the Velvet Rope
By Robert E. Martin
Janet Jackson is the youngest of the nine Jackson
offspring,
arguably the most talented, and judging by the sold-out crowd in attendance the first
night of her All For You World Tour at the Palace of Auburn Hills on July 30th, she is
possibly the most loved.Apart from the thunderous
five-minute standing ovation she received three-songs into her 2-hour-plus set, bringing
genuine tears to her eyes at the outpouring of emotion from the legion of her family's
Motown roots, I couldn't help but notice a huge banner hanging from the first tier that
read: 'Thank You Janet For Saving My Life'.
Obviously, not something you'd see at a Marilyn Manson concert.
But Janet Jackson is a woman that has managed to touch many lives. According to one
Palace manager, Janet's shows were the best selling event to hit the venue all year, and
with tickets ranging from $40 to $120; well, you do the math.
But apart from a landmark $32 million two-album deal with Virgin
Records back in 1991 and despite the scores of number one songs and best selling-albums,
the success of Janet Jackson is of that rare variety that transcends financial reward. |
 Janet Jackson...photo by Kay
McEntee |
Her message is one of focus, honesty, and determination embedded within a
belief of quality (and equality) on all levels, physical strength,
emotional honesty, and passion delivered from the pit of one's heart.
On her ground-breaking 1989 release, Rhythm Nation 1814, Janet posed a
musical 'call to arms' mingling a lyrical content that addressed issues of
homelessness, child abuse, and the ramifications of racism with a musical
enchilada driven by the expert production expertise of her co-writers,
Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis.
 Janet Jackson...Photo by Kay
McEntee |
In 1997, on her long-awaited 'comeback' album The
Velvet Rope, Jackson explored issues of deep-rooted sexual dichotomy and diversity - the
good & bad inside each of us that seeks resolution and expression. It was also
during this period that Janet 'grew-up', incorporating light S&M and thematic forays
into consensual 'power exchange' into her music and certain segments of her stage show. Indeed, it can be argued that one of Janet's great talents is an uncanny
ability to tap into the divergence consciousness that cuts across the American spectrum
from the fringe to the mainstream and tie it all together into a powerful pop package that
places everybody on equal ground. And while this type of 'crossover' is
attempted by many, it is a rare breed that can actually achieve it.
As the youngest of nine children, Janet grew up in the music
business; her older brothers were the '70s pop group Jackson 5. Janet began performing as
a child, opening for the Jackson 5 in Las Vegas, but became known to the public mostly
through her appearances on such TV shows as "Good Times," "Diff'rent
Strokes" and "Fame." |
At age 16 her domineering father, Joseph Jackson, pushed her into a
professional singing career, eager to capitalize on the growing success of
her brother Michael. Signing to A&M Records, her eponymous 1982 debut
reached No. 63 and sold over a quarter-million copies based on the Jackson
name alone. Two years later, against her family's wishes, Jackson married
James Debarge of the R&B group Debarge; that same year she released her
second album, Dreamstreet, which did not sell quite as well as its predecessor.
Her career floundering, Jackson had her marriage to Debarge annulled and
returned to her father's guidance. In 1985 Joseph Jackson brought in his
friend John McClain, a record executive, to remake image. McClain brought
in top pop producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis to prepare new material,
then led her into seclusion to lose weight and develop dance moves. Her
1986 single "What Have You Done For Me Lately" reached the Top 5, boosting
sales of her new LP, Control, which reached No. 1 on the Pop and R&B charts
and sold 10 million copies worldwide.
| Jackson began work on a follow-up which she wanted
to call Work, but McClain, attempting to cultivate a "bad girl" image for Janet,
wanted the record to be called Scandal. After more disagreements between artist and
manager, in 1989 Jackson released Rhythm Nation 1814, another pop smash. The album spawned
four No. 1 hits, such as "Miss You Much," and three more Top 5 hits, eventually
selling 10 million copies reaching No. 1 in the Billboard Pop and R&B charts. The
following year her single "The Best Things In Life Are Free," a duet with Luther
Vandross, reached No. 1; she also filmed scenes for the John Singleton film Poetic Justice
(also featuring gangsta rapper Tupac Shakur). With a new, more sexual image, Jackson's
1993 Virgin debut, Janet, continued to expand the pop singer's fan base, spawning six Top
10 hits and selling over 15 million copies. After dueting
with brother Michael on his Grammy-winning single "Scream," Janet released a
1996 greatest hits collection, Design of a Decade, which also featured two new singles.
Later that year Jackson re-signed with Virgin for a reported $80 million, making her the
highest paid recording artist of all time.
To date she has sold 40 million albums, won three Grammy awards,
and an Oscar nomination. Her current CD All For You, was released in the spring of
this year, and Jackson's tour was a full-throttled exercise in perfection. |
 Janet
Jackson...Photo by Kay McEntee |
For those never attending a Janet Jackson concert, the spectacle of the
production rivals the best that Broadway can offer. Jackson appeared on
stage, flanked by a pair of dancers standing high upon hydraulic pedestals.
As they lowered into the stage, the dance troupe moved into a frenzied set
of choreographed dancing and hardcore aerobics. Even the band was
positioned upon hydraulic pedestals, which would move forward and back
depending upon whether a pianist, guitarist, or sax soloist was featured.
For various numbers the dancers and Jackson would engage in numerous
costume changes. During the elaborate production number of Escapade,
immaculate ostrich feathered masks were worn and a huge blow-up set of
colorful building blocks and Mardi Gras dragons was unfurled.
And on Black Cat, when Jackson came out in a ripped skin tight latex
outfit, it became apparent that a large part of her appeal resides in the
fact she can be as classy as Audrey Hepburn one moment and as trashy as
Courtney Love the next.
But it was during a medley of ballads, when Janet sat down upon a stool
next to her piano player, that the passionate rivers of music began to
flow, so touched by the five-minute ovation mentioned earlier, that she
re-arranged her set-list to sprinkle the audience with a fairy dust of pure
emotion from the depths of her soul - never overbearing, almost soft, yet
with a power that was palpable.
Without doubt, the operative word for this show was excellence. From the
lighting, to the musicians, the dancers, the costumes, the staging, the
lighting, and the sound, her entire entourage was at the top of its game.
Backstage, the staff was gracious yet firm, allowing us close access for
two songs with proper lighting that stayed away from the difficult 'red
washes' of so many popular artists.
In a recent Internet interview, Jackson addressed a few questions.
Review: What's the
hardest part of this current tour?
Jackson: Trying to stay awake
and keeping that energy up. That's the first
thing that wants to go, especially when you have to dance. Our
choreographers are always getting on me about keeping my energy up because
that's the first thing that wants to go when you're exhausted. The camera
draws energy. So when you see something that's choreographed such as on a
video or something, there's so much energy that you have to put into it to
get what you eventually see on screen and translate it live. That's a challenge."
Review: I read in your press
package that you auditioned 1500 dancers for this tour?
Jackson: There are definitely some new kids out there. I've only kept three
that I've worked with in the past. But the rest were all new. I keep people
that equal them in a sense with dance ability and how good they would look
dancing together and knowing their body language. If they would look good
dancing opposite another dancer, be it male or female. These are things I
consider. It's so hard. I thought we could use these two girls that were
new, but once again they were too tall. It's really tough. It's as if you
have to match. You have to look like a unified group."
Review: Madonna always seems to
consciously reinvent herself, yet your
changes seem to be more natural and not as calculated.
Jackson: You know what? It's not
that I set out to try to reinvent myself,
really. It's just where I am at that moment in my life. Sometimes boredom
comes into play. I like to try different things, do different things. But
it's never this conscious effort to try to reinvent myself. It's just the
space I'm in my life at that moment. That's what you see with each album.
If twenty years ago young debutante Jackson was singling about
taking 'control', today we find her not only assuming it, but also
willingly giving herself over to the overwhelming purity of the emotive
forces that simultaneously call and command her attentions.
With Janet Jackson, the dark as well as the buoyant needs and drives of the
human heart are musically celebrated and exonerated, in styles ranging from
funk to smoky ballads, and in a manner that leaves one embraced with the
blanket of personal revelation.
|
|
