WITHOUT
JANET
Jackson,
no
one
would
be
one-two
stepping
to
Ciara
or
celebrating
Beyonce’s
B’Day.
And
Mouseketeer
Justin
Timberlake
—
who
has
shamelessly
appropriated
the
Jackson
family’s
moves
for
years
—
would
be
dancing
in
theme
park
musicals
instead
of
bringing
sexy
back.
After
inspiring
a
league
of
imitators
during
20
years
in
the
music
business,
Jackson
releases
her
ninth
studio
album
this
week,
“20
Y.O.,”
a
wonderfully
self-referential
return
to
the
top
of
her
game
and
a
nod
to
the
20th
anniversary
of
her
1986
album
“Control.”
In
the
midst
of
a
whirlwind
media
tour,
Jackson
tells
Southern
Voice
that
she
writes
songs
about
what’s
happening
in
her
life.
But
there
is
no
mention
on
“20
Y.O.”
of
the
Super
Bowl
controversy
or
her
brother
Michael’s
acquittal
on
child
molestation
charges.
“I
got
all
of
that
out
of
my
system,”
she
says
in
explaining
the
decision
not
to
reflect
those
events.
“That’s
not
what
I’m
feeling
right
now.
I
wrote
about
[those
controversies],
but
I
didn’t
choose
to
put
it
out
there
on
the
album.”
In
2004,
for
the
first
time
since
the
1980s,
a
Janet
Jackson
album
failed
to
hit
No.
1
on
the
Billboard
charts.
The
commercially
disappointing
“Damita
Jo”
opened
at
No.
2
and
went
on
to
sell
about
one
million
copies.
Despite
the
lackluster
response,
Jackson
says
she’s
not
feeling
pressure
to
hit
No.
1
with
“20
Y.O.”
“It’s
more
important
for
the
record
company
than
for
me,”
she
says.
“I
just
want
to
bring
happiness
to
people.
Of
course
you
want
it
to
be
successful,
but
I
really
just
want
to
bring
a
smile
to
people’s
faces.”
ONE
FACTOR
SURE
TO
impact
sales
of
the
new
album
is
video
exposure.
BET
and
VH1
are
playing
the
first
two
singles,
“Call
on
Me”
and
“So
Excited,”
but
MTV
appears
to
be
boycotting
all
things
Janet.
MTV,
which
named
Jackson
its
inaugural
“Icon”
award
winner
in
2001,
produced
the
infamous
half-time
show
in
which
Jackson’s
breast
was
exposed
during
a
duet
with
Justin
Timberlake.
But
MTV’s
anger
over
the
incident
apparently
doesn’t
extend
to
Timberlake,
whose
new
single
is
in
heavy
rotation.
Jackson
brushes
off
the
snub.
“The
fans
get
upset
and
talk
about
boycotting
[MTV],”
she
says.
“It
is
what
it
is,
but
I’m
not
losing
sleep
over
it.
I
appreciate
the
love
and
support
the
fans
have
shown
me.”
To
reach
those
fans
in
the
absence
of
MTV
support,
Jackson
and
her
promotions
team
waged
an
aggressive
web
promotion
campaign
that
includes
a
revamped
official
website,
janet-jackson.com,
and
a
new
MySpace
site
that
includes
an
exclusive
video
diary.
And
Jackson
clearly
recognizes
that
many
of
her
fans
are
gay.
She
clarifies
that
she
has
never
been
in
a
gay
relationship
herself,
but
that
she
has
many
gay
friends,
several
of
whom
are
dancers
in
her
upcoming
tour.
She
says
she
doesn’t
understand
why
so
many
people
oppose
same-sex
marriage.
“We’re
all
human
and
we
all
fall
in
love,
so
why
should
our
sexual
preference
matter?”
she
asks.
THERE
ARE
NO
wild
innovations
or
dramatic
departures
on
“20
Y.O.,”
but
the
album
is
chock
full
of
surefire
hits.
This
time
out,
with
help
from
longtime
beau
and
hit
maker
Jermaine
Dupri
and
producers
and
co-writers
Jimmy
Jam
and
Terry
Lewis,
Jackson
delivers
a
string
of
well-crafted
tunes.
“There’s
something
to
be
said
for
not
saying
anything,”
she
says
in
the
introduction
to
the
album.
“I
want
to
keep
it
light.
I
want
to
have
fun.”
And
fun
is
what
she
delivers,
especially
for
dance
fans.
The
album
opens
with
a
series
of
five
club-banging
tracks,
starting
with
the
current
single,
“So
Excited.”
Jackson
ratchets
down
the
vulgarity
this
time
out.
She’s
still
freaky,
but
the
40-year-old
Janet
sounds
more
mature
and
confident
than
in
her
recent
past.
Southern
rapper
Khia
(of
“My
Neck,
My
Back”
infamy)
guests
on
“So
Excited,”
which
is
followed
by
“Show
Me,”
“Get
It
Out
Me,”
“Do
It
2
Me”
and
“This
Body,”
featuring
a
rollicking
guitar
riff
that
recalls
“Rhythm
Nation”
hit
“Black
Cat.”
In
fact,
the
album
is
full
of
sly
samples
from
Jackson’s
extensive
back
catalogue.
Listen
carefully,
and
you’ll
hear
snippets
from
“Rhythm
Nation,”
“I
Get
Lonely”
and
other
previous
Jackson
hits.
After
the
opening
barrage
of
infectious
beats,
Jackson
slows
things
to
a
mid-tempo
groove
on
“With
U”
and
“Call
on
Me,”
a
duet
with
Nelly
that
hit
No.
1
on
Billboard’s
R&B/hip-hop
chart.
The
familiar
musical
interludes
on
most
Jackson
CDs
are
spare
here,
with
just
three
short
breaks,
an
intro
and
outro.
The
...
