Janet Jackson general (2021/2) (1 Viewer)

I'll be tuning in on Monday. Regardless of how THAT turns out, she's still my second favourite 80's diva.
 
To this day I remain perplexed as to how 'Just A Little While' made it on to the 'Damita Jo' album at the expense of the one-half of Alisha's Attic penned 'Put Your Hands On', but then again I have COVID and am feverish at the moment.
 
apparently the doc also implied that she wants to "go out with a bang" with Black Diamond and retire thereafter?
 
The documentary is great. Not as explosive as I might have hoped, and perhaps with a bit too much of a focus on the family as a whole rather than solely Janet, but still a lot of insight into aspects of her life she hasn't talked about much before. It makes a great case for her as a legend in her own right, which I guess is the overall point of a project like this

She does say at the very end that she wants to focus on being a mother now... I'd be disappointed if she truly retired forever but she has earned it (and has been almost semi-retired for over a decade anyway)
 
I’ve seen it all now. There’s some lovely unseen footage across the episodes, but ultimately she didn’t really open up at all and I didn’t learn anything new at all :(

It’s nice to see this getting some attention anyway as her influence on female pop stars over the last 25 years is immense and does need to be reminded to more than a few people. It’s quite strange though because a lot of her huge music moments are glossed over in favour of talking about her family. Ironic since there’s always been a focus on her not wanting to talk about them in regards to her career. Also kind of ironic as I (more of a fan of her brothers than her) wanted it to move on and talk more about her songs/videos.
 
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i watched the documentary over the last couple of days and i really enjoyed it. i'd only ever heard the broad strokes so it was interesting to hear a bit more about them through her lens - it was completely through her lens and made no apologies for it and what.

what struck me is how grounded she always seemed and also how modest it portrayed her to be - apart from the bits when she was lap dancing on top of audience members... it didn't really dive into the sexual aspect of her music. a lot of the other subject matter of her earlier songs was also just glazed over.

she certainly made me think the superbowl incident might have gone further than they intended. and she was convincing when she said she didn't think her brother was capable of what he was charged for (i can't say i have an opinion either way). strange her last husband (?) wasn't referenced at all. it really was all about what she wanted to talk about.

anyway, i would've liked more bits of the songs and more about the songs themselves but as it is, it was more than enough for me.

ps i almost went to see her when i was a kid in 1995 but my "chaperone" bailed. still one of my greatest regrets in life.
 
I haven't watched the doc yet. it's had a lot of mainstream press but the consensus was: she's lovely but we learned nothing new. feels like a missed opportunity.

she should do something like that sit-down Mariah did with Genius where she talked in-depth about the music for an hour-plus.
 
Janet has always been reserved. That there are no revelations doesn't surprise me at all.
 
Watching now. I did scoff "more like she held them hostage for 5 years". I guess some people don't know how to live off camera :rolleyes:

Looking forward to this.
 
When I Think of You. That's Janet's trail right there - Jam and Lewis created a lightning bolt with that production, it's so ecstatic and side-splitting. And her vocal (more coo than murmur), a mixture of hyper and smooth, so agile and totally illuminates with anthemic cheer. It's her cultural moment for me.
 
I don't know the early work of Janet, but I'm really not minding these early songs at all. She's right about the artwork though.
 
I enjoyed it but it certainly wasn't revealing in any sense of the word. The never before seen stuff was cute, but I was waiting for more gossip like Rene's court battle over her money, Superbowl/Clear Channel controversy, the music itself (the albums post-Rhythm Nation were completely glossed over), mental health struggles during TVR era, weight criticisms, etc. Interesting things were touched upon, but it felt very on-the-surface or we'll acknowledge it but only for five seconds.
 
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The bits I've seen elsewhere via the internet are both clips of her talking about Michael. The first is where she out and out states on camera that she believes/knows he was innocent. Her brother couldn't do that/wasn't capable of that - words to that effect anyway. The other clip is of her talking about the last time she was with Michael before he died. Neither was in the Sky/Now version and as much as Janet loves the word "Edit", I was a bit pissed off to be watching an edited version.
 
When Jimmy Fallon asked about new music, she rolled her eyes and said "we'll see" :eyes:

 
Then again there's always Discipline
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@Diddy yeh?
 
I'm falling in love with Janet all over again. Her face when Alison "flips her the bird" or "the middle finger" or whatever that saying is...
 
Hi @Ellie - I really liked the documentary, but then I know NOTHING about her, and not very much about the family. Is there anything else out there I could watch? Also, does she still really hate LaToya? Also, when she talks about how her and MJ drifted, why was that?

I might have more questions. I've forgotten a few.
 
Beverley said:
Hi @Ellie - I really liked the documentary, but then I know NOTHING about her, and not very much about the family. Is there anything else out there I could watch? Also, does she still really hate LaToya? Also, when she talks about how her and MJ drifted, why was that?

I might have more questions. I've forgotten a few.
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They CUT a bunch of stuff from the international broadcast, mostly anything positive she had to say about Michael, quelle surprise :bad:

Not sure where any LaToya negativity came from. It's mostly fabricated. LaToya's story is far more interesting and there don’t appear to be many mainstream documentaries about any of the Jackson family that doesn't approach it from some ridiculous angle based on assumptions, not to mention the more official stuff done through a PR lens. Even the people who try weird armchair psychology and blaming everything on Joseph Jackson. AT the very least Janet cleared a lot up there, leaving a hell of a lot of stuff out too (ahem, beating up Jospeh's mistresses and finding out about her half sister)



I suspect Janet & Michael drifted around 99-2000. Janet seemed to be very close to Lisa Marie Presley (listen to the Speakerphone interlude on The Velvet Rope :D) and when MJ pissed her off and they finally split (they were together well after the divorce), that's when his painkiller addiction resurfaced after the accident on stage in Munich.

There was one suspected lie that Janet told in the documentary in episode 4. She was talking about the time she had her brothers turned up to MJ's house in Las Vegas to try to convince him to go on tour and she said they weren't allowed to see him due to being kept away by "his people". I remember this story at the time. The family at the time said it was supposed to be an intervention about his painkiller use, but sources closer to MJ's people said he personally turned them away because he knew they just wanted to talk about a family reunion tour So Janet pretty much confirmed that as true without even mentioning an intervention... but there is NO WAY IN HELL that Janet would have offered to be their opening act. This was in 2006 :D I call bullshit on that.

Genuinely some of the best things are in books rather than TV shows

Michael Jackson: The Magic, the Madness, the Whole Story
Out of the Madness: Strictly Unauthorised Biography of Janet Jackson
Starting Over
You Are Not Alone: Michael, Through a Brother’s Eyes

The ridiculous fly on the wall style conversational dialogue from the J Randy Taraborrelli bios is clearly made up trash (though very entertaining, much like his Madonna biography which I read in one sitting), but there's a lot more truth to them than any "documentary".
 
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Her performance at the Kentucky Derby looked great. (almost) FIFTY SIX!

 
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