Music & Concerts

Janet Jackson announces new album, tour

A look back at Blade’s 2006 interview with music icon

Published

10 years ago

May 18, 2015

Staff reports

Janet Jackson, gay news, Washington Blade

Janet Jackson announced plans for a new album and world tour on Saturday. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

In a video message posted Saturday — her 49^th birthday — Janet Jackson announced plans for a new album and world tour.

“I promised you’d hear it from my lips, and now you will,” she says in the video. “This year: new music; new world tour; a new movement. I’ve been listening. Let’s keep the conversation going.”

She added the hashtag #ConversationsInACafe, which some have speculated is the title of the upcoming album.

Jackson has long been an LGBT favorite, winning GLAAD awards and other accolades for her pro-LGBT themes and extensive work in HIV/AIDS philanthropy.

Back in 2006, Jackson sat down with the Blade for an exclusive interview in which she talked about her support for marriage equality and much more. While the world awaits new material, let’s revisit that 2006 interview.

Sept. 29, 2006:

We’re ‘So Excited’

Gay icon Janet Jackson talks about new album, same-sex marriage — and Madonna

By KEVIN NAFF

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 musical productions 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 groundbreaking 1986 album “Control.”

In the midst of a whirlwind media tour to promote the album, which has included a stop on Oprah’s couch and a “Today” show appearance, Jackson granted the Blade an exclusive interview this week in which she talked about the album, the MTV boycott of her videos, her gay fans and even Madonna.

Although Jackson has always said she writes songs about what’s happening in her life, 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 on 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 to that album, 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 that will impact sales of the new album is video exposure. Although BET and VH1 have been playing the first two singles, “Call on Me” and “So Excited,” 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. But MTV’s anger over the incident apparently doesn’t extend to Timberlake, whose new single is in heavy rotation. Jackson says she’s heard that MTV has disrespected her fans, but she 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 have 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. She teased fans earlier this year with the online-only release of a cover of Debbie Deb’s 1980s song “Lookout Weekend.”

Janet clearly recognizes that many of those fans she’s reaching out to are gay. She clarified that she has never been involved 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?”

There are no wild innovations or dramatic departures on “20 Y.O.,” but the album is chock full of hits. There is no dead weight on this record, as on “Damita Jo.”

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 music fans. The album opens with a series of five sure-fire club-banging hits, starting with the current single, “So Excited.” Despite lyrics like, “I’ll open my spot for you, anytime you want me to,” Jackson has ratcheted down the vulgarity this time out. She’s still freaky, but the 40-year-old Janet sounds more mature and confident than she has in the recent past.

Dirty Southern rapper Khia (of “My Neck, My Back” infamy) guests on “So Excited,” which is followed by four more fast-paced songs: “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 as she looks back on 20 years in music.

After the opening barrage of infectious beats, Jackson slows things to a mid-tempo groove with songs like “With U” and “Call on Me,” a duet with Nelly that hit No. 1on Billboard’s R&B/hip-hop chart.

The interludes that Jackson is known for interspersing on her albums are spare this time, with just three short breaks plus an intro and outro. The interludes succeed in preparing the listener for what’s to come and transitioning between the faster, mid-tempo and slower ballad tracks.

Jackson’s persona has always included the over-the-top diva as well as the vulnerable and shy side, which she successfully mines on “Take Care,” a whispering, smooth ballad.

Among the standouts — and there are many — “Do It 2 Me” and “Daybreak” really shine.

“Enjoy” is classic, upbeat Janet, reminiscent of “Runaway” and “Escapade.” She coos, “Livin’ every day like it’s my last/ I refuse to be stuck in the past/People acting like machines/cause they’re scared to live their dreams, no not me.”

Jackson says her gay fans have another treat yet to come. She promises a song called “Clap Your Hands” will be a big hit with the gay club crowd. The song isn’t on the version of “20 Y.O.” released this week, but is coming on a future re-release of the album, along with a possible duet with Mariah Carey, which Jackson says is still in the works.

Asked if she would ever consider a duet with longtime chart rival and fellow gay-favorite Madonna, Jackson says she hasn’t thought about it.

“No one’s ever asked me that,” she says, adding that she and Madonna have never actually met. “Isn’t that surprising?”

She declined to speculate about how many singles to expect from the album, saying, “it’s up to the market,” but did confirm that she will launch a world tour in March.

“I’m sure we’ll stop in Washington,” she says, adding that the show will include a mixture of new and old hits. “I don’t like going to a show where all they perform is the new album.”

After the tour, Jackson says she has no idea what’s next for her professionally, but she would like to pursue film roles.

“I’d like to have a family and I’m getting older,” she says. “I don’t know what’s next, I’m as much in the dark as you are.”

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Music & Concerts

Pianist Jeremy Denk to play George Mason

Soloist performs Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4 alongside FSO

Published

4 weeks ago

November 16, 2024

Tinashe Chingarande

Pianist Jeremy Denk (Photo by Shervin Lainez)

The Fairfax Symphony Orchestra (FSO) and the Center for the Arts at George Mason University co-present Jeremy Denk — one of America’s foremost pianists—on Nov. 23 at 8 p.m. Denk joins the FSO as soloist for Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4. The concert, conducted by FSO Music Director Christopher Zimmerman, also includes the regional premiere of “She Dreams of Flying” by American composer Quinn Mason, and Rachmaninoff’s Symphonic Dances. Tickets are available through the Fairfax Symphony and the Center for the Arts: $65, $55, $40 and half-price for youth through grade 12 (service fees may apply).

A pre-performance discussion with Denk and Maestro Christopher Zimmerman, moderated by Mason Dewberry School of Music Professor John Healey, will take place in Monson Grand Tier, located on the third level of the Center for the Arts Lobby, 45 minutes prior to curtain.

Music & Concerts

Lana Del Rey, Katy Perry plan fall releases

A Fleetwood Mac live album, more Joni archives among vintage options

Published

3 months ago

September 13, 2024

Joey DiGuglielmo

Dolly Parton’s ‘Smoky Mountain DNA’ is slated for a Nov. 15 release. (Image courtesy Owepar Entertainment)

Paris Hilton released her “Infinite Icon” album on Sept. 6. It’s just the second effort following a massive hiatus — her debut album “Paris” was released way back in 2006. Sia produces. This summer’s “I’m Free” was the first single. A tour is planned. Hilton promised a “heavily gay-leaning release.”

Miranda Lambert’s “Postcards from Texas” is slated to drop today. Lambert’s 10th studio album was preceded by the May release of single “Wranglers,” which stalled in the lower 30s on country radio. Lambert calls the album a musical ode to her home state. She co-produces with Jon Randall and either wrote or co-wrote 10 of the project’s 14 cuts.

Katy Perry’s “143” is set for a Sept. 20 release. It will be her seventh studio album. Its title refers to what she says is her symbolic angel number. Perry is aiming for a dance party feel working with producers Max Martin, Dr. Luke, Stargate, Vaughn Oliver and Rocco Did It Again! The proceedings are not off to a strong start. First single “Woman’s World” stalled at No. 63 on the Billboard Hot 100. Follow-up “Lifetimes” failed to crack the Hot 100 at all.

Fleetwood Mac releases “Mirage Tour ’82” on Sept. 20. It includes six tracks previously unreleased including “Don’t Stop,” “Dreams,” “Never Going Back Again,” “Sara” and more. Available on double CD, triple vinyl and digitally.

Volume four of Joni Mitchell’s “Archives” series dubbed “The Asylum Years: 1976-1980” releases Oct. 4. It’s being offered in six-CD or four-LP (highlights) configurations. It will feature unreleased studio sessions, alternate versions, live recordings, rarities and a 36-page book with new photos and an extensive conversation between Mitchell and filmmaker/uberfan Cameron Crowe.

Sophie B. Hawkins releases her “Whaler Re-Emerging” album (a re-recording of her landmark 1994 album) on Oct. 15. Order through her site and the first 250 copies will be signed. Hawkins (who identifies as omnisexual) says it surpasses the original.

Joe Jonas’s “Music for People Who Believe in Love” and Shawn Mendes’s “Shawn” are both set for Oct. 18 releases. Jonas’s album (his first solo effort since 2011’s “Fastlife”) will feature songwriting he says is of a more personal nature. Billboard called it “unvarnished” but with a shimmery pop sound aglow with garage rock and alt-pop influences. First single “Work It Out” was released over the summer and failed to chart.

“Shawn” will be Mendes’s first album since 2020’s “Wonder,” the tour of which he cancelled citing mental health. Two singles — “Why Why Why” and “Isn’t That Enough” — have been released. The former stalled at no. 84 on the Hot 100. He has called the album his “most musically intimate and lyrically honest work to date.”

Lana Del Rey’s “Lasso” is expected for a possible fall release, although some sources say it’s been bumped to early 2025. No date had been announced as of yet. She’s apparently going the Beyonce route and releasing a straight-up country album.

Dolly Parton plans a Nov. 15 release for “Smoky Mountain DNA — Family, Faith & Fables.” Parton recruited family to help her on the 37 (!)-track collection, which will also encompass a four-part docuseries tracing Parton’s familial roots. One song (“A Rose Won’t Fix It”) is an outtake from the feverish writing sessions that led to her solid (but underrated) 1998 album “Hungry Again.” An extremely limited-edition triple vinyl release is also planned.

Release dates shift and many more releases will be announced later. Pitchfork keeps a great running tab at pitchfork.com/news/new-album-releases. Also check your local record store for Black Friday special editions available on Friday, Nov. 29. Release info was scant as of this writing.

(Joey DiGuglielmo was variously the Blade’s news and features editor from 2006-2020.)

Music & Concerts

Fall concerts feature Sivan, Eilish, Lauper, more

Ndegeocello pays tribute to Baldwin at Strathmore next month

Published

3 months ago

September 13, 2024

Joey DiGuglielmo

Sigur Ros plays the Anthem this month. Frontman JONSI (center) is gay. (Photo by Chloe Kritharas; courtesy motormouthmedia)

Sigur Ros will be joined by the Wordless Music Orchestra at the Anthem (901 Wharf St., S.W.) on Wednesday, Sept. 25th. They’re continuing their 2023 tour in support of “Atta,” their first LP of original music in a decade. Frontman Jonsi is gay. Tickets are $60.50-173.50 for this seated show.

Troye Sivan brings the “Sweat Tour” with Charli XCX (co-headlining) to Baltimore at the CFG Bank Arena (201 West Baltimore St.) on Thursday, Sept. 26th at 7:30 p.m. It’s sold out. The latter is touring behind her 2024 album “Brat.” The former is touring behind his 2023 album “Something to Give Each Other.” Sivan is gay and has performed at Capital Pride.

Cyndi Lauper brings her “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun Farewell Tour” to Capital One Arena (601 F St., N.W.) on Sunday, Oct. 27 at 7 p.m. Tickets range from $29-179. It’s her first solo arena stateside tour since her ’86-’87 “True Colors World Tour.” Lauper is a longtime and avid LGBTQ ally.

St. Vincent brings her “All Born Screaming Tour” to the Anthem (901 Wharf St., S.W.) on Friday, Sept. 13th at 8 p.m. Tickets are $55-95. A Variety review called it “minimalist” and said “with no video screens, backup singers or sketches, and a lot of electric guitar, it’s the purest distillation of St. Vincent we’ve had on stage in quite a few years.” Anne Erin Clark (aka St. Vincent) doesn’t identify as anything sexually but has mostly dated women in recent years.

Kristin Chenoweth and Alan Cumming play Wolf Trap (1551 Trap Rd., Vienna, Va.) on Friday, Sept. 13 at 8 p.m. Individual sets are planned, but there will likely be a duet or two. Tickets are $29.

Out singer/songwriter Perfume Genius brings his “Too Bright 10th Anniversary Tour” to The Atlantis (2047 9th St., N.W.) on Monday, Sept. 16. This highly limited run will only play six dates in five cities. Mike Hadreas (aka Perfume Genius) will perform his 2014 album in its entirety. It’s sold out.

Meghan Trainor brings “The Timeless Tour” to Jiffy Lube Live (7800 Cellar Door Dr., Bristol, Va.) on Tuesday, Sept. 17th at 6:30 p.m. She’s touring behind her album of the same name released earlier this year. Tickets are $33-155. No lawn seats available for this show.

Queer-affirming gospel singer Amy Grant (who also had a decent pop chart run in the ’90s) brings her fall tour to The Birchmere (3701 Mt. Vernon Ave., Alexandria, Va.) on Thursday, Sept. 19 at 7:30 p.m. As she’s done on tour with previous re-releases, Grant could include more songs than usual from her 1994 “House of Love” album, which was just released in an expanded edition and on LP for the first time. Tickets are $95.

Sara Bareilles, a self-described LGBTQ ally, joins the NSO Pops for a three-night stint at the Kennedy Center (2700 F St., N.W.) on Sept. 24-26 at 8 p.m. each night. It’s sold out.

Billie Eilish brings her “Hit Me Hard and Soft: the Tour” to CFG Bank Arena (201 West Baltimore St.) in Baltimore on Friday, Oct. 4 at 7 p.m. Her album of the same name dropped in March. Although she’s mostly dated guys publicly, Eilish identifies as bi. It’s sold out.

Queer artist Meshell Ndegeocello plays the Strathmore (5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda, Md.) on Saturday, Oct. 5 at 8 p.m. Her show is dubbed “No More Water: the Gospel of James Baldwin” and is billed as a tribute event to the legendary Black gay writer. A pre-concert event, “The Gospel of Meshell Ndegeocello” is free but advanced registration is required. Tickets for the concert are $28-74.

Former Capital Pride headliner Betty Who (“queer/bi” herself) brings her “An Acoustic Evening in Celebration of 10 years of TMWYG” to the Lincoln Theatre (1215 U St., N.W.) on Wednesday, Oct. 9 at 9 p.m. Tickets are $55. It’s a nod to her 2014 debut album “Take Me When You Go.”

Justin Timberlake brings his “Forget Tomorrow World Tour” to Capital One Arena (601 F St., N.W.) on Sunday, Oct. 13. This seventh headlining concert tour (and first in five years) supports his 2024 sixth album “Everything I Thought it Was.” Reviews for the tour have been strong; the setlist looks career-spanning and generous. It’s sold out.

Gay-helmed Pink Martini with China Forbes and Ari Shapiro plays the Kennedy Center (2700 F St., N.W.) on Monday, Oct. 14 at 7 p.m. Tickets are $40-80.

’80s pop sensation Debbie Gibson brings her “Acoustic Youth: Songs & Stories from Electric Youth Era” to the Birchmere (3701 Mt. Vernon Ave., Alexandria, Va.) on Wednesday, Oct. 16. Tickets are $59.50. Gibson is celebrating her 1989 album “Electric Youth,” her second. She’ll accompany herself on piano playing the songs “the way I first wrote them.”

DJ/producer Diplo, who says he’s “not not gay,” plays Echostage (2135 Queens Chapel Road, N.E.) on Saturday, Oct. 19 at 9 p.m. Walker and Royce join. Tickets are $60.

Motown diva Diana Ross brings her “Beautiful Love Performances Legacy Tour” to MGM National Harbor (101 MGM National Ave., Oxon Hill, Md.) on Oct. 24-25 at 8 p.m. Except for adding a couple cuts from her abysmal 2021 album “Thank You” (her latest), her setlist has not changed much in 15 years. She’s a little better about performing Supremes songs than she was earlier in her career (for ages, they were crammed into one medley), but she still heavily favors her solo material. Tickets start at $102.

“The Life and Music of George Michael” comes to the National Theatre (1321 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.) on Friday, Oct. 25 at 8 p.m. Hard to tell from promo material if this is a typical jukebox musical-type show or more like a tribute band concert for the late gay singer. Tickets are $55.

“Sapphic Factory: Queer Joy Party” is at 9:30 Club (815 V St., N.W.) on Friday, Oct. 25 at 10 p.m. It’s slated to feature music by artists such as Mana, Chappell Roan, Fletcher, Phoebe Bridges, Kehlani, Rina Sawayama, boygenius, Kim Petras, Tegan and Sara and more. Tickets are $23.

Kacey Musgraves brings her “Deeper Well World Tour” to CFG Bank Arena (201 West Baltimore St.) on Saturday, Nov. 9 at 7:30 p.m. It supports her sixth studio album, released in March. The setlist morphed slightly over a spring run in Europe. It’s sold out.

Soul diva Gladys Knight plays the Hall at Live! (7002 Arundel Mills Circle) in Hanover, Md., on Sunday, Nov. 17th at 7:30 p.m. Knight, who hasn’t had a new album out in a decade, tends to be fairly generous with her classic Motown- and Buddha-era hits with the Pips in approximately 75-minute sets. Tickets start at $95.

(Joey DiGuglielmo was variously the Blade’s news and features editor from 2006-2020.)