Janet Jackson is kicking off her world tour in Vancouver on Monday.Tim Fraser/The Globe and Mail
She grew up in the shadow of one of the biggest pop acts in history – her older brothers were the Jackson Five – but she went on to become one of the bestselling artists of all time. And now, leading up to her 50th birthday and set to release her first album of original material in seven years, Janet Jackson is kicking off her world tour in Vancouver.
Details of the concert have yet to be released, but there's little doubt that, in addition to new songs, Ms. Jackson will perform plenty of hits, and she has more than enough to choose from. Control, Rhythm Nation, Miss You Much, What Have You Done for Me Lately, When I Think of You, Nasty, Escapade, That's the Way Love Goes and All for You are just a few of the tracks that have topped the charts over her more than 30-year career, and won her accolades including six Grammys and an Oscar nomination.
She is also releasing a new album, Unbreakable, this fall – her first since the sudden death of her brother Michael Jackson in 2009, an event that sent shock waves through the tight-knit music family.
"This year: new music, new world tour, a new movement. I've been listening," she said in a video released on her 49th birthday. "Let's keep the conversation going."
Ms. Jackson released her first album in 1982, at just 16 years old, but it wasn't until 1986's Control – her first record with hit-maker producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis – that the performer hit her stride, shed the baby-sister image, and began releasing songs and videos that were powerful, daringly sexy and at times, overtly political.
Her career took a downward turn after her infamous "wardrobe malfunction" at the 2004 Super Bowl, when a move by Justin Timberlake exposed one of her breasts. She lost her spot in a biopic about one of her music heroes, Lena Horne; her music was blacklisted on several radio networks; and she was dropped from that year's Grammy Awards. (Mr. Timberlake was still allowed to appear.)
Still, she managed to weather the controversy, even poking fun at herself on Saturday Night Live, and returned with another string of chart-topping hits. Now almost 50 – the same age as her brother Michael (or "Mike" as she affectionately called him) when he died – the wispy-voiced singer isn't showing any signs of slowing down, and her eye-popping live shows are the stuff of legend.
"You know, I never look back on what I've done unless I'm asked, but I remember Mike saying, 'You need to stop and enjoy it. Think about everything you've done, all that you've accomplished,'" remembered Ms. Jackson in an interview with Harper's Bazaar. "But there's so much more I want to do."
Janet Jackson kicks off her Unbreakable tour at Rogers Arena Monday (ticketmaster.ca).