Janet
Jackson emerged from what many thought was a fairytale marriage to reveal she had
been going through some things. Her fans embraced her and nurtured her return
to the States – and that love is shown by them packing arenas to witness her State of the World tour.
Janet
Jackson gave an electrifying show at Chicago’s Allstate Arena on Oct. 26. State of the World, named after a cut on
her 1989 Rhythm Nation album had
Rosemont lit for miles as fans poured in from all over. I talked to one
gentleman who’d flown his family in from Atlanta. Also in the audience –
probably Janet’s biggest fan, her dad Joe Jackson and her brother Randy.
The
State of the World show started with
a poignant montage of videos and sound bytes of controversial statements made
about Janet Jackson as well as praises. These images were juxtaposed with a
direct call for an end to racial injustice with statements plastered against a
black background like “We Want Justice” and an uttering of slain teenager Michael
Brown. Another statement said “there is no human being superior to another on
this earth.” And yet another demanded acknowledgment of the term “white
supremacy” in relation to domestic terrorism.
It’s
clear why the show’s theme was a throwback to her more militant Rhythm Nation album. Before hitting the
stage, Janet had already made a bold statement about her view of the current state
of the world and ignited the crowd. Jackson then sauntered on stage solo dressed in
a long flowy black jacket belting out “The Knowledge” and “State of the World”.
After
that it was time to get the party started, and Janet threw off that black Olivia
Pope’ style jacket to reveal a sexy tight suit underneath. Her snapback game is
next to none. Jackson and her young dancers in angelic white juked it out to “Nasty,”
“Control,” “Miss You Much” and “Pleasure Principal”.
Janet
doesn’t dance as hard as she used to since having her young baby Issa, but her background
dancers more than compensate. The dancers spanned a wide range of ages, ethnic
backgrounds and body types. It was great to witness Janet passing the torch by
stepping back into the group for the more energetic choreography as her dancers
went all in. Janet performed “Escapade” and “All for You” with two teen dancers
taking the lead. Then back with the ladies, Jackson did a sexy chair dance to “When
I Think of You”. Thickalicious dancer Allison stole the show with her breakdown
during “Throb”.
Janet
performed dozens of hits she’s had over the last three decades. As the show hit
the halfway mark, Janet morphed from a sexy Dom to a softer fresh-faced 90’s
baby. She gave the crowd some of her R&B cuts like “Again”, “Come Back to
Me,” and “The Body That Loves You”, as she sat alone wearing baggy denim and a
chic bun. Her dancers returned to the stage in similar 90’s garb as Jackson
performed her more recent hit, “No Sleep” featuring J. Cole.
One
of my favorite moments from the show was the dancers doing a hip-hop soul train
line to “Throb” where each displayed their individual talent. As the brassy EDM beat thumped I was transported
back to some forgotten nights at club 735 in New Orleans.
My
other fav moment was the interlude featuring the ballad “Idle” by Spooky Black.
In the roughly three-minute black and white clip, Janet is smiling, reflecting,
sobbing, grimacing – exhausting many emotions before smearing her makeup. The last
image is a composed Janet smiling slightly.
Peep the clip!
The video seems to show the spiritual journey Janet has undergone since marrying a billionaire, moving to the Middle East and living a Muslim lifestyle, to later alleging emotional abuse from her husband, filing for divorce and fighting for sole custody of her baby. Janet need not say a word.
At
her tour stop in Ontario, CA though, Janet broke down while performing “What
About.” The songs follows the “Idle” clip. As Janet struggled through the
emotional lyrics “my heart was pounding,
but the time had come, to stop letting my whispering heart control me, and
tellin my screamin mind what to do,” her dancers did an interpretation of
an abusive adulterous relationship. At the end, in tears Janet simply told her
fans, “this is me.”
Janet’s
performance of “If” and “Rhythm Nation” towards the end of her Chicago show was
probably the most entertaining of the night because it brought up so much
nostalgia. The monster hits represent two distinct stages in Jackson’s career. Janet
used Rhythm Nation, to make a social
and political statement against racial and economic tensions in the 80’s. Velvet Rope, released in 1997 with “If”
as one of its biggest records, was a sexual exploration put to sultry beats. Janet
moans on one track on the album and was rumored to have masturbated for an interlude.
Jackson
closed out the show again flipping a symbolic middle finger to injustice performing
“Livin’ in a World” and “Black Eagle” while moving images showed behind her. Then
she put her sexy back on for “Damn Baby,” and “I Get Lonely.”
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