The Soundtrack of my Life
by Kevin Naff
It was a cruel stunt and Janet was the victim. She was suddenly the villain, while Justin Timberlake was celebrated. “Damita Jo,” perhaps her most underrated album, was lost in all the drama and controversy.
When 20 Y.O. came out, I realised a dream and interviewed Janet twice through my job at a media outlet. She was exactly as you’d expect – professional, kind, sweet, on time. The second time I interviewed her, it was by phone; I landed her first interview on the morning 20 Y.O. dropped. I was so nervous; I dialled into the conference line and waited. Moments later, right on time, I heard a beep and the softest voice, “Are you there?” I said, “Janet?” She said, “Yes,” and she asked me if I had favourite tracks on the album. Of course I was up at 5 a.m. downloading it so already had several.
I got to know her publicist, Patti Webster, who recently passed away. We hit it off and she once called me excitedly to say she had something for me. “What is it, Patti?” I said. “Madison Square Garden, 14th row on the floor,” she said, referring to Janet’s Rock Witchu show. I replied, “Well, I already have 7th row, so you’ll have to do better than that!” We laughed and she knew Janet always had an ally in me. I cried years later when I heard she’d died after a battle with cancer.
The “Discipline” album seemed poised to bring a comeback to the mainstream — she was with a big label, had MTV exposure again and a hot lead single that landed on the Billboard pop chart. But something was missing. So much had happened to Janet and it wasn’t explored on the album. The diehard fans were so accustomed to Janet’s albums as diary-like confessionals. As Jimmy has always said, if you want to know what’s going on in her life, listen to the album. That didn’t seem to be the case now. I was disappointed by the album’s cover — the sexy, dominatrix image wasn’t what the fans wanted anymore. That ship had sailed. There were some really good, classic-sounding songs, but the overall vibe seemed off. The tour was truncated, though I saw two of the 16 shows that were performed – in D.C. and NYC. The shows were awesome, of course, but the tour was cut short.
Then Michael died and my heart broke for her. I wondered when she would address all those feelings through music. On the 2011 “Up Close and Personal” tour, she performed her greatest hits and the show was a blast. I had fourth row in D.C. and remember actually talking to one of her dancers while he was on stage. He was laughing at me for mimicking all of their dance moves in the audience. It was so intimate. Yet, I felt that the tour was really a rehearsal. That we hadn’t seen the last of her big arena shows.