In 1989, as the world was going to hell, Janet Jackson was coming into her own. The pop star's ascent and the planet's downward slide intersected neatly on Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814, a socially conscious, sonically adventurous, commercially massive album released 30 years ago on Sept. 19, 1989.
A whole three decades ago... what a time that must have been!
by Anonymous | reply 1 | September 19, 2019 2:45 AM |
What a flash in the pan!
by Anonymous | reply 2 | September 19, 2019 2:47 AM |
I remember it. First year of university. I wore my cassette out in my Ford Escort.
by Anonymous | reply 3 | September 19, 2019 2:51 AM |
This was my shit back in the day. I was nine years old when the album came out. My brother bought me a VHS copy of the short film that she released with the album. It had the Miss You Much, The Knowledge and Rhythm Nation videos in it. I watched that shit over and over and over again trying to learn the choreography and replicate it in our living room. I wore the tape out and it broke - that's how obsessed I was with Janet back then. Control was great but RN 1814 propelled her into legendary status. What a work of art this album is.
by Anonymous | reply 4 | September 19, 2019 3:07 AM |
One my favorite songs ever. She really took music and choreography to a new level.
by Anonymous | reply 5 | September 19, 2019 3:14 AM |
Thanks for posting R5. That brings back fun memories (I haven't seen that video in years). I forgot to mention that I LOVED her back-up dancers during this era. I think this was Tina Landon's first collaboration with Janet as a choreographer.
by Anonymous | reply 6 | September 19, 2019 3:28 AM |
Come back to me, state of the world, miss u much, love will never do, alright, living in a world. The whole album is a classic.
by Anonymous | reply 7 | September 19, 2019 3:48 AM |
Jabba must have permission to post again after getting its homophobic ass banned.
by Anonymous | reply 8 | September 19, 2019 3:51 AM |
And ESCAPADE. Bangin album.
by Anonymous | reply 9 | September 19, 2019 3:52 AM |
It's interesting that this period was the zenith of both Janet and Madonna's careers. Madonna will never match the period of the Like A Prayer album, Vogue and Justify My Love. And Rhythm Nation was clearly the highest achievement in Janet's career. Truly undeniable. As you said, OP, a monster hit with Janet and Jimmy Jam & Terry L bringing their A-game. I was in single digits then myself, but remember the thrill of one single and video release after another. It was a nearly three year album campaign from 'Miss You Much' in 1989 to 'State of the World' in 1991. Unimaginable now.
by Anonymous | reply 10 | September 19, 2019 4:39 AM |
So true R10. I also loved how Janet wasn't a prolific artist back then. Her albums were huge projects that came out every three or four years and when a new album was released, it really was a major event that defined an era. If she had been the kind of artist who dropped an album every year, I don't think her work would have been as iconic as it is.
by Anonymous | reply 11 | September 19, 2019 4:53 AM |
Sure, R4, but did many artists drop a new album every year or two? That seem to be a more recent practice. Or perhaps I'm mistaken about that.
by Anonymous | reply 12 | September 19, 2019 4:59 AM |
Wasn't Madonna's output pretty frequent in the 80s and early 90s?
by Anonymous | reply 13 | September 19, 2019 5:16 AM |
Mariah released an album every year in the 90s just about.
by Anonymous | reply 14 | September 19, 2019 5:38 AM |
Jackson is best known for winning KFC Extra Crispy Chicken Eating Contests @ the Hollywood Boulevard KFC.
by Anonymous | reply 15 | September 19, 2019 6:08 AM |
😂 Yes, Jackson most certainly defined a era .......
The Fast Food Era
by Anonymous | reply 16 | September 19, 2019 6:11 AM |
Jody Watley's Larger Than Life was a far superior release in 1989.
by Anonymous | reply 17 | September 19, 2019 6:29 AM |
^^^😂😂😂😂😂
by Anonymous | reply 18 | September 19, 2019 3:08 PM |
Many suspected that "Control" was a fluke and that Janet was a flash in the pan. She went into the studio shortly after the release of the blockbuster "Bad" and felt the pressure to both produce a smash hit and also more clearly distinguish herself from her brother. That's why they decided on singing about race issues--that's something that Michael hadn't done before.
Of course, all these years later, we're not supposed to remember that. Instead, we're supposed to believe that singing about race came from watching CNN or whatever.
by Anonymous | reply 19 | September 19, 2019 3:25 PM |
R8 which one of Jabba's multiple personalities/accounts did that happen to?
by Anonymous | reply 20 | September 19, 2019 6:48 PM |
Yes, all of Janet's material with Jam & Lewis is great.... wonder why?!?!
by Anonymous | reply 21 | September 19, 2019 6:48 PM |
r19, Of course they wanted Janet to do something Michael hadn't done before, duh. Their careers were depending on it. The concept was mostly influenced by Jimmy Jam because Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" was his favorite album.
by Anonymous | reply 23 | September 19, 2019 8:46 PM |
Duh!
by Anonymous | reply 24 | September 19, 2019 9:04 PM |
R10, Janet. from 4 years later was actually her biggest album in terms of sales. I think it has aged and works better than Erotica.
by Anonymous | reply 25 | September 19, 2019 9:29 PM |
R20, the personality I call Shania Antoine. It's one of Jabba's personalities that talks to itself and loves to call a poster who disagrees with it the f-word.
by Anonymous | reply 26 | September 19, 2019 10:02 PM |
Good to know, R26. I feared it was the one named, Brooklyn Devine... the one who becomes irrationally pressed at any mention of Queen Jane's Baja Fresh endorsement.
by Anonymous | reply 27 | September 19, 2019 10:13 PM |
And once again, Jabba continues to post old high school photos of Ms. Jackson.
Obviously, those were taken before she was introduced to the KFC Extra Crispy menu selection.
by Anonymous | reply 28 | September 21, 2019 3:31 AM |
Happy 30th birthday Rhythm Nation 1814!
WE ARE A PART OF THE RHYTHM NATION.
by Anonymous | reply 29 | September 22, 2019 6:22 AM |
Edit!
by Anonymous | reply 30 | September 22, 2019 7:53 AM |
Black Cat was the best song on this album. This is a fact.
by Anonymous | reply 31 | September 22, 2019 8:10 AM |
We are NOT all part of the rythm nation.
Not do we choose to be.
by Anonymous | reply 33 | September 22, 2019 1:41 PM |
Let us not forget the 19th anniversary of Michael Jackson's "Pedo 🧒 Fascination 2005"
by Anonymous | reply 34 | September 22, 2019 1:47 PM |
But why is Michael Jackson's picture on the cover of Rhythm Nation?
by Anonymous | reply 35 | September 22, 2019 1:51 PM |
I don't think I've ever heard a song of hers. I don't listen to pop radio at all.
by Anonymous | reply 36 | September 22, 2019 2:16 PM |
One of the few songs on Rhythm Nation not to be released as a single but one of the best.
by Anonymous | reply 37 | September 22, 2019 2:46 PM |
Wrong album, but the song "Together Again" means a lot to me.
When my partner died, I spent days with him in the funeral home. Even at the funeral I never cried. It was a couple of months later, after me being a complete zombie that my niece put MTV on in my house and that video was on. I wept for days but it is such a positive song I cry and smile now when I hear it.
So titty accidents aside, I love Janet for that.
by Anonymous | reply 38 | September 22, 2019 2:51 PM |
Sorry for your loss R38
I
by Anonymous | reply 39 | September 22, 2019 3:00 PM |
Black Cat sucks
by Anonymous | reply 40 | September 22, 2019 3:03 PM |
I remember the scene in Madonna's documentary where she is trying on outfits and she is trying on these Galliano jackets and one of the backup dancers go "it's very Rythm Nation 1814" and she shot a death stare at her.
by Anonymous | reply 41 | September 22, 2019 3:10 PM |
Just watched the "Alright" video again for the first time in years. Still makes me smile all these years later. Love the guest appearances by Cyd Charisse, Cab Calloway and the Nicholas Brothers. Makes me miss the days when music videos had style, vision, and great storytelling.
by Anonymous | reply 42 | September 22, 2019 3:24 PM |
r39, thank you from r38
by Anonymous | reply 43 | September 22, 2019 3:39 PM |
Black Cat is the only bad song on the album. But I will say--Janet makes much more sense when she is singing about love than politics. You can tell she only watched her local news station to get her info. But The Knowledge is the best "political" song on the album and even better than Rhythm Nation.
by Anonymous | reply 44 | September 22, 2019 4:02 PM |
Yeah, I never cared for Black Cat either.
by Anonymous | reply 45 | September 22, 2019 4:52 PM |
I'm not surprised so many people love Black Cat. It truly is an excellent heavy metal song.
by Anonymous | reply 46 | September 22, 2019 5:03 PM |
Janet
remains
FLAWLESS!
by Anonymous | reply 47 | September 22, 2019 5:05 PM |
R46, please--it is not an actual heavy metal song. It is heavy metal watered down via pop music.
by Anonymous | reply 48 | September 22, 2019 5:06 PM |
[quote] We are NOT all part of the rythm nation.
If you can't spell it, you can't be in it.
by Anonymous | reply 49 | September 22, 2019 5:06 PM |
[quote]But The Knowledge is the best "political" song on the album and even better than Rhythm Nation.
The Knowledge is probably the most musically innovative song on the RN. Striking and unique. Michael said that song drove him crazy and it was his favorite to dance to from the album.
Come Back To Me is another hit from RN that is usually overlooked. The harmony is so haunted and beautiful, and fits in the album so well. Classic late 80s R&B ballad.
by Anonymous | reply 50 | September 22, 2019 10:07 PM |
Janet’s four back to back albums, Control, Rhythm Nation, janet., and The Velvet Rope were fucking great. Her last album wasn’t bad either. She lost me in the 2000s but got me back in the 2010s after she stopped with the sex act nonsense and started making mature yet fun music again.
by Anonymous | reply 51 | September 22, 2019 10:44 PM |
R50, Come Back to Me is probably Janet's best ballad--FAR better than "Again". So insipid. I just wish Come Back to Me had a better video.
by Anonymous | reply 52 | September 22, 2019 10:49 PM |
r52 yeah I never really got the video either, but I guess the label didnt care since all the other videos from the album were blockbusters. Janet had just started her first solo tour around that time in 1990 so she probably shot it while on tour. She was practically the most in demand music star in the world at that time, besides Madonna and her brother.
by Anonymous | reply 53 | September 22, 2019 11:02 PM |
R53, you're right, all the other videos were blockbusters. Btw, that song "Someday is Tonight" is very sexual. That moaning Janet does is intense. I was actually thrown off by that. And then she just amped that up on Janet.
by Anonymous | reply 54 | September 22, 2019 11:15 PM |
It's interesting that it's a political album but aside from Rhythm Nation, all the singles released were songs about love/relationships.
by Anonymous | reply 55 | September 23, 2019 12:11 PM |
if it made soo much $ how cum the fat slob had to marry that prince of wherever for rent $ ?
by Anonymous | reply 56 | September 23, 2019 12:25 PM |
[quote]I'm not surprised so many people love Black Cat. It truly is an excellent heavy metal song.
It does have tons of rock cred. Extreme's Nuno Bettencourt and Living Colour's Vernon Reid play on various mixes, Lemmy Kilmister wanted to remake it with her but never got to due to label interference, Tommy Lee loves it and rock band Warmen have a covered it. It's even been covered live by Britney and Adam Lambert. Youtube also has tons of videos of different rock bands covering it. Janet was heavily into the Wayne Isham-directed videos by Def Leppard, Bon Jovi, etc. at the time, which is why she asked Wayne to direct the video. It even netted Janet a Best Rock Vocal Female Grammy nom. She wrote it by herself and co-produced it with Jellybean from The Time.
by Anonymous | reply 57 | September 24, 2019 1:35 AM |
RN 1814 is iconic in every way. It was the biggest selling record of 1990 in the US. She won, like, every Billboard award imaginable for it.
by Anonymous | reply 58 | September 24, 2019 1:37 AM |
The RHYTHM NATION mini-movie was amazing. It was like a visual album way before Beyonce was putting them out every other second. It beat out MJ's Moonwalker, Pink Floyd's Delicate Sound of Thunder and Eurhythmics' Savage for a Best Music Video - Long Form Grammy. Part of it was filmed at the famous Bradbury Building in downtown LA (also seen in Genesis' Tonight Tonight Tonight video and the film Blade Runner). It has appearances by Joshua Miller (Jason Patric's younger brother), a pre-Meance II Society Tyrin Turner, and a blink-and-you'll-miss-her cameo by a young Vivica Fox.
by Anonymous | reply 59 | September 24, 2019 1:46 AM |
Where are you Janbot?
Did you buy the reissues, hunty?
by Anonymous | reply 60 | September 24, 2019 1:47 AM |
Agreed, R37. That's probably my favorite ballad by her.
by Anonymous | reply 61 | September 24, 2019 1:47 AM |
r57 that is one of my favorite performances from Janet. She was smoking hot. Black Cat is funky as hell.
by Anonymous | reply 62 | September 24, 2019 1:51 AM |
[quote]Jody Watley's Larger Than Life was a far superior release in 1989.
by Anonymous | reply 64 | September 24, 2019 1:56 AM |
It's amazing how timely this album is, seeing as though it was released three decades ago. Hell, its subject matter is probably even more relevant to what is going on in the headlines today than when it was released.
by Anonymous | reply 65 | September 24, 2019 1:58 AM |
[quote]In 1989, as the world was going to hell...
1989 was the exact opposite of that.
by Anonymous | reply 66 | September 24, 2019 1:58 AM |
RN, along with Thriller and Born in the USA, are the only three albums released in the 80s to generate 7 top 10 singles. RN is set apart, however, because all of its singles went top five.
by Anonymous | reply 67 | September 24, 2019 1:59 AM |
r65, it's a timeless piece of art for sure, now it is more apparent than ever.
by Anonymous | reply 68 | September 24, 2019 2:10 AM |
^indeed
by Anonymous | reply 69 | September 24, 2019 2:12 AM |
Rhythm Nation has always reminded me of another classic album, There's a Riot Goin' On--it's probably the sample of Sly and the Family stone in the title track that does it.
by Anonymous | reply 70 | September 24, 2019 2:28 AM |
I love when Janbot's nostalgic personality, Shirley, comes to remember the good old days, 1990, when Janet Jackson had a hit record.
by Anonymous | reply 71 | September 24, 2019 3:40 AM |
^Go back to your half-filled theater tour, Hagdonna.
by Anonymous | reply 72 | September 24, 2019 10:22 AM |
[quote]Go back to your half-filled theater tour, Hagdonna.
Which is still triple sized more full than Lardass Jackson's shows.
by Anonymous | reply 73 | September 24, 2019 10:26 AM |
How come tix to her tour went unsold and was considered the flop of the year???
by Anonymous | reply 74 | September 24, 2019 11:28 AM |
janets fake voice masks a talentless narcissus who is fraid to leave the house...
by Anonymous | reply 75 | September 24, 2019 11:29 AM |
R41, funny you should mention that. A couple of years ago, during Madge's hospital opening ceremony in Malawi, her son David performed Rhythm Nation - I wonder if she was giving her own son a "death stare" as well...
by Anonymous | reply 76 | September 27, 2019 10:40 PM |
[quote]—Miss Jackson had the last laugh
You can say that again!
by Anonymous | reply 78 | September 27, 2019 10:55 PM |
I like Janet but she is TACKY AS FUCK!
by Anonymous | reply 79 | September 27, 2019 11:11 PM |
R76, Hahaha. That’s a great piece of video...the irony.
by Anonymous | reply 80 | September 27, 2019 11:12 PM |
[quote]Which is still triple sized more full than Lardass Jackson's shows.
Me thinks not
by Anonymous | reply 81 | September 28, 2019 12:36 PM |
That’s classic R77. I wonder if her throat seized when she heard Rhythm Nation begin.
by Anonymous | reply 82 | September 28, 2019 12:38 PM |
A reminder: Janet left a venue in entertainment-starved Tampa that even Gwen Stefani has sold out...two thirds EMPTY. She. Is. Done.
by Anonymous | reply 83 | September 28, 2019 2:39 PM |
The problem with Janet is that, like Cher, Kylie, Britney...she has zero artistic value.
by Anonymous | reply 84 | September 28, 2019 2:46 PM |
So untrue R84
by Anonymous | reply 85 | September 28, 2019 3:01 PM |
[quote]A reminder: Janet left a venue in entertainment-starved Tampa that even Gwen Stefani has sold out...two thirds EMPTY
No, but here's one for you...she was the first woman to sell out the Chase Center last weekend.
by Anonymous | reply 86 | September 28, 2019 9:15 PM |
[quote]The problem with Janet is that, like Cher, Kylie, Britney...she has zero artistic value.
Tell that to game changing, award-winning, industry-influencing, influential seminal works like Control, Rhythm Nation 1814 and The Velvet Rope.
by Anonymous | reply 87 | September 28, 2019 9:16 PM |
The oldest Jackson sister was Rebe. She had a low key hit "Centipede."
Not sure why she stopped singing though.
by Anonymous | reply 88 | September 28, 2019 9:29 PM |
The fact that this thread highlights her best known work--and something that's thirty years old--says all we need to know about Janet's career:
It ain't made for now.
by Anonymous | reply 89 | September 28, 2019 9:37 PM |
It’s fun to think about the Rhythm Nation days because that’s when we didn’t know that Janet is a liar capable of the Super Bowl stunt.
by Anonymous | reply 90 | September 28, 2019 9:42 PM |
Rebe? Oh dear!
Rebbie certainly had the best vocals of the three sisters. Unfortunately she had shitty producers.
by Anonymous | reply 91 | September 28, 2019 9:45 PM |
She was pretty too. Janet talked about feeling less than compared to Rebbie. I actually like Latoya too. She's pretty fun but too unfocused to have talent.
I watched something with David Gest and he talked about Rebbie Jackson's hit Centipede and the UK audience thought he was hilariously making it up. Not sure why he was a big hit there after divorcing Liza.
by Anonymous | reply 92 | September 28, 2019 9:58 PM |
Oh, I didn't know he passed away.
by Anonymous | reply 93 | September 28, 2019 9:59 PM |
Here is an old interview with Janet. She talks about wondering if her fame was really because of her, or because of her brother's success. I think mostly her, but having a brother like Michael didn't hurt. Obviously, you can see how different she was compared to Latoya and Rebbie so she had something!
It really struck me as very odd that she hadn't talked to Michael in over a year! She also talks about depression and I think that ran in their family.
by Anonymous | reply 94 | September 28, 2019 10:02 PM |
I used to try to do the dance in this video.
by Anonymous | reply 95 | September 28, 2019 10:03 PM |
When she did this song for Dr. Doolittle or some movie where Eddie Murphy was fat she was promoting it on TRL and Carson Daly said "you could never someone fat like that, right?" And she gasped "why?"
Of course she could! She was with Jermaine Dupri and he was a little bit fat.
by Anonymous | reply 97 | September 28, 2019 10:06 PM |
R94, Velvet Rope is probably her best album but god, she looks horrible there. She even has a septum piercing.
by Anonymous | reply 98 | September 28, 2019 10:07 PM |
She was also Penny on Good Times. This scene was so sad.
by Anonymous | reply 99 | September 28, 2019 10:08 PM |
She is always so regal. Here she is on Graham Norton!
by Anonymous | reply 101 | September 28, 2019 10:12 PM |
When she went on Jonathan Ross she should he said CLIT PIE!
by Anonymous | reply 102 | September 28, 2019 10:14 PM |
She never looked better than in this video.
by Anonymous | reply 103 | September 28, 2019 10:16 PM |
[quote]Rebbie certainly had the best vocals of the three sisters.
That throaty ad-lib you hear at the end of CENTIPEDE is Martha Wash, hon.
by Anonymous | reply 105 | September 28, 2019 10:23 PM |
[quote]The fact that this thread highlights her best known work--and something that's thirty years old...
...is admirable in that it's not only a timeless record and one of the most successful by a female dance pop artist, but it's even MORE relevant today than when it was released.
by Anonymous | reply 106 | September 28, 2019 10:24 PM |
No it isn't.
by Anonymous | reply 107 | September 29, 2019 12:03 AM |
[quote]She stared in a movie with Tupac.
What was she staring at?
by Anonymous | reply 108 | September 29, 2019 12:51 AM |
Is THIS the State Fair thing someone keeps referring to on here? If so, how on earth is Janet responsible?
by Anonymous | reply 109 | September 29, 2019 1:18 AM |
Nice try, Jabs. But you're not going to make anyone forget she bankrupted poor Iowa's fair.
by Anonymous | reply 110 | September 29, 2019 1:47 AM |
Not Jabba, you silly person. Oh, okay, this is what you're talking about...
Sounds like she was at the top of the list of Iowa State Fair performers that lost money. Yeah, that is pretty embarrassing.
by Anonymous | reply 111 | September 29, 2019 3:45 AM |
I've seen her in concert, R105. She can hit those notes. Using Wikipedia for research isn't wise, hon.
by Anonymous | reply 112 | September 29, 2019 1:13 PM |
^^No she cant't. Rebbie is a respectable singer, but those guttaral ad-libs heard in Centipede are from The Weathers Girls, most notably Wash. Wikipedia has nothing to do with it.
by Anonymous | reply 113 | September 29, 2019 4:53 PM |
[quote]No it isn't.
Let's see...
The themes running through the RN 1814 album consist of railing against social injustice, racism, homelessness, teen pregnancy, suicide, drugs, mass shootings, and the importance of getting an education. These are all topics that pretty much occupy the headlines on a daily basis these days. So, in essence, it IS.
by Anonymous | reply 114 | September 29, 2019 4:58 PM |
That Iowa State Fair thing is old, hackneyed and tired at this point, and is the only thing you trolls can muster in an attempt to prove an invalid point. That same year, she embarked on a highly successful Up Close and Personal theater tour - one that was so successful that it had to be extended for months just to meet demand, with multiple nights booked at several stops. Just because of bunch of po-dunk hicks from Iowa weren't ready for The Queen says absolutely nothing. She has spent the last few years packing arenas, amphitheaters and stadiums with her shows, and just finished a highly successful run in Vegas. And, her latest San Fran show at the Chase Center arena sold out the place.
by Anonymous | reply 115 | September 29, 2019 5:07 PM |
You must admit that bankrupting a state fair is hilarious!
by Anonymous | reply 116 | September 29, 2019 5:09 PM |
^So is falling down the stairs and on your ass during a live award show while performing a song that no one cares about, but who's counting?
by Anonymous | reply 117 | September 29, 2019 5:12 PM |
I mean just the fact, alone, that she is reduced to playing a state fair in between juggling clown acts and a rattlesnake show is gut busting comedy!
by Anonymous | reply 118 | September 29, 2019 5:18 PM |
Tampa is probably filled with red necks and Spainish music lovers. It's on the poorer side of Florida.
by Anonymous | reply 119 | September 29, 2019 5:20 PM |
She sold out in my city which calls itself a music capital.
by Anonymous | reply 120 | September 29, 2019 5:21 PM |
She sold out just a couple of weekends ago at the Chase Arena in San Francisco. It's the 30th anniversary celebration of Rhythm Nation. That's a landmark album for sure. Cute singer Charlie Puth stans her, and is always covering and sample the Rhythm Nation single Come Back to Me.
by Anonymous | reply 121 | September 29, 2019 5:25 PM |
Jabba's logic that career lows from ten years ago shouldn't be brought up while repeatedly bringing up career highs from THIRTY years ago, is hysterical.
by Anonymous | reply 122 | September 29, 2019 5:48 PM |
I loved this album much more than the white sounding Like A Prayer album. It's plainly clear why Madonnas music doesn't hold up and why she never had many black fans.
by Anonymous | reply 123 | September 29, 2019 5:59 PM |
When pondering the state of the world and its cruelties and many injustices, I turn to Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814 and dress like a reject from Chess King.
by Anonymous | reply 124 | September 29, 2019 8:21 PM |
What does Madonna have to do with any of this? Only in our sick fuck Jabba's mind.
BANKRUPT STATE FAIR
DENY FIRST CHILD
COVER FOR SEX CRIMINAL BROTHER
WHISPER COO
HAS BEEN
CONCERT TIX COMPED WITH ALL YOU CAN EAT BUFFET PURCHASE AT 29.50 PER HEAD.
by Anonymous | reply 125 | September 29, 2019 8:27 PM |
[quote]I lloved this album much more than the white sounding Like A Prayer album.
Same here. As the #1 selling US album of 1990, it sold more, won more awards and is much more relevant to today’s social issues too.
by Anonymous | reply 126 | September 30, 2019 12:39 AM |
Same here!
by Anonymous | reply 127 | September 30, 2019 12:49 AM |
R126, It was only in the US that Rhythm Nation outsold Like a Prayer. Elsewhere, especially Europe, Like a Prayer sold much more.
by Anonymous | reply 128 | September 30, 2019 12:53 AM |
Because some are allergic to facts:
Like a Prayer:
[quote]In the United States, Like a Prayer debuted at number 11 on the Billboard 200, on the issue dated April 8, 1989.[93] It quickly rose to the top of the chart after its third week, where it remained for six consecutive weeks, making it Madonna's longest-running number 1 album.[94][95] The album spent a total of 77 weeks on the chart.[93] The album also reached a peak of number 55 on Billboard's R&B Albums list.[96] It was eventually certified multi Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipments of three million units.[97] After the advent of the Nielsen SoundScan era in 1991, the album sold a further 575,000 copies.[98] Like a Prayer has sold over 4 million copies in the United States.[99]
Rhythm Nation:
[quote]The album debuted at number twenty-eight on the Billboard 200 and eighty-seven on Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, eventually reaching the number one position on both charts.[97] It topped the Billboard 200 for four consecutive weeks, selling three million copies within the first four months of its release.[9] It sold an additional 1.10 million through BMG Music Club.[98] In November 1989, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) certified the album gold.[99] It was certified double platinum by the end of the year and ultimately certified sixfold platinum by the RIAA.[99] It emerged as the best selling album of 1990 in the territory.[13]
And then we'll hear about how charts and sales don't matter and aren't a measure of anything.
by Anonymous | reply 129 | September 30, 2019 1:06 AM |
The choreography is actually pretty funny. Turn the music off and it's like a bunch of coke addicts having synchronized muscle twitches while dressed like elaborate mall security guards.
by Anonymous | reply 130 | September 30, 2019 1:35 AM |
Yeah, but R130, the choreography is so good it allows her to do the same exact choreography year in and year out.... for twenty years!
by Anonymous | reply 131 | September 30, 2019 1:55 AM |
Rhythmless Nation 2019
by Anonymous | reply 132 | September 30, 2019 3:36 AM |
Strike that, not twenty years.. 30 years!!!
by Anonymous | reply 133 | September 30, 2019 3:43 AM |
[quote]The choreography is actually pretty funny.
What choreography? You mean Madonna's clumsy white girl version of the running man or the Roger Rabbit? Bitch, you should be smacked for making such a stupidly asinine statement. The synchronized Rhythm Nation choreography is iconic from start to finish. Madonna (and any other dance pop diva then OR now) can only wish...
by Anonymous | reply 134 | September 30, 2019 3:52 AM |
Janet was even higher on the US concert box office draw that year than Madonna. In fact, she was the only female to place in the top ten. RN not only garnered more hits, more awards and set more records than Like A Prayer, it's just a better album all around. The trifecta of Janet/Jimmy Jam/Terry Lewis were unstoppable at that point. They created an entire damn sub-genre of pop/R&B with that album. From the interludes to the sound effects and the lush harmonies, everybody wanted that sound - even Michael, who wanted to hire JJ/TL for his follow up to Bad. Jimmy and Terry remained loyal to Janet and turned him down, so he hired Teddy Riley instead and still wasn't able to duplicate the mastery of RN 1814.
by Anonymous | reply 135 | September 30, 2019 3:58 AM |
Yassss, preach hunty! And thank you Jam and Lewis for writing all those songs for our girl!
by Anonymous | reply 136 | September 30, 2019 4:14 AM |
So certain numbers like sales, hits, and awards count to prove one artist is better than the other but say when... I don't know... overall career numbers are thrown out which clearly shows someone is way more successful than the other... they DON'T count, right?
Just trying to get the Jabba logic correct.
by Anonymous | reply 137 | September 30, 2019 4:22 AM |
[quote]They created an entire damn sub-genre of pop/R&B with that album.
Agree. They took the genre and blew the roof off it. Janet rode off the wave of this album for 3 years, that is pretty much unheard of today, especially when youre talking about female artists who relied on sex appeal so much back then. This album relied very little on that. Janet was covered up from head to toe for most of the album. That speaks volumes for how great her showmanship was and how good the music was.
by Anonymous | reply 138 | September 30, 2019 4:26 AM |
[quote]Janet rode off the wave of this album for 3 years
Paula did it first with Forever Your Girl.
by Anonymous | reply 139 | September 30, 2019 5:01 AM |
[quote]Janet rode off the wave of this album for 3 years
Paula did it first with Forever Your Girl.
by Anonymous | reply 140 | September 30, 2019 5:01 AM |
Honestly, she was seen as the female Michael Jackson.
by Anonymous | reply 141 | September 30, 2019 5:02 AM |
God, you're both so tiresome. I have to assume it's the same two of you endlessly yapping about Madonna and Janet as though -- gasp -- one couldn't like both of them. As though the success of one of them somehow negates the success of the other. It's so stale. Please. Just. Stop.
by Anonymous | reply 142 | September 30, 2019 5:34 AM |
Oh dear, it thinks it's fooling anyone.
by Anonymous | reply 143 | September 30, 2019 11:29 AM |
I think Jabba is one of those two banji girl drop outs who said that album saved them from a life of poverty.
by Anonymous | reply 144 | September 30, 2019 11:33 AM |
R135, Janet Jackson's tour did better because she had more shows. It's that simple.
by Anonymous | reply 145 | September 30, 2019 12:41 PM |
I love that Janet immediately went from singing about illiteracy, the homeless, and racism... right into singing about sucking dick... and never looked back!
by Anonymous | reply 146 | September 30, 2019 1:06 PM |
R146, that pretty much started on Rhythm Nation. Listen to "someday is tonight", especially the last minute or so.
by Anonymous | reply 147 | September 30, 2019 1:10 PM |
R145 yeah it was popular.
We are the world, all those AIDS benefit charity songs, save the world , rainforest Cafe, fern gully, heal the world, then wtf, wt actual f, it's like caring went out of style. Fucks.
I mean no wonder people think climate change is a fad like y2k and aren't willing to do anything about. To Greta they're like "look here sweetie, you ain't no scientist and I've been on the planet larger, and you are just caught up in some FAD. I've seen these dad's come and go. Princess Diana hugging AIDS folks and now it ain't even a thing no more, so I ain't listening to you tell me about the tornadoes a comin". Puh lease"
by Anonymous | reply 148 | September 30, 2019 5:35 PM |
R148, I think people care...until they get to an age where they feel like all attempts at "change" or "corruption reduction" are pointless. We are living in Chinatown I guess.
by Anonymous | reply 149 | September 30, 2019 5:39 PM |
[quote]Honestly, she was seen as the female Michael Jackson.
Was she touching children too?
by Anonymous | reply 150 | September 30, 2019 6:40 PM |
People don’t make concept albums with messages that make you think anymore. It’s amazing how vapid ALL mainstream music is today.
by Anonymous | reply 151 | September 30, 2019 7:30 PM |
[quote] Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis' Rhythm Nation 1814
Fixed that for you, Jabba.
Janet was nothing more than a hired hand. The same album could have been made with Jody Watley.
Except the vocals would have been better.
by Anonymous | reply 152 | September 30, 2019 7:39 PM |
[quote]People don’t make concept albums with messages that make you think anymore. It’s amazing how vapid ALL mainstream music is today.
SO true.
by Anonymous | reply 153 | September 30, 2019 9:27 PM |
Jody Watley always looked like a crack whore. She had no it factor.
by Anonymous | reply 154 | October 1, 2019 1:01 AM |
R107, yes it is. It's dystopian vision has sadly become increasingly relevant - on such matters as race relations (rising white nationalism), drugs (opiod epidemic), mass shootings. The most depressing is on those shootings, particularly school shootings, which is prescient given it came out a decade before Columbine. 30 years before Madonna released "God Control" on the same topic. 30 years later, it has only gotten worse. Listen and weep.
by Anonymous | reply 155 | October 1, 2019 1:48 AM |
Rythm Nation is pinnacle Janet Vogue is pinnacle Madonna
I can nospell rythym
by Anonymous | reply 156 | October 1, 2019 2:08 AM |
I heard "Let's Wait Awhile" was really about Janet not wanting the old chicken at KFC and holding out until they fried a new batch, even though her hunger pains were something fierce!
by Anonymous | reply 157 | October 1, 2019 2:28 AM |
Ooooh, a KFC joke as original as their recipe.
by Anonymous | reply 158 | October 1, 2019 3:34 AM |
Jam and Lewis will be releasing an album soon. Janet, Mariah, and other features.
by Anonymous | reply 159 | October 1, 2019 3:42 AM |
[quote] Ooooh, a KFC joke as original as their recipe.
Yeah, as original as Janet's dance moves, look and sound she stole from Michael.
by Anonymous | reply 160 | October 1, 2019 3:44 AM |
R157, hilarious!
Does she prefer original or extra crispy?
by Anonymous | reply 161 | October 1, 2019 3:50 AM |
[quote] Does she prefer original or extra crispy?
Yes.
by Anonymous | reply 162 | October 1, 2019 4:02 AM |
lol at R162.
by Anonymous | reply 163 | October 1, 2019 4:22 AM |
R155, that song always brings me to tears. I remember after Sandy Hook how various YouTube tributes were made set to Livin’ in a World... This is one of them...
by Anonymous | reply 164 | October 1, 2019 10:36 AM |
Hilarious, R164.
by Anonymous | reply 165 | October 1, 2019 10:46 AM |
Living in a World is a great example of why Janet should stick to love songs. It's sentimental, embarrassing "will someone PLEASE think of the children!!!" message music. The Knowledge is really the only political song on the album that works.
by Anonymous | reply 166 | October 1, 2019 12:27 PM |
Rhythm Nation works, too. It’s a call to arms. An anthem for justice.
by Anonymous | reply 167 | October 1, 2019 5:51 PM |
R167, yes, you're right The Knowledge plus Rhythm nation are the two political songs on the album that work.
by Anonymous | reply 168 | October 1, 2019 5:53 PM |
I love her Baja Fresh jingle.
by Anonymous | reply 169 | October 1, 2019 5:54 PM |
^Is it as good as Madonna’s Depends ad?
by Anonymous | reply 170 | October 1, 2019 5:56 PM |
Jump, Jabba. JUMP!
by Anonymous | reply 171 | October 1, 2019 6:02 PM |
I wish she'd remake those Baja Fresh commercials. It would go viral these days.
by Anonymous | reply 172 | October 1, 2019 6:07 PM |
I agree.
by Anonymous | reply 173 | October 1, 2019 8:40 PM |
She should quit music and go back into acting.
by Anonymous | reply 175 | October 2, 2019 12:51 AM |