Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter and
actress. Janet Jackson was born in Gary, Indiana, the youngest of ten children, to
Katherine Esther and Joseph Walter Jackson. The Jacksons were lower-middle class
and devout Jehovah's Witnesses; Jackson stated that although she was raised as a
Jehovah's Witness, she eventually stopped practicing organized religion and views her
relationship with God as "one-on-one". By the time Jackson was a toddler, her older
brothersJackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon and Michaelwere performing music at
nightclubs and theaters as The Jackson 5. In March 1969, the group signed a record deal
with Motown, and by the end of the year they had recorded the first of four consecutive
number one singles. The Jackson 5's success allowed the family to move to the Encino
neighborhood of Los Angeles in 1971, where they settled in a gated mansion called
Hayvenhurst. Although born into a family of professional musicians, Jackson, whose
love of horses resulted in a desire to become a race-horse jockey, had no aspiration to
become an entertainer. Despite this, her father planned for her to pursue a career in
entertainment. She once commented, "No one ever asked me if I wanted to go into show
business ... it was expected."
In 1973, at the age of seven, Jackson appeared on stage in Las Vegas Strip with her
siblings in a routine show at the MGM Casino. Jane Cornwell documented in her
biography of the singer, Janet Jackson (2002), that at age eight, her father Joseph told
her not to call him "Dad" anymore since he was her manager; he told her she would
henceforth address him as "Joseph". She began her career as an actress with the debut
of the CBS variety show The Jacksons (1976), in which she appeared with her siblings
Tito, Rebbie, Randy, Michael, Marlon, La Toya and Jackie. In 1977, she was selected by
producer Norman Lear to play a recurring role as Penny Gordon Woods in the sitcom
Good Times. From 1979 to 1980, she starred in A New Kind of Family as Jojo Ashton, and
then joined the cast of Diff'rent Strokes, portraying Charlene Duprey from 1981 to 1982.
She played a recurring role during the fourth season of the television series Fame as
Cleo Hewitt, though she later commented that the series was not a project she enjoyed
working on.
Although Jackson was initially apprehensive about starting a music career, she
agreed to participate in recording sessions with her family. The first of these, a duet with
her brother Randy titled "Love Song for Kids", took place in 1978. When she was
sixteen, her father arranged a contract for her with A&M Records. Her debut album,
Janet Jackson, produced by soul singers Angela Winbush, Ren Moore and Leon F.
Sylvers III, was released in 1982, the entire production of which was overseen by her
father Joseph. It peaked at number six on the Billboard Hot R&B albums chart.
Jackson's second album, Dream Street, was released two years later. Her father
recruited her brothers to help produce the album: Marlon co-wrote two of the album's
tracks, while Tito, Jackie and Michael provided background vocals. Dream Street
reached number nineteen on the R&B albums chart; its sales were less than that of her
debut album. The album's only hit, "Don't Stand Another Chance", peaked at number
nine on Billboard's R&B singles chart. In late 1984, Jackson eloped with childhood
friend and fellow R&B singer James DeBarge. They divorced shortly afterwards, and
the marriage was annulled in mid-1985. In 1985 Jackson joined her sister, La Toya, as a
chorist under La Toya's number "Baby Sister" at the Yamaha Music Festival where
they ended up with a silver medallion and an "Outstanding Song Award".
Janet Jackson discography
Janet Jackson (1982)
Dream Street (1984)
Control (1986)
Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814 (1989)
janet. (1993)
The Velvet Rope (1997)
All for You (2001)
Damita Jo (2004)
20 Y.O. (2006)
Discipline (2008)
Television
The Jacksons (197677)
Good Times (197779)
A New Kind of Family (197980)
Diff'rent Strokes (198084)
Fame (198485)
Film
Poetic Justice (1993)
Nutty Professor II: The Klumps (2000)
Why Did I Get Married? (2007)
Why Did I Get Married Too? (2010)
For Colored Girls (2010)
Tours
Rhythm Nation World Tour (1990)
Janet World Tour (199395)
The Velvet Rope World Tour (199899)
All for You Tour (200102)
Rock Witchu Tour (2008)
Number Ones: Up Close and Personal (2011)
Books
True You: A Journey to Finding and Loving Yourself (2011)
