Is Janet's Nakedness Gonna Make You Cop That Album?

Janet...


I’ve been in a lot of bookstores over the past 6 weeks. And I’ve seen a lot of almost naked pictures of Janet Jackson. I’ve seen the cover with the white stripe over her boobs. I’ve seen the cover where she’s squeezing a breast. I’ve seen at least 2 midriff baring covers, one with the cutesy “JD’s” belly ring even. I’ve been around for a minute so I know that Janet has not always bared this much when promoting an album. She’s literally taking her clothes off for this one. I’m not here to say she should dress like an old school marm or Jenna Jameson, I’m here because I wonder how much these photos are impacting YOUR LIKELIHOOD of COPPING that album. I want to know if all of these pictures has you itching to go to the local music store, or wherever you purchase your online music. Does it?

I was a Janet Jackson fan before all the pictures. I’m probably still one underneath my disappointment with all the photos. One photo, okay. Two photos, okay. But now when I go to the store with my daughter, the image is that Janet Jackson isn’t a music talent, she’s a woman who likes to be pictured practically nude on a BUNCH of magazine covers. Hey, it is what it is. My daughter hasn’t been around 20 years.

I’m sure the music industry engine has revved up this “Almost Naked” Janet Jackson campaign in hopes that it’s gonna make US so ready to buy the album on the day it drops. Problem is: A beautiful body doesn’t make you forget some lackluster tracks. Have you heard the first two tracks that they’ve released to the public? The whisper song with Nelly? Come on, that record sounds old as hell. Even the second song, the one with JD in the video, I’m not feeling it. I’m not feeling the songs so much, I can’t even remember the song names. And, I’m a music lover. Does some marketing genius think that photos are more important than the music? If so, they need to produce a Janet Jackson calendar and not an album.

Y’all know that I love music and so as painful as it is for me to feel that Janet Jackson’s new album isn’t going to be hot, I feel overwhelmed to say so. An artist of Janet’s caliber doesn’t have to reduce herself to boobs and azz on a ton of magazine covers in order for us to notice her. Her talent is what made us love her in the first place. In 20 years, has Janet forgotten that? Has Virgin Music forgotten that?

In closing, I want to say, that I hope I’m wrong about Janet’s music. I hope that she has some headbangers on the new album; something that will make me nod my head like “Son of A Gun,” something that will excite me like “Got “Til It’s Gone.” I’m standing by the radio and searching the internet waiting to hear that Janet Jackson headbanger from the new album. And, I truly, deeply, hope that it’s coming.

And I still want to know if all the photos got ya’ll running to the store to cop the album or are ya’ll like me waiting for some new hot music from Janet. Let me know. And, if some of you internet junkies got some hot singles that I haven’t heard, please email me!