Biography of Janet JacksonJanet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, actress, songwriter, record producer, dancer, activist, and pop icon.
Jackson is ranked as the second most successful female recording artist of all time, according to Billboard, and the ninth most successful act in the history of rock and roll. Guinness World Records lists her as the world's most searched-for person in Internet history. Her recent film Why Did I Get Married? became her third consecutive film to open at number one at the box office, following Poetic Justice (1993) and Nutty Professor II: The Klumps (2000).
From 1986 to 2006, Jackson has scored ten number-one singles on the Billboard Hot 100 and fifteen number-one singles on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. She is also the second musician with the largest amount of number ones on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play (the first being Madonna), with seventeen dance chart-toppers in total. In addition to her commercial accomplishments, Jackson has won five Grammy Awards, received a nomination at the 66th Academy Awards, received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1990, and was honored with the first "mtvICON" tribute from MTV in 2001.
Janet Jackson was born in Gary, Indiana, daughter of Katherine Esther (née Scruse) and Joseph Walter Jackson. She is the youngest of ten children. The family was of lower-middle-class and devout Jehovah's Witnesses. By the time she was a toddler, Janet's older brothers: Jackie, Tito, Jermaine, Marlon, and Michael had already begun to perform on stage at nightclubs and theaters as the Jackson 5. In March 1969, the group had a record deal with Motown Records, and by the end of the year the group recorded the first of their four consecutive number-one singles. The Jackson 5's success allowed the entire family to move to the Encino neighborhood of Los Angeles, California in 1971. The Jacksons settled in a gated mansion that they referred to as "Hayvenhurst."
As a young child, Janet's career aspiration was to be a jockey. However, after the Jackson 5's success began to diminish, Joseph decided to bring the rest of the children into the act. On April 9, 1974, Janet made her debut performance at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, alongside her eight older siblings. Janet quickly became a standout in the show, winning over crowds and critics with impersonations of Cher, Marie Osmond, Toni Tennille and Mae West.
In 1976, the Jackson family's Vegas act had caught the attention of CBS president Fred Silverman. The network was desperately trying to find a new variety act to replace its recently defunct The Sonny & Cher Show. Debuting on June 16, 1976, The Jacksons became the first television variety show starring an African-American family. The series lasted two seasons. As the 1980s began, Janet continued her career in television, in the sitcoms: Good Times, A New Kind of Family and Diff'rent Strokes, as well as the primetime drama Fame.
While initially having apprehensions about starting a music career, she did agree to participate in recording sessions with her family. Her first recording was a duet with brother Randy on a song titled "Love Song for Kids" in 1978. When Janet was fifteen, Joe launched her recording career by arranging a contract with A&M Records. Her debut album Janet Jackson was released in 1982. Produced by soul singers Angela Winbush, René Moore and noted producer Leon F. Sylvers III (who had previously worked with the The Whispers, Lakeside, Shalamar, Dynasty) of the famed Sylvers family music group, the album reached the top ten on the Billboard R&B albums chart, spent 45 weeks in that chart's top 50, but had limited success on the Pop albums chart. The album yielded three singles: "Young Love," "Say You Do" and "Come Give Your Love to Me", each achieving moderate success on the R&B chart though not becoming pop hits. The Janet Jackson album sold just over 300,000 copies in the U.S. at its time of release and has currently about one million copies worldwide.
In 1984, Jackson's second album, Dream Street was released. It marked a musical progression from her debut, with more up-tempo productions by her brother Marlon Jackson and famed disco producer Giorgio Moroder (who produced songs for artists such as Donna Summer and Irene Cara). The album managed to peak at number nineteen on the R&B albums chart, however, sales of Dream Street were less than that of Jackson's debut album; selling about 250,000 units in the U.S. at its time of release. Current sales are just under one million world wide. Music critics at the time largely dismissed Janet as simply another sibling from the Jackson family assembly line. They may have been correct, at the time, as she'd later admitted that her heart wasn't into music then, she had a greater preference toward acting. These first two albums would largely be forgotten in the coming years.
In 1984, at age eighteen, Jackson eloped with James DeBarge, a member of the singing group DeBarge. News of the couple's nuptials was reported on Entertainment Tonight. Jackson would later admit that the marriage was not a good one, and that the family—particularly Joe—disapproved of the union. Jackson was granted an annulment in March 1985. There have been allegations made by DeBarge's brother that Jackson and DeBarge produced a daughter who was born shortly after their breakup and lived with her aunt Rebbie Jackson. Jackson has refuted these rumors. Which are completely untrue due to her work load, she did however get pregnant and was forced to have an abortion by her father to keep her image clean and young, a true statement that Janet doesn't speak about but there are in fact pictures of Jackson leaving an abortion clinic in 1985 and Jackson is very teary-eyed and sad. James was by her side the whole time, it was just before their split.
In 1991, Jackson and long-time lover/business partner René Elizondo Jr., were secretly married in a private ceremony. Hoping to avoid public scrutiny, the two sought to keep their marriage a closely guarded secret, while continuing to present themselves as simply live-in lovers in the eye of the media. As the decade drew to a close, both Jackson and Elizondo admitted that they had become more business partners than a couple. In 1999, the two ended their eight-year marriage. The public only found out about the marriage as the two were going through a divorce. In 2001, Rene Elizondo sued Jackson for $25 million.[35] Their court battle ended in 2003 with the divorce finalized and Elizondo being awarded about half the amount he sued for.
Since 2001, Janet has been involved with hip hop producer Jermaine Dupri. In the time that they've been together, there have been numerous rumors that the two have married, though they have consistently denied these reports although she admits that the two do live together. Dupri appeared in Janet's videos for "Someone to Call My Lover" and "I Want You," while Janet returned the favor by appearing in Dupri's video for his 2005 single, "Gotta Getcha".
In 2006, Jackson had gained 60 pounds. She went on a controversial *[Celebritydietsonline.com] diet to lose all the weight in 4 months. Her family was not surprised by the weight gain or the rapid loss, Jackson has been a yo-yo weight gainer her whole life. During the promotion of her 20 Y.O. album when she was on the Oprah show, she had admitted that she wanted to have children eventually. Oprah Winfrey immediately replied, "...well I guess it should happen soon..." with a concerned tone, since Janet had turned 40 years old at that time.
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