Thursday, 07 February 2008

I get to the Janet Jackson listening party late because in this industry NOTHING starts on time despite the email saying it will start 'promptly' at 6. Yeh right! When I drive by the venue, I see a line that stretches down the block and immediately knew I was NOT gonna stand in line and why should I? I'm BIG CED dammit!

When I do get to the front, someone shouted out my name. Great, now I know I am not getting on the back of the line as I walk in with them! As I walk in, the first thing I noticed were the lovely, attractive women wearing all black, stiletto boots and holding little whips. Wow! My little masochistic fantasies may just come to life tonight. Oh wait, I mean, I then remembered the name of the album is Discipline, so the theme fit perfectly!

After heading downstairs and speaking to my industry peoples, smiling at people who call out BIG CED (and NOT knowing who the hell they are!) And shaking hands, kissing the attractive ladies (gotta kiss some ugly ones too you know) and making my way to the open bar (Grey Goose on the rocks please!) While bypassing the little hamburgers, buffalo shrimp, chicken wings, etc., waiting for the Island Def Jam people to let us know when we can enter the 'auditorium' to hear Janet's (Miss Jackson if you're nasty!) latest project. Of course, I am ogling at the various women hired to divert my attention from the 'industry' people I have grown sick of seeing (oops, did I actually write that?). I was actually bored and ready to leave because I am jaded and realize that the only difference between this listening and all the others I have attended is the women in black holding their little whips making me think things I shouldn't be thinking at the time I was thinking them.....

Oh, but I digress! As L.A. Reid (Does Janet like surrounding herself with short men? What's up, Jermaine Dupri!) makes his way to the stage, it's time for the listening to start! Now, because I was getting my Grey Goose on, I got inside the theater after a majority of people had entered so I had to settle in the second row right in front of the massive speaker with the heavy bass and it was not a pleasant place to be because I am now deaf! Thanks, Def Jam! I will be sending the doctor's bill pronto!

Ok, let's get to the music. Now, let me tell you that I have been a fan of Janet Jackson since she was Penny on Good Times getting burned by irons from Tootie's (That's Kim Fields from The Facts of Life) moms.

So naturally I'm drawn to anything Janet does. In fact, a couple of my favorite ballads include Let's Wait Awhile, Someday Is Tonight, Any Time, Any Place, etc. So I am always ready to hear her next great ballad. Anyway, she has definitely returned to her dance roots as I listen to the tracks, I am somewhat impressed because, truthfully, lately, musically, Janet hasn't done it for me but this definitely brings me back to the Control/Rhythmn Nation days as far as the intensity of the tracks.

I would have been SOOOOOO mad if I heard any T-Pain sounding songs on this album, but I am glad that this album has MUSIC on it as opposed to past hits that can be sampled to become a current hit. Oh yeh, only one guest appearance by Missy Elliot. Impressive in this age of getting every hot artist on your track to make you seem current!

I definitely think this is Janet's best album in arguably 10 years! There was not one bad song played while we were there and save for the brief stage appearance by Janet, looking great in her getup, accentuated with her stiletto boots (Fellas, that ass is BACK!!!! Whatever she has been doing in recent months has brought back that famous ass of hers from her youth that she has been trying to hide from the public view. IT HIDES NO MORE!!!) and coupled with the hired girls that walked around New World Stages in New York, I was definitely a happy camper and will predict that with the right promotion, Janet will be in Control of the charts again!