wayneashleymusic

I have tickets to the show I'll let y'all know once I get official word of anything. 

The shelter population changes quickly, especially now that FEMA has stepped in to move people to area hotel rooms. I'm finally back in my place (thank the LAWD) and had minimal damage... just couldn't get here for days due to so many blocked roads. 

I have tix for both Lafayette and Houston, and all reports from Lafayette are good. So like everything in my life at this moment, I'm taking it one day / show at a time. It'll be out of Janet's Control if the show is cancelled... that's entirely up to the Mayor and Toyota Center. 

Catchy?  Yes.  But it feels reductive from her last album/ era, especially if this is supposed to be the lead single.  

But I'm sure the video will be cray cray

Me too... praying for everyone's safety, smart decisions and for a lack of major damage.  

And seriously HOPING the show schedule is not affected!!  

LOL wondering if I'll be sitting close enough to get hit with a cane now!!!  

Album covers... Janet's RN + Prince's Controversy =  

#JusSayin

Michael K. Williams' interview with Vanity Fair... 

https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2017/08/michael-k-williams-emmy-interview 

“From some of the characters I play now, you’d probably think I was about The Godfather [growing up],” Williams says. “But the movies that inspired me early on were weird—like Saturday Night Fever, Purple Rain, and Grease. I like musicals.”

In that case, it makes sense that Williams’s artistic awakening came courtesy of Janet Jackson.

In 1989, while in his early 20s, Williams had seemingly righted his career path. He had gotten the drug addiction that derailed his teens under control, and had a stable job managing blueprints for Pfizer Pharmaceuticals. Then he saw the music video for Jackson’s “Rhythm Nation.”

“My spirit was stirred by the visual images that were shown . . . different people, some tall, some short, male, female, light-skinned, dark-skinned,” Williams told NPR last year. “It wasn’t just everybody was pretty with perfect teeth. You saw some jagged edges . . . and when they all came together, they moved like one.”

“The message of the song—about getting rid of color lines, not judging—I just identified with it across the board, and I was like, ‘I want to become a Janet Jackson background dancer,’” Williams has said. “‘I think she will understand me.’”

Les Twins on World of Dance (Scream)...  

Calling I Want You an "iconic 2000s Kanye sound"...  umm, that song is 100% Doo Wop.  Kanye didn't invent Doo Wop... it's been around since the 1950s. And the lyrics are ok... nothing profound, but they get the job done. To be clear I love the track... It's my 2nd favorite on Damita Jo, but let's not make it something more than it is.  

But Unbreakable as a track or an album is a whole level above I Want You... end of story.   

I can't your shade seriously anymore.   Whatever your opinion of Jimmy and Terry, we can rest easy with The Knowledge that the collaborators you speak of have shot your assertions down... 

17:30-- "I model myself off of [Jimmy and Terry].... I'm a super Jimmy and Terry fan as musicians.  I've studied their chords, I try to study everything about them."  

Yes... 

This was 2004, remember?  The biggest hit of the year was Usher and Lil John's Yeah! with other chart-toppers being Ciara's Goodies and Terror Squad's Lean Back.  Other "R&B standouts from that year??  Milkshake by Kelis, Freek-a-Leak Petey Pablo and every other Lil John assist you can remember.  A song like All Nite or Island Life could've been massive at the time, barring other factors. If you're hoping for complex vocals, high end production quality or R&B with a world message to top charts, it wasn't gonna happen in 2004.  

IMO the key point here is standards.  Jimmy, Terry and Janet set a standard together with Control, and regardless of which you may think is the best of the following albums, I think we can all agree that that standard was met on RN1814, Janet, TVR and AFY.  This is Janet Jackson we're talking about here, so virtually any project she does is going to have highlights because she's an incredible artist.  I too actually like Damita Jo as well, but it didn't hit the standard of the Big 5, and that would've been true whether it was a smash hit or not.  Once an artist gets to a certain level, people are going to invest in them (at least USED to) regardless of whether or not their latest project lives up to their previous work. Damita Jo had enough songs to be a smash hit, and then it also had a lot of stuff that just didn't need to be on the album.  

I'm a teeny bit annoyed that I bought my tickets before knowing about the Groupon deals.  but at the end of the day, the most important thing to me is that these shows are successful.  Seems like a smart decision to have shored up the under-performing cities so Janet and her crew don't have to worry about performing to empty venues, and the bad press which would result.  

Since I sprung for floor seats, the Groupon wouldn't have saved me much anyway.  

Wow that was amazing!!!!  

I do.... Got floor seats for Houston and Lafayette, along with the Hospitality packages.  Seriously can't wait.  

And BTW The Magic Is Working!!  Just checked Little Rock again and you can already tell the impact of the Groupon deals!!!  Gonna see if I can recruit some friends to go to that show with me.  

For those asserting that Jimmy and Terry are completely unconnected to the contemporary music scene.  

Haha if you're serious, I have a comfy couch and good shower.  

Ok so they've made some interesting ticket sales moves.  I did a screenshot of Little Rock about 6 weeks back back, and 2 things have changed...  

1) They closed off the top tier seats (reducing capacity from 12,000 to about 8,000)

2) Sales have improved!!  Of the 8,000 capacity, it looks like 60 percent have sold.  

And of course that's without much impact from the ET article, and anything else Janet's team may have up their sleeves.  

Yes I keep seeing that also.  It seems to be helping.  

Hindsight is 20/20... no wonder they weren't paying much attention during Unbreakable.  Janet had so much else going on!!  Very glad to see that appears to be changing in this era.  

I typed in few locations in the Groupon search bar.  Here's Little Rock... 

https://www.groupon.com/deals/gl-janet-jackson-23 

And Chicago... 

https://www.groupon.com/deals/gl-janet-jackson-15 

Nothing came up when I put in "janet jackson anaheim" or atlanta, so it's probably just the ones where sales have been under.  

UGH really hoping sales pick up in Texas!!!  

No it appears to be for multiple shows, but it may have sent me to that one since I'm local to the show site.  

YES!!!!  

Has anyone else seen these?  Incredible deals for some State Of The World tickets... 

https://www.groupon.com/deals/gl-janet-jackson-1 

I get that you're sayin' stuff, but have thus far been unable to articulate your point.  

Yeah I LOVED her hair in the Unbreakable era.  Would be super happy with it and just some color adjustment.  

One thing for the live tour... with everyone wearing black during Unbreakable, the hair made Janet easy to spot.  

This hairstyle was EPIC... 

Ok officially SHOOK!!  I mean Gil went IN about Janet's "post-baby body", and most importantly, it sounds like she's done it all in a healthy way.  

TBH I HATE the painstaking focus that the media puts on female entertainers' bodies, and the way that the pop culture elite tries so hard to shut down women of a certain age.  Madonna ain't right about everything, but she sure as hell is right to use her platform and call out blatant ageism and misogyny.  I am a fan of Janet because she is a legendary artist, and for the incredible work that she has done over her career, and (hopefully) more to come.  I support her and know that she is a beautiful person at any age and any size, for her beauty comes from within.  

All of that to say, I know Janet loves to "change it up" and I can't wait to see what she brings vocally, musically, visually and kinetically in this next era.  

Watchin' em all go DAAAAAMMMMMN!!