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Saturday, October 25, 2008 "you're not recording this, are you?" for a full year prior to Bruce McCoy inviting me to the Janet Jackson concert, i had been on a huge Janet kick... and by huge Janet kick i mean, playing her music everyday and even revisiting her older album cuts. i've always enjoyed her music, but not in the feverish way i've been obsessing over it this past year.  what's emerged from my intense study of her catalog is a greater respect for her as a musician and songwriter. the melodies, the vocal pads & layering, the tone & sweetness of her voice are all qualities that she brings consistently. even on her latest album "Discipline", on which she didn't write any of the songs, she delivers a solid pop masterpiece. yes, i said masterpiece. don't believe the critics. pop music doesn't get much better than this. her low record sales are due to an ever dwindling demographic who participates in the music buying experience. people between the ages of 11 and 29 buy music. the average age at the concert was 35.  as my admiration for her as a musician grew, i had simultaneously become disenchanted with her public persona and her wimpy handling of "nipplegate". i was disappointed that she hadn't taken the opportunity to publicly let the FCC have it when it came to our culture's double standard over sexuality and violence. whether she planned to expose her breast on the live Super Bowl broadcast or not, the critical beating she took in it's wake was very telling and uncalled for. when Madonna was extremely criticized for "crossing the line" in her photo book "Sex", she went on the live news program "Nightline" to eloquently set the record straight. in doing so, she educated a whole generation about feminism, gender double standards, and the "free pass" our society has given to violent images. in my opinion, it was her most shining moment.  Janet may have missed the opportunity to become a feminist role model, but she sure let the children have it at the Staples Center September 17th. hit after hit, she was in fine form! that show had to have been over 90 minutes. it was really, truly amazing. i'm still reeling from it over a month later. it was the kind of concert where you stand and dance the whole time. Bruce had awesome floor seats, 7 rows from the stage. when Bruce, John, Tom & i floated out of there, we all felt as if we were officially part of The Rhythm Nation. | Permalink 2009 RuCo, Inc.—All Rights Reserved |
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