JANET. “THIS IS MY STORY”

Janet Jackson's DIY Doc Coming in January

Cover and Above Image: Janet Jackson

BY: India McCarty

A two-hour documentary about pop superstar Janet Jackson is set to premiere in January next year. The four-hour, two-night doc will air simultaneously on Lifetime and A&E.

The movie offers an in-depth look into Jackson’s private life. She and brother Randy are executive producers for the project, so everything revealed comes straight from the popstar herself.

“This is my story told by me,” Jackson said in a trailer for the doc. “Not through someone else’s eyes.”

Fans have been waiting for an inside look at Jackson’s career for years. The 10th and youngest Jackson sibling, Janet has been in the spotlight for years, showing up in TV shows, movies, and on the charts.

Jackson appeared on shows like Good Times, Diff’rent Strokes, Fame, and The Love Boat and put out albums in the 80s, but didn’t reach global recognition until her 1986 album Control.

Jackson has become a household name, praised by critics for her incredible dancing ability as well as her vocals. She’s garnered 41 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, with 10 of those tracks hitting #1. Seven of her albums have topped the Billboard 200.

This isn’t the only documentary about the superstar these days. The New York Times followed up their critically and commercially acclaimed investigative doc about Britney Spears with one on the “Rhythm Nation” singer’s infamous Super Bowl halftime show.

After a wardrobe malfunction exposed Jackson’s nipple, the singer was blacklisted by many networks and radio stations and was vilified by the public. Even though Justin Timberlake, who had joined her onstage for the performance, was the one who ripped her top, he faced none of the outrage that Jackson did.

In recent years, the tide has turned in favor of Jackson, and a Free Janet movement is on! These docs all reflect that. Fans are excited to see another side of the star-one that sees her not as a punchline for nip-slip jokes, but as the supremely talented performer and trailblazing artist she has always been.