POP!'s Top 63 JANET JACKSON Songs

I'm so delighted to see that Khia's moved on with her life. Her unwillingness and lack of interest in dredging up her contribution to Janet's most lacklustre album is nothing short of commendable, especially given how busy she must be with her own recording career.
 
why has this bitch been so bitter about this sorry excuse of a SONG, let alone a SINGLE by Miss Janft? It's not like her verses were life-altering or added much to the track anyway and it flopped in the end, does she want some royalties?

Is YA
Is YA HUNGRAY
I've got ya I got ya, I got ya
licking on my body ody ody like it's something to EAT (Something to EAT)
So you can
Act bad
Don't hurt me
Look sexy
Get me So EXcited

I mean, neither Megan nor Cardi should be shaking!
 
Pipo said:
why has this bitch been so bitter about this sorry excuse of a SONG, let alone a SINGLE by Miss Janft? It's not like her verses were life-altering or added much to the track anyway and it flopped in the end, does she want some royalties?

Is YA
Is YA HUNGRAY
I've got ya I got ya, I got ya
licking on my body ody ody like it's something to EAT (Something to EAT)
So you can
Act bad
Don't hurt me
Look sexy
Get me So EXcited

I mean, neither Megan nor Cardi should be shaking!
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Because that couplet is more iconic than Megan & Cardi's entire careers.
 
It was her big moment and Janet was hating by obscuring her on the TV in the video — because Khia caught Jermaine's eye :o
 
POP! said:
Three tracks from the SAME ALBUM are about to get cut :o

love and hip hop #lhhny GIF by VH1
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You have to put me out of misery pronto, not sleeping well thinking they could be from RN or janet :cautious:
 
51. "Son of a Gun (I Betcha Think This Song is About You)"
All for You (2001)
US #28, UK #13

I'd rather keep the trash and throw you out
Stupid bitch in my beach house



This is probably the most bizarre single in Janet's discography when I think about it, and marked the beginning of the end of her commercial dominance. The sampling is classic Janet, but Carly Simon's spoken word rap against Janet's whispering is all a bit odd. For all of its flaws, I always enjoyed it. She could have easily released "Come on Get Up" and had a bigger hit, but after three consecutive upbeat frothy pop hits, this moved her in a darker and hip hop direction with Missy featuring on the radio remix. This had all the ingredients of a great early 00s novelty hit, but for some reason it didn't connect and it became Janet's first song to miss the Hot 100 top 20 since 1983.

50. "Feels so Right"
All for You (2001)

Please don't pull away from me...



This is such a laidback JAM. The relaxed synth-pop aesthetic combined with the dreamy chorus is such a vibe. I can barely make out what she's singing for half of it (per usual), but she doesn't need to do or say much to carry this. One of the many underrated bops on All for You.


49. "Doesn't Really Matter"
All for You (2001) / Nutty Professor II: The Klumps Soundtrack (2000)
US #1, UK #5

Doesn't really matter what the eye is seeing
Cause I'm in love with the inner being



"Doesn't Really Matter" felt like the first time Janet attempted to update her sound to appeal to a younger audience, which is probably why it doesn't seem to be her most appreciated hit these days. It was definitely a pre-cursor of the more lightweight pop energy that would predominate All for You. However, there are trademark Janet flourishes, like the "rock mix" breakdown that transforms into a far east inspired instrumental break. Those layers, twists and turns, are what saves this from being a generic turn-of-the-century bubblegum hit that could have been released by Vitamin C or Samantha Mumba. It turned out to be one of her biggest hits spending three weeks at #1 in the US (it was dethroned by Madonna's "Music"). However, the video, which apparently cost $2.5 million(!), is kind of an eyesore these days.
 
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Doesn't really matter didn't age as well as some of other big hits, it doesn't say "classic" to me. Still good tho.
 
48. "Control"
Control (1986)
US #5, UK #42

It's all about control
And I've got lots of it...



This was obviously the mission statement / statement of intent from the album of the same name. The autobiographical lyrics set the tone to what the album would become, and Janet would fire her father Joe shortly before releasing it. The song is built around frenetic rhythmic beats with plenty of ad-libbing. It's more freestyle than some of the other hits off the album but that's part of its charm. I also just learned that this is sampled in Kylie's "Too Much of a Good Thing" :o how fabulous.


47. "Again"
janet. (1993)
US #1, UK #6

I've come too close to happiness
To have it swept away



She may have never had a UK #1 but she's an Academy Award nominated songwriter with "Again". It's one of the best piano ballads she's given us, and would probably be higher had she been able to deliver a better vocal. But she does give a quite emotive delivery, and the tearful climax of "Don't you stand there and then tell me you love me..." is a standout moment, vocal imperfections aside. It was another multi week #1 for her in America, and was the theme to Poetic Justice. It has endured quite well, and was heavily sampled in the (admittedly awful) 2010 Iyaz hit "Solo".


46. "Black Cat" (1989)
Rhythm Nation
US #1, UK #15

Better watch your step
Or you're gonna die



This was Janet's first foray into an edgier more guitar driven sound that she would continue to flirt with throughout her career. "Black Cat" became the sixth top five hit off Rhythm Nation, third #1 from the album, and was performed at the 1990 MTV Video Music Awards. It may not have been as memorable as Madge's "Vogue" performance that evening, but it showcased the buddings of Janet's electric on stage persona and sexuality as she exposed her bra mid-way the perf. Britney Spears would cover it (live :o ) on her Baby One More Time Tour in 1999.
 
OMG I don't know what's worse, Son of A Gun missing the TOP 50 or Son Of A Gun being below Doesn't Really Matter

:tableflip:
 
Control gone as well. I mean I know she had a deep catalogue but the HITS are dropping like FLIES!
 
I adore Son of a Gun and Doesn’t Really Matter, as much as they don’t seem universally loved.

Black Cat and Again two brilliant ones as well. All four could be well higher.
 
control is a 10 - i love how it trails into a bit of an improv session.

again is lovely, i remember starting off hating it as a kid as it was keeping something off the number 1 spot (probably mariah) but i caved soon enough. it's probably her most tender moment and i still find it touching despite the disney-ness and cheese of it all.

always thought son of a gun was a bit confused and i absolutely hate the radio mix and video.

nothing really matters i find pretty inconsequential, kyoko.

black cat i loved when i was a kid, not so much these days.
 
I really like the single mix of Son of a Gun, but Carly Simon’s rap on the album version is MORTIFYING.

Doesn’t Really Matter is a delightful bit of fluff and I’ve never understood why it’s so widely disliked.
 
VoR said:
Doesn’t Really Matter is a delightful bit of fluff and I’ve never understood why it’s so widely disliked.
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It’s one long whispery mumble, has poor music production, and the “BebeBebes” are ridiculously cringeworthy. I also loathe the video. It was the first time her video choreography looked like something meant for a second rate boy band.
 
Doesn’t Really Matter wears thin over the course of a whole song. I’ve played the Unbreakable, Velvet Rope and Janet albums over the last couple of days due to this thread and the documentary which I watched at the weekend.
 
Ellie said:
It’s one long whispery mumble, has poor music production, and the “BebeBebes” are ridiculously cringeworthy. I also loathe the video. It was the first time her video choreography looked like something meant for a second rate boy band.
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Doesn't Really Matter PALES in the hateration dept. for me compared to true horrors like Call On Me and Whoops Now. I ironically stan So Excited but it's a horrible tuneless mess, No Sleep was just BORING, the same goes for Burnitup, Just a Little While, Luv, Can't Be Good; they're just THERE, they're so boring and so nothingy.
 
Pipo said:
Doesn't Really Matter PALES in the hateration dept. for me compared to true horrors like Call On Me and Whoops Now. I ironically stan So Excited but it's a horrible tuneless mess, No Sleep was just BORING, the same goes for Burnitup, Just a Little While, Luv, Can't Be Good; they're just THERE, they're so boring and so nothingy.
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Whoops Now belongs nowhere near that list of dirge :angry:
 
The final chorus of Doesn’t Really Matter is what does it for me, when she gives it two bashes (a key change for the second with slightly different words yes?) and the soaring ‘oohhhhhh, oh, oh, oh, oh’ backing vocals to end are just :disco:
 
45. "Luv"
Discipline (2008)
US #102

Got me caught in a wreck
I'm a mess



This was pegged as a single before Def Jam abandoned the Discipline project. It's a bouncy Darkchild production that sounds VERY 2008 these days but Janet's harmonies, and the melody elevates it. It would've been perfect that summer as a follow-up to "Feedback", but alas it wasn't meant to be.

44. "You"
The Velvet Rope (1997)

Check in the mirror my friend
No lies will be told then
Pointing the finger again
You can't blame nobody but you



This is sort of an enigma in Janet's discography. It's slick, and the trip hop production combined with the MJ-esque vocal gives this a special mystique. Janet apparently re-did all the ad-libs to make it sound less reminiscent of MJ but there is still a distinct air about it that makes it sound like it could have came off the HIStory or Blood on the Dance Floor albums. It is based on a sample of "The Cisco Kid".

Janet performed it for the first time in over 20 years at her Las Vegas residency.


43. "Escapade"
Rhythm Nation (1989)
US #1, UK #17

Lookin' shy you caught my eye
Thought you'd want to hang for a while



Inspired by 60s Motown pop, it has a the effervescence of an early Jackson 5 single and has become somewhat of a signature Janet moment. It's a bit TOO sweet for my tastes, and I think there are other Janet singles that do what it does better ("When I Think of You") but this is undeniable feel good pop, and has certainly endured better than most of her other hits in the public's consciousness. Does anyone know why this and all the other Rhythm Nation singles flopped in the UK?
 
POP! said:
45. "Luv"
Discipline (2008)
US #102

Got me caught in a wreck
I'm a mess



This was pegged as a single before Def Jam abandoned the Discipline project. It's a bouncy Darkchild production that sounds VERY 2008 these days but Janet's harmonies, and the melody elevates it. It would've been perfect that summer as a follow-up to "Feedback", but alas it wasn't meant to be.

44. "You"
The Velvet Rope (1997)

Check in the mirror my friend
No lies will be told then
Pointing the finger again
You can't blame nobody but you



This is sort of an enigma in Janet's discography. It's slick, and the trip hop production combined with the MJ-esque vocal gives this a special mystique. Janet apparently re-did all the ad-libs to make it sound less reminiscent of MJ but there is still a distinct air about it that makes it sound like it could have came off the HIStory or Blood on the Dance Floor albums. It is based on a sample of "The Cisco Kid".

Janet performed it for the first time in over 20 years at her Las Vegas residency.


43. "Escapade"
Rhythm Nation (1989)
US #1, UK #17

Lookin' shy you caught my eye
Thought you'd want to hang for a while



Inspired by 60s Motown pop, it has a the effervescence of an early Jackson 5 single and has become somewhat of a signature Janet moment. It's a bit TOO sweet for my tastes, and I think there are other Janet singles that do what it does better ("When I Think of You") but this is undeniable feel good pop, and has certainly endured better than most of her other hits in the public's consciousness. Does anyone know why this and all the other Rhythm Nation singles flopped in the UK?
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I LOVE ALL OF THESE
11/10 moments for me
 
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