Song:What Have You Done For Me Lately
Album:Icon: Number Ones
We all know who Janet Jackson is. I think it might surprise folks that she wasn't an overnight success in pop music. What Have You Done For Me Lately was her first hit single but it was on her third album. It's not her biggest hit but it certainly paved the way for success. She was born May 16, 1966 in Gary, IN. She was the youngest of the ten Jackson children. As a child, she appeared in the sitcoms Good Times and Diff'rent Strokes. At age 16, her dad and manager Joe Jackson got her a record deal with A&M Records. Her 1982 album Janet Jackson and 1984 album Dream Street didn't sell. There were no hit singles. Critics panned them as bland. Her dad supervised and hired producers to work with Janet. Soon after, Janet split with her dad and married James DeBarge. The marriage was annulled but Janet got a new manager. A&M A&R exec John McClain took over. He saw Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis when they were in The Time. They produced The SOS Band and worked with Prince. McClain introduced them to Janet and they wrote and produced most of the songs on the 1986 album Control. They were producing an album for former Atlantic Starr singer Sharon Bryant. Those songs were given to Janet and rewritten to suit her. What Have You Done For Me Lately was rewritten to reflect Janet's failed marriage. It reached #4 on the Billboard Hot 100. Subsequent singles did even better and the album Control was certified 5XPlatinum. Of course Janet became an even bigger star with the 1989 album Rhythm Nation 1814. And it was all because Janet took control of her music career. This budget comp is a good intro to her music. Her partnership with Jam and Lewis is one of the longest and most successful in pop music history. They produced all her albums for twenty years. Janet is still around. Her latest album was released in 2015. Of course she has faded. But she had a longer run than most artists. And I think Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis deserve a lot of credit for that run. Here's the video for What Have You Done For Me Lately by Janet Jackson.
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