Unbreakable (Janet Jackson album)

Unbreakable
Studio album by Janet Jackson
Publication (s)	October 2nd, 2015
admission	2013–15
Label (s)	BMG Rights Management
Format (s)	CD , LP , download
Genre (s)	Contemporary R&B , Pop
Title (number)	19th
running time	72:00
production	Janet Jackson, Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, The Jointz
Single releases June 22, 2015 No Sleeep (feat. J. Cole) September 24, 2015 BURNITUP! (feat. Missy Elliott )

Unbreakable is the eleventh studio album by singer Janet Jackson . It was released on October 2, 2015, as the first album on their independent label Rhythm Nations Records. Jackson had separated from her label Island Records seven years earlier because she was dissatisfied with the insufficient promotion for her tenth album Discipline .

In 2009 she suffered from the sudden death of her brother Michael Jackson ; later that year she performed a special commemorative show at the MTV Video Music Awards . In addition, after seven years of relationship, she split from her boyfriend, producer Jermaine Dupri . Universal and A&M Records then released their second greatest hits compilation, Number Ones .

Although she was already working on new songs with producer Rodney Jerkins , she later turned her back on the project, unsure whether to sign a contract with a major label again or to market her music herself. After she had a role in the films Also Liebe macht mal Ferien 2 and For colored girls - The Tears of the Rainbow , she went on a world tour in 2011 to promote her second compilation. In 2013 she announced that she would be working on a new album again. In the same year, she also announced that she had found her third husband in the Qatari businessman Wissam Al Mana. In May 2015, she announced that she would be taking the Unbreakable World Tour. She also announced that she would publish her new, eleventh, studio album on her own label, which she was able to set up through a partnership with BMG .

Unbreakable reunites Jackson with songwriter / producer duo Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis , who most recently worked with her on their ninth studio album, 20 YO . Guest stars on the album are rapper J. Cole and Missy Elliott . Jackson developed the concept for the world tour and album in parallel. The theme of the album encompasses various experiences from the course of her life - including parts of her childhood and the loss of Michael. In addition, there are statements of a socially critical nature, in connection with their 1989 album Rhythm Nation 1814 . It is described as an open dialogue about "where we stand today as individuals and in context as elements of a planet". She promoted the album a lot on social media, always using the hashtag #ConversationsInACafe. The first single, No Sleeep , took place on June 22, 2015.

background

After they released their tenth studio album Discipline in 2008 , Jackson split from their 14-month record label Island Records. A spokesperson for the singer said: "Jackson will now take her career into her own hands, without the restrictions of a label ... Known for venturing into new territory and setting trends, Janet's separation from Island Records is something making them one of the first superstar artists to have individual freedom to publish their work through a broad spectrum such as iTunes, wireless carriers and other diverse and innovative ways. "Mariel Concepcion of Billboard Magazine said that" Jackson was made for would be the Live Nation Artists label, which houses jay-Z, Nickelback and Shakira, among others. ”The following year, Jackson suffered greatly from the sudden death of her brother Michael. She later gave a tribute performance at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards in his memory. She also ended her longstanding relationship with producer and singer Jermaine Dupri that year.

As a joint venture between EMI, Universal Music Enterprises and A&M Recordings released their second greatest hits compilation, Number Ones (2009). Although she had already started recording new material, she left the project behind as she was still unsure whether to have her music marketed on a label or individually. UMe and A&M later released their third compilation, Icon: Number Ones (2010), which was the first CD in the Icon album series. This series was supposed to unite "the greatest hits, signature songs and fan favorites of the most popular artists in music history". After roles in the films Auch liebe macht mal Ferien 2 and For Colored Girls - The Tears of the Rainbow 2010, she went on a world tour in 2011 called Number Ones, Up Close and Personal to market the second of her compilations. In 2013 she announced that she would be working on a studio album again. Later that year, she announced that she had married her partner, Qatari businessman Wissam Al Mana. In May 2015 it was announced that she would publish her new, eleventh studio album in cooperation with BMG on her own label Rythm Nations Records and go on an accompanying world tour.

Recordings

In October 2009, just a month before the release of their second compilation Number Ones (2009), producer Rodney Jerkins , also known as Darkchild , announced that he was working with Jackson on their eleventh studio album:

Since we've been working together ... I have the feeling the studio has become like a second home for her due to the difficult situation after the loss of Michael, and right now I just want to make her feel like she can come here and everyone can let out their feelings. [...] You have to understand that she has lost her brother. She was in a relationship with Jermaine Dupri for seven years and that too is over now. She told me things that I wouldn't even have noticed. You know, certain things like self-esteem, I never realized that she's struggled with it for years ... She's working on her book and she's going to process that in this book, but also in songs, very specific songs that we are in so go tough on confrontation. And sometimes that's a sensitive subject that maybe you shouldn't immerse yourself in, sometimes I had to persuade her to 'Let's just do it, let's talk about it.' And then she did it and she's a professional at it.

Since we've been working ... I feel like the studio has become a second home for her because with the whole situation with Michael [Jackson] happening, and I feel like right now, emotionally, she can come here and let all her feelings out. [...] You gotta understand, she lost her brother. She was in a relationship for seven years [with Jermaine Dupri] that's over now. There's things that she told me that I didn't even realize. You know, certain [things] like self-esteem that I didn't even realize that she dealt with for years that, you know. ... She's working on her book and she'll deal with that in her book, but also in songs, certain songs we're dealing with that head on. And sometimes it can be a touchy subject for us to even go into, and I kinda had to persuade her, 'Let's just go, let's talk about that.' And she's been doing it, and she's a pro about it.

Despite all of this, Jackson announced in 2010 that she had discarded Jerkins' album material. Although she recorded Nothing as the theme song for Auch liebe macht mal Ferien 2 , she said, “There were a lot of record labels that asked me to sit down and negotiate with them. But I just don't know if I want to do something entirely on my own or with a major. ”In August 2011, while touring the Number Ones compilation (2009), she said she would“ go back to the studio, later on same year or at the beginning of the next. I don't know what I'll do now. I like it when my life inspires me. ”In 2013 she finally announced that she would record a new album.

In August 2014, producer and technician Ian Cross, who had worked with her on the last three studio albums, announced to Barefoot Sound Magazine that he was working on Jackson's new album. He said, “The new album will be great. It's a process. There's so much in store for what's to come, ”he said, adding that they would work in studios in Qatar, Paris and the Middle East. He made it clear that he and the singer “have a very special relationship because we became friends immediately. You meet a lot of people and some you make friends with, but sometimes there is a person who becomes a really, really good friend. She asked me to work on her album Discipline in 2007, only to do the same thing again, producing the vocals. That led to her offering me a full-time job at some point. And here I am. ”After Cross gave details, Jackson replied to the rumors himself, but neither to confirm them nor to deny them. She tweeted, "When there's a new project, you'll hear it through my lips." On Unbreakable , Jackson has teamed up again with long-time producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, who were not involved in their previous project.

Singles

The first single from the album, No Sleeep , was released on June 22, 2015. In early June, Jimmy Jam wrote on Twitter “Early in the morning #Plush # NoSL333P #ConversationsInACafe”, along with a photo of sheet music in a darkened studio. The fans quickly discovered that No Sl333P and Plush were song titles . A section from the song was later leaked, which was followed by a countdown on Jackson's website, which saw the single digitally released on June 23rd. The album version contains a rap verse by J. Cole , but there is also a version without the rapper on the album. The second release from the album took place on September 24, 2015 with BURNITUP! , an up-tempo R&B number with rapper Missy Elliott as a guest.

Publication and promotion

On April 22, 2015, Jackson wrote on Twitter, "Letting go doesn't mean quitting," after a fan jokingly circulated a "Missing Person" poster by Jackson. She shared the picture herself, which led to continued speculation about a new album. On May 16, 2015, her 49th birthday, Jackson announced a new album and world tour: “I promised you would find out through my lips. And now the time has come. This year there's new music, a new world tour, a new movement. I have listened to. Let's keep talking. ”It was later announced that their new album would be released in Fall 2015 on their own record label, Rhythm Nation Records, distributed by BMG Rights Management . The launch of Rhythm Nation places Jackson in a small group of African-American female musicians who own their own music label. In June the first single No Sleeep was released . In the same month Jackson showed an excerpt from a song that was called Love , but the final version came on the album as Unbreakable . The song is about how important her fans are to her. On August 20, 2015, she released a preview of The Great Forever while simultaneously announcing the title of her eleventh studio album, Unbreakable , and the October 2, 2015 release date.

To further promote the album, Jackson embarked on the Unbreakable World Tour in August 2015. Pre-sales tickets were initially exclusive to American Express and Citibank customers, after which general ticket sales began on June 22, 2015. The album could also be pre-ordered immediately, as could vinyl editions of the single No Sleeep . Jackson was scheduled to perform at the iHeartRadio Music Festival at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on September 19, 2015. However, on September 18, her press secretary announced that she would not perform.

reception

criticism

The critics had mixed reactions to the album. Time Magazine, however, writes that Unbreakable is exactly what Janet Jackson does best, and shows her in her best form. Among other things, the commitment of a "strong" guest rapper, Missy Elliott , is praised , who in 2015 was able to build on her successes from the early 2000s.

Spiegel Online found that Jackson was returning from a phase of private upheaval "with a very good album". The album is "on a musical level a beneficial liberation with a whole range of potential chart and radio hits", that also on the "content level it adapts to the prevailing zeitgeist of chasteness". Ralf Niemczyk from Rolling Stone described Unbreakable as a "bang out of nowhere". Jan Kedves of the Süddeutsche Zeitung judged that Jackson presented himself“musically refreshed”with Unbreakable after “her last three albums, which, to put it in a friendly way, seemed disoriented”. The album is a “liberation, musical relaxation, love and grief work, all in one: that sounds somehow like a dream. But Unbreakable is really one ”. ZEIT Online author Britta Helm described the record as a “tribute to the nineties”, reminiscent of the “ghosts of Aaliyah and TLC ”. Jackson had "managed without further ado that Unbreakable seldom weakens on a total of 18 tracks and reminds of its greatest strengths all the more often".

Harald Peters from Die Welt found that Unbreakable was reminiscent of Brother Michael Jackson's Bad (1987). Jackson delivered an album "with which she takes a big step towards old age, self-confident, self-evident and self-satisfied". In his review for laut.de , Kai Butterwerk criticized that Unbreakable, despite a “ground-level foundation of high-quality R&B, pop, soul and hip-hop”, was a little “behind” and that a large part of the album was “only on the side”. Spex reviewer Sonja Eismann summed up that she “wished for more experimental aggression and less spiritual enlightenment in some places”. The Mittelbayerische Zeitung found that “the hodgepodge of 90s R'n'B, dance floor beats and pop rock doesn't leave much room for your own note”.

Track list

• 01. Unbreakable
• 02.BURNITUP! (featuring Missy Elliott )
• 03. Damn baby
• 04. The Great Forever
• 05. Shoulda Known Better
• 06. After You Fall
• 07. Broken Hearts Heasl
• 08th night
• 09. No Sleeep (featuring J. Cole )
• 10. Dream Maker / Euphoria
• 11. 2 B Loved
• 12. Take Me Away
• 13. Promise
• 14. Lessons Learned
• 15. Black Eagle
• 16. Well Traveled
• 17. Gon 'B Alright
• 18.No Sleeep (without Rap)
• 19. No Sleeep (AFSHeeN Remix featuring J. Cole )

Individual evidence

1. ↑ http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/1044010/janet-jackson-parts-ways-with-island-def-jam
2. ↑ http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/the-juice/6583268/janet-jackson-new-album-fall-rhythm-nation-bmg
3. ↑ http://www.janetjackson.com/news/all/oct-2-wide-release-date-set-for-janet-jacksons-unbreakable
4. ↑ http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/1044010/janet-jackson-parts-ways-with-island-def-jam
5. ↑ http://www.mtv.com/news/1621392/madonna/
6. ↑ Laura Brown: Janet Jackson Takes Control . Harper's Bazaar, September 9, 2009, accessed October 3, 2015
7. ↑ http://www.mtv.com/news/1624481/janet-jackson-recording-up-tempo-dance-album/
8. ↑ http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/icon-series-launched-by-universal-music-enterprises-100254019.html
9. ↑ http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/the-juice/6583268/janet-jackson-new-album-fall-rhythm-nation-bmg
10. ↑ http://www.mtv.com/news/1624481/janet-jackson-recording-up-tempo-dance-album/
11. ↑ http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/despite-two-new-tracks-janet-jackson-not-working-on-an-album-20100325
12. ↑ http://www.startribune.com/janet-is-back-in-control/127784943/?c=y&page=2
13. ↑ http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/the-juice/1562856/janet-jackson-talks-janet-20th-anniversary-new-album-exclusive
14. ↑ http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/6205030/janet-jackson-new-album
15. ↑ http://www.allmusic.com/album/discipline-mw0000586364
16. ↑ http://www.idolator.com/7596026/janet-jacksons-new-single-plush-no-sl333p-jimmy-jam-tweet
17. ↑ http://www.rap-up.com/2015/06/21/new-music-janet-jackson-no-sleeep-snippet/
18. ↑ http://www.officialcharts.com/chart-news/janet-jackson-unveils-new-single-no-sleeep-listen__9887/
19. ↑ http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/the-juice/6641089/janet-jackson-no-sleeep-remix-j-cole
20. ↑ http://de.eonline.com/news/649773/janet-jackson-calls-fan-s-mock-missing-person-flyer-too-funny-too-sweet-cue-the-fans-who-want -more-music
21. ↑ http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/6568528/janet-jackson-announces-new-album-tour
22. ↑ http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/the-juice/6583268/janet-jackson-new-album-fall-rhythm-nation-bmg
23. ↑ https://www.theguardian.com/music/2015/jun/03/janet-jackson-new-album-record-breaking-deal-bmg-rhythm-nation
24. ↑ http://www.ew.com/article/2015/06/17/janet-jackson-new-song
25. ↑ http://pitchfork.com/news/60867-janet-jackson-titles-new-album-previews-the-great-forever/
26. ↑ http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/6670966/janet-jackson-great-forever-unbreakable-new-album
27. ↑ http://www.fashionably-early.com/2015/08/24/yo-gotti-the-art-of-hustle-jadakiss-top-5-dead-or-alive-janet-jackson-unbreakable-get -release-dates /
28. ↑ http://www.janetjackson.com/news/all/janet-unbreakable-world-tour#.Vg5d1bwy28r
29. ↑ http://www.forbes.com/sites/jesselawrence/2015/06/18/with-unbreakable-presale-underway-janet-jackson-tickets-nearing-200-average-on-resale-market/
30. ↑ http://www.usnews.com/news/entertainment/articles/2015/07/30/kanye-sam-smith-the-who-set-for-iheartradio-music-festival
31. ↑ http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/music-festivals/6700436/janet-jackson-the-who-cancel-iheartradio-festival-performances
32. ↑ http://time.com/4057289/janet-jackson-preaches-resilience-on-her-ecstatic-new-album-unbreakable/
33. ↑ Andreas Borcholte, Andreas Busche: Abgehört: The most important music of the week . In: Spiegel Online . October 6, 2015. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
34. ↑ Ralf Niemczyk: Janet Jackson: Unbreakable . In: Rolling Stone . October 2, 2015. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
35. ↑ Jan Kedves: New album by Janet Jackson - The double woman . In: Süddeutsche Zeitung . October 2, 2015. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
36. ↑ Britta Helm: Hey, the nineties began 25 years ago! . In: ZEIT Online . October 2, 2015. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
37. ↑ Harald Peters: Janet Jackson's new record sounds as good as "Bad" . In: The world . October 2, 2015. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
38. ↑ Kai Butterwerk: An unexpectedly bumpy comeback . In: laut.de . October 1, 2015. Accessed October 7, 2015.
39. ^ Sonja Eismann: Janet Jackson "Unbreakable" - Review . In: Spex . October 5th, 2015. Archived from the original on October 7th, 2015. Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Retrieved October 7, 2015. 
40. ↑ Janet Jackson: Unbreakable . In: Mittelbayerische Zeitung . September 25, 2015. Archived from the original on October 4, 2015. Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Retrieved October 7, 2015.