Janet Jackson

"I've never had someone love me for me, so unconditionally ... regardless of my size." Janet Jackson, talking about her longtime boyfriend, music producer Jermaine Dupri.

You have to give Janet Jackson credit for doggedly sticking to her pleasure principle after all these years. No matter how mind-numbingly banal her sexually explicit lyrics have become, no matter how tired her clothes-optional promotional campaigns have gotten, Miss Jackson-If-You're-Nasty refuses to change the musical formula she apparently believes still works for her. But recent sagging album sales may show that fans feel differently. She's not the only aging pop maverick caught in a vortex of cheesy sexed-up music and images (hello, Madonna and Mariah Carey)

Superstar vehicles rarely have room for more than one star. Whether it's "An Evening with Elton John" or the latest Madonna extravaganza, the focus is always on the star, no matter how many other bodies happen to be onstage.But Janet Jackson's "Velvet Rope" concert, which opened its U.S. tour before a capacity crowd of 15,069 at Washington's MCI Center on Thursday, was an ensemble act from start to finish.Make no mistake: Jackson was clearly the star. Frenzied fans shrieked, "I love you, Janet!"

Tina Fey continues popular portrayal of Sarah Palin NEW YORK: It's starting to feel like Tina Fey is running for vice president. Fey again returned to Saturday Night Live to play Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin as the sketch comedy show continued to pull out all the stops in its election year season. Queen Latifah dropped by to portray Thursday's debate moderator, PBS's Gwen Ifill, and cast member Jason Sudeikis stepped into the role of Democratic vice presidential candidate Joe Biden.

You have to give Janet Jackson credit for doggedly sticking to her pleasure principle after all these years. No matter how mind-numbingly banal her sexually explicit lyrics have become, no matter how tired her clothes-optional promotional campaigns have gotten, Miss Jackson-If-You're-Nasty refuses to change the musical formula she apparently believes still works for her. But recent sagging album sales may show that fans feel differently. She's not the only aging pop maverick caught in a vortex of cheesy sexed-up music and images (hello, Madonna and Mariah Carey)

Americans huddled around water coolers yesterday much as they have after 37 Super Bowls before, but they weren't talking about "the big play," or even "the best commercial." This year - on coffee breaks, in e-mails, at women's organizations and at the headquarters of the Federal Communications Commission - they were focused on "the breast." Specifically, pop singer Janet Jackson's right breast - exposed when fellow performer Justin Timberlake tore off a piece of her gladiator's costume at the end of the duo's halftime performance of the song "Rock Your Body."

Rule No. 127 in the game of life: Radio DJs don't always tell the truth.Did anyone really believe pop superstar Michael Jackson, as in the brother of pop superstar Janet Jackson, was going to come to Baltimore for a radio station?Nope. A blizzard on the Fourth of July was more likely. A trip to the moon in the Popemobile would happen first. President Clinton would leave office to become a monk.However, these things must be checked out, no matter how unlikely. So, when urban music station Majic 95.9 said Michael Jackson would pick the winner of a Janet Jackson look-alike contest, we called DJ personality Sasha.

A partial list of nominees for tonight's MTV Video Music Awards:Best Video of the Year* Peter Gabriel, "Digging In the Dirt"Best Male Video* Lenny Kravitz, "Are You Gonna Go My Way"Best Female Video* Janet Jackson, "That's the Way Love Goes"Best Group Video* Depeche Mode, "I Feel You"Best Rap Video* Digable Planets, "Rebirth of Slick (Cool Like Dat)"Best Dance Video* Janet Jackson, "That's the Way Love Goes"Best Metal/Hard Rock Video* Aerosmith, "Livin' On the Edge"Best Alternative Music Video* Nirvana, "In Bloom" (Band In Dresses Version)

LANDOVER -- Does she or doesn't she?When that question first entered the pop lexicon, it came as a query about hair coloring. But in today's post-MTV world of singing, dancing superstars -- the Janet Jacksons, Paula Abduls and Madonnas of the world -- what the phrase now asks, has to do with singing. "Does she or doesn't she use tapes instead of singing live?"Well, in the case of Janet Jackson, only her sound man knows for sure. But judging from her performance at the USAir Arena last night, it's clear that Jackson hasn't let the demands of contemporary choreography keep her from handling the singing herself.

TELEVISION 1.American Idol (Tuesday), Fox 2.American Idol (Wednesday), Fox 3.Survivor, CBS 4.Lost, ABC 5.Extreme Makeover Home Edition, ABC FILMS 1. Horton Hears a Who!, Fox 2.10,000 B.C., Warner Bros. 3.Never Back Down, Summit Entertainment 4.College Road Trip, Disney 5.Vantage Point, Sony SINGLES 1.Love in This Club, Usher featuring Young Jeezy 2.With You, Chris Brown 3.Low, Flo Rida featuring T-Pain 4.Love Song, Sara Bareilles 5.Don't Stop the Music, Rihanna ALBUMS 1.Good Time, Alan Jackson 2.Sleep Through the Static, Jack Johnson 3.Discipline, Janet Jackson 4.Float, Flogging Molly 5.Warpaint, The Black Crowes DVDS (SALES)

Anita Baker has never really been a jazz singer. But she could be; she certainly has the chops. Over the years, the Ohio-born, Detroit-raised singer-songwriter has performed at jazz festivals around the world. On her six studio albums, all of which have at least sold gold, Baker has flirted with jazz. But in her 25 years as a recording artist, she has yet to take the plunge into the genre. What a shame. Although Baker is one of the most distinctive vocalists in pop and soul, I have always found much of her music to be frustratingly tentative.

TELEVISION 1.American Idol (Tuesday), Fox 2.American Idol (Wednesday), Fox 3.Survivor, CBS 4.Lost, ABC 5.Extreme Makeover Home Edition, ABC FILMS 1. Horton Hears a Who!, Fox 2.10,000 B.C., Warner Bros. 3.Never Back Down, Summit Entertainment 4.College Road Trip, Disney 5.Vantage Point, Sony SINGLES 1.Love in This Club, Usher featuring Young Jeezy 2.With You, Chris Brown 3.Low, Flo Rida featuring T-Pain 4.Love Song, Sara Bareilles 5.Don't Stop the Music, Rihanna ALBUMS 1.Good Time, Alan Jackson 2.Sleep Through the Static, Jack Johnson 3.Discipline, Janet Jackson 4.Float, Flogging Molly 5.Warpaint, The Black Crowes DVDS (SALES)

In 2006, several pop stars were full of themselves or full of it. But of course that's nothing new. Here are a few major, over-hyped releases that disappointed me. Beyonce, B'Day --This sophomore release by the former Destiny's Child focal point was reportedly cranked out in just two weeks. Though it isn't sloppy, the album still feels underdeveloped in spots. Beyonce sounds strained, almost frantic on "Deja Vu," the album's lead single whose strutting, horn-spiked rhythm vaguely recalls Off the Wall-era Michael Jackson.

Once you start seeing her splashed on magazine covers without much clothing, you know Janet Jackson is about to come back with a new project. In the past two months, she has posed topless on the cover of Vibe and in a black two-piece lingerie set on the front of King. The performer has been announcing her periodic returns in such a way for more than a decade now. Soon after her "wardrobe malfunction" at the Super Bowl halftime show 2 1/2 years ago, Jackson released Damita Jo, a leaden and ridiculously pornographic waste of studio time.

"I've never had someone love me for me, so unconditionally ... regardless of my size." Janet Jackson, talking about her longtime boyfriend, music producer Jermaine Dupri.

Ciara? Who? During the summer of 2004, the slick, crunked-out "Goodies" was the No. 1 song in the country, its heavy, pulsing beat booming from car speakers or shaking club walls. I dug the record and cranked it up if I happened to be in the car when the tune came on. It was hard to miss since the cut was on the air, like, every 10 minutes. Because the Lil' Jon-produced track was so hot, I paid little attention to the thin-voiced chick delivering the lines in a somewhat robotic croon. But soon Miss Thing became almost inescapable.

IF YOU WERE offended by Janet Jackson's Super Bowl mini-striptease - or Nelly's crotch-grabbing or Kid Rock's flag-wearing or the Jackson-Justin Timberlake bump-and-grind that preceded her exposure - here's a little suggestion: Don't buy their albums. Don't go to their concerts. If those classy Bud Light commercials where the dog bites the guy's crotch upset you, don't buy Bud Light. If you were outraged by the Cialis commercial - in the middle of a football game, I'm fielding questions on erectile dysfunction from my 12-year-old, when I can barely explain what a screen pass is - don't buy Cialis.

Tina Fey continues popular portrayal of Sarah Palin NEW YORK: It's starting to feel like Tina Fey is running for vice president. Fey again returned to Saturday Night Live to play Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin as the sketch comedy show continued to pull out all the stops in its election year season. Queen Latifah dropped by to portray Thursday's debate moderator, PBS's Gwen Ifill, and cast member Jason Sudeikis stepped into the role of Democratic vice presidential candidate Joe Biden.

Wardrobe malfunctions, on-stage accidents, even digestive troubles. Slip-ups are a workplace hazard in pop music, and few stars are immune from stumbling in the spotlight. Ashlee Simpson, who's currently touring (and stopping at Washington's Constitution Hall next month), provides the most recent high-profile example. Unless your TV set's been on the fritz for six months, you know she was caught lip-synching on Saturday Night Live. She cited a bout of acid reflux. But Simpson's in good company.

Things you won't see during today's Super Bowl broadcast: Mickey Rooney's bare behind, the Go Daddy girl shaking her bottom and a stagehand opening a beer bottle with Janet Jackson's breastplate. Things you will see: Mike Ditka pitching designer countertops, Hammer (formerly known as a rap star) hawking insurance and Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy promoting Pizza Hut. One year after Janet Jackson's right breast saw the light of day during the Super Bowl halftime show, setting off a public furor over lewdness and vulgarity on television and earning CBS a $550,000 fine, the producers of this year's big game are taking no chances.