Janet's Connection 2 Dance

"I get so excited when I see a beautiful dancer expressing themselves.."

By Suzy Miller

When Janet Jackson says she'll call you at 9 am, your phone rings at 9 am. On the nose. The voice on the other end of the line is a gentle, calm, and extremely intelligent one. Her answers are spontaneous yet thoughtful, clearly heartfelt, yet well-crafted. She makes you feel you're really in conversation with her; she truly listens and responds. She is easy to speak to.
One more thing - her office - her people? Unassuming, kind, courteous. Thoughtful even. I got the call Sunday late afternoon from Jaime; they knew it was short notice, but would I possibly be available Monday morning for the interview? As if I might say "Gosh, please tell Janet sorry, I'll be busy making pancakes then." At the end of our conversation, he actually thanked me for answering the phone on a Sunday night. My own Mom doesn't even do that! There's an old saying; "the bigger the star, the nicer they are". I don't know if it's always true, but in Janet's case, you couldn't speak with a sweeter soul.

SUZY: How's New York?

JANET: I'm not in New York, I'm in Atlanta.

SUZY: How do you keep track?

JANET: (Laughs.) The other day I actually forgot what day it was!

SUZY: Oh man, you're free-floating. It's an amazing life you're living...

JANET: Thank you. I've very blessed.

SUZY: I'm so excited to speak with you - I've heard so many beautiful things about you from Gil...

JANET: Really? (There is a smile in her voice.)

SUZY: Oh yeah. It makes me love your music even more if that's possible. He really sees your spirit. If you ever need a boost, you should read what he says about you, you'll love it.

JANET: Mmm. Thank you so much.

SUZY: I know that your schedules tight so I'll just get right to it. Tell me about your take on Gil as a person.

JANET: I've never met anyone like him. He's wise beyond his years. At the same time, he still has the kid in him which I love; he's such a prankster. He has this heart that's so loving and giving - and forgiving - and very spiritual, that's one of the qualities I so love about him. I love talking to him -sometimes when I feel bummed out, I'll call him up. And you know, that's what friends are for - just to know you have someone you can to turn to, to give you advice with another take on life. He's a special man.

SUZY: What about your take on him as a dancer?

JANET: Incredible. I've never seen anyone's body move the way his does. The first time I ever saw him dance, I thought, "this kid has something so different. He gives you technique if you need it, he can give you hip hop and then his own flavor –

SUZY: Yes, like a fusion.

JANET: Very much so, a fusion. We call him "Boy Wonder" - he's crazy, he's amazing. He really is.

SUZY: I agree. I set out to interview him and ended up asking him to be my guru! What about his work as a choreographer?

JANET: He's so talented. Anything he touches - and I told him this many times before, even before he decided to go into this new path of his career that he's walking -anything he touches will turn to gold. Anything he decides to do, because he's good at everything. There are people in the world who are like that, 'today I want to do this, tomorrow I want to do that' and they're so good at it all. His movement has so much feeling and emotion in it - it's all about feel and it's not easy to pick up his feel.

SUZY: It's very soulful.

JANET: Very soulful. That's where he dances from, his soul.

SUZY: What about as a co-creator?

JANET: Out of all the shows I've done, and I might be speaking too soon, but I really think this about the biggest backseat I've ever taken. He's in
the driver's seat. We'll talk about things, but it will really be his baby. And I've never ever let anyone do that. I feel that comfortable and confident in Gil and his work.

SUZY: Can you remember your very first impressions of him?

JANET: He had blonde blonde short hair.

SUZY: No he didn't!

JANET: Yeah! And this beautiful dark skin with those beautiful eyes and that little body - I remember seeing him in the room and saying to Tina (Landon), 'Who is this?' A beautiful face, that's what caught my eye. And she said 'That's the kid I was telling you about. Gil from Hawaii. Wait till you see him dance." I kept my eye on him and right then and there - most of the time I will not say 'Okay, I want that person with me', but I did with Gil. After I saw him dance, I turned to Tina and said put his picture aside. (She laughs lightly. And the following night we went to a club, and there he was standing by himself, and she goes 'Jan, there's Gil, and I decided to tell him, or Tina did, that he was a part of us.

SUZY: When did you start seeing him as a choreographer rather than a dancer?

JANET: Watching him move, I knew he had something else. I've done that with other dancers; Barry Lather, when we were shooting "Nasty", he used to fool around and dance in rehearsal. I keep my eyes open and watch. I get this feeling, this sense. He had something else in him. I asked Barry to choreograph the breakdown in 'When I Think of You', that was the first time we worked together. And from there I asked him to choreograph "Pleasure Principal". That's basically the way I do it, I just observe, just watch. I hang out with them and just sit back. So I did the same thing with Gil, watching his freestyle and the way he moved, I could see he had something else in him. The first time he actually choreographed something for me was the last tour - I really wanted him to do something on the Velvet Rope tour. I remember Tina had so much on her plate - she was having what we call writer's block, I'll call it dancer's block, with one of the songs, I think it was "Together Again." I said, "why don't you ask Gil to help you, he has something inside of him and I think he could possibly help you get past this point. She wound up working it out herself, but I so wanted her to go to Gil. Even with the tour itself, because there was a good deal on her plate, but she worked it out herself with a little bit of help from Robert and Teresa Espinosa.

SUZY: You've worked with some wonderful choreographers, and discovered more than a few of them - is there something specific you look for in a choreographer?

JANET: You know what Suzy, it's not that I sit there and look for a certain something in them. It's more on another level.

SUZY: Intuitive.

JANET: Yes, there's an energy and I can see that. It is intuitive.

SUZY: Dance has always been such an important element in all your work, and such a beautiful element. I'm sure you know this, but you're one of the artists dancers everywhere feel you are the ultimate to work for.

JANET: You know what, I didn't know that.

SUZY: Really??

JANET: I swear to you. I'll tell you when I started to realize that is with this project, talking with Gil and Peanut. I have a great deal of respect for dancers; I always have and I always will. A lot of artists are more "I do my job, you do your job" and don't get involved - but I like for it to be a family. I like to get to know them. And you know, in your family, sometimes there's drama, sometimes things go smoothly. And that's the way you get closer, you know? And that makes for a close-knit family where it's a team, when we're up there on stage we're a team, it's not just about me, it's about all of us. That's the way I see it. I think that's why we look the way we do onstage, because we are so close offstage. If they have an issue or are feeling down and bummed out, I don't put a wall there so they can't come to me. I want to know, I want to be able to help. That's what friends are for, that's what family is for. That's just the way I've always done it. I love that feeling, coming from a big family....

SUZY: The dancers I interviewed said beautiful things about you.

JANET: That's so sweet. And see, I get excited and driven by them. When I see a dancer in a club or in a performance, oh, it gives me goosebumps, I get chills. I'm like "Let's go, let's get to work"; I get so excited when I see a beautiful dancer expressing themselves.

SUZY: How much dance training have you had?

JANET: I haven't had any training.

SUZY: Oh my God, you're kidding!

JANET: No, it's always been from watching. Watching MGM musicals when I was a kid - I didn't get in the mirror because there was carpet; we'd dance on the carpet so -

SUZY: At home you mean?

JANET: Yeah, at home, my brother Mike and me, when we were little, my parents had a huge sliding glass door, so we'd slide the glass door and
look at our reflection. It was right outside off the swimming pool. We'd learn all the steps to all the musicals - I was Ginger Rodgers, he was Fred Astaire. My favorite was Cyd Charisse. That's who I wanted to be. But I didn't know how to hold my leg up, didn't know nothing! But we learned the steps. That's really when I started dancing. And then when I got into street dancing - I was always working. I went to a public school in junior high for one year and a lot of kids were bussed to my school. I think I was working on "Good Times" at the time. During lunchtime I noticed all the kids that were bussed would go to the field playing music, like playing Parliament. The music I knew, but this whole other side of dance, this whole street thing, and this feeling they put in with their bodies, I was like "okay, what is this?" I wanted to know what that was and get to know it. But no, I've never had any training; I always wish that I had.

SUZY: Does it come easy or hard for you?

JANET: It's never been difficult for me. Trying to pick up on a person's style, that can be difficult, but at the same time infuse our own thing once you understand it and are inside of it. I don't count - Gil will try to show me something and if I don't understand it, I'll sit back and ask him do it with the music. I know the music and I love rhythms - I always wanted to be a drummer but my mother didn't think it was a feminine enough instrument. So I was like okay forget it, but I love rhythm. So I listen to what he's moving to, and I hear it and then I get it. You hear Gil go "uh uh uhuhuh", and that's the way I've always done it.

SUZY: Gil and I spoke a great deal about spirituality and that it was one of your connections. Would you care to talk about how your spirituality connects with your work?

JANET: I think at a certain level you can't help connect that with your work - it's just a part of your life. In my music and lyrics, it's always shown itself. You're always seeking to make yourself a better person. I think that search comes out in your writing and your work. There's that want for it ...that desire to find it.

SUZY: You do most of your own writing, true?

JANET: Yes.

SUZY: Does that come easily for you?

JANET: There are times, it all depends on moods, emotions... I'm used a lot of drama in my life! It's much easier to write when there's drama. I hate to say that, but I can go to town when there's drama because there's so much to write about. When things are smooth I'm like 'Okay wait, what's going on here? This is foreign ..I'm not used to this."

SUZY: Well you make beautiful love songs at those times.

JANET: Thank you, but sometimes I feel I need drama to make it sound good. (She laughs.)

SUZY: The terrible muse.

JANET: Right?

SUZY: Well it's wonderful you have a vehicle for it.

JANET: That's right... You know what Suzy, I think I have to go -

SUZY: You have been so generous with your time, I thank you so much. It was a joy talking with you.

JANET: You too!