Janet Jackson

Janet Damita Jo Jackson was born on 16 May 1966 in Gary, Indiana, the youngest of nine children in the Jackson family. She began her career as a child performer on television before turning to music as a teenager, releasing her first two albums under her family's guidance before taking creative control of her sound and image.

Her breakthrough came with 1986's Control, on which she asserted full creative independence, followed by 1989's Rhythm Nation 1814, a concept album addressing social issues including racism and poverty that became one of the best-selling and most influential albums of its era, spawning an unprecedented run of chart-topping singles.

Across the 1990s and 2000s, Jackson continued to release commercially and critically successful albums while developing a reputation as one of pop's most influential choreographers and live performers, with her tightly synchronised dance routines shaping the visual language of pop music videos and stage shows for decades afterward.

Jackson has sold more than 100 million records worldwide, making her one of the best-selling artists in music history, and has been recognised with a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction, reflecting both her commercial success and her sustained influence on pop performance and production.