SOHH Soulful got a chance to sit one on one in the studio with Jermaine Dupri for an exlcusive sneak preview of Janet Jackson's upcoming cd 20 Years Old. Yeah, we shitted in our pants too...

Despite what may have leaked, Janet's first single off the highly anticipated album is "Call On Me", a duet with St. Louis rapper Nelly. Yes... Nelly. (Y'all know Janet don't do collabos like that, so get ready). The mid tempo joint samples the legendary S.O.S. Band's "Tell Me If You Still Care", which was originally produced by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis in the early 80's.

Janet serves up soft, feminine vocals just as ambitiously as Mary Davis did on the original. Nelly sings/raps with Janet effortlessly, each trading places over an updated beat that's definitely big enough to bump from any trunk.

The single is scheduled for radio on June 19th, but check SOHH Soulful regularly. Later this month we'll have exclusive new visuals of Ms. Jackson that'll make you lose your mind [ the body is sickening-- think Janet in lime green bra & panties, think Janet in frilly black lace, think lots of skin, think DAMN SHE LOOKS GOOD FOR 40]. And if we are lucky, maybe we'll even have an early listen of the track which is the first of many that will fuse the 80's sensibility, beats for the streets, the best of Jam & Lewis and the chemistry and fire of both JANET and Jermaine.

I myself, am most looking forward to a track called "So Excited". It's an uptempo hard dance track the reminds me of Herbie Hancock's "Rockit". There is a lot of that scratching and mixing that made a heavy mark on urban music in the 80's.

20 Years Old is a celebration of an artist and an era, but it's far from being outdated. The smell of this new Janet tells that the best is yet to come.

The smell of this new Janet tells that the best is yet to come.

LOL

Janet is in need of a better PR Manager.

Ugh, the last thing i want is Janet taking a page from Mariah's book. If this is true, no thanks.

Jermaine's used this sample before for his remix of Always Be My Baby.

Sounds like someone has ran out of NEW ideas.....

I'd like the first single to have no samples and no rapping if possible.

twink69 said:

Highly anticipated by... ?

Featuring Nelly...for God's sake!

this may well be the first janet album i dont buy.

sosgemini said:

THat's cold but at this rate, it's looking like "THe Emancipation of Booty"! I don't know....
[Edited 5/15/06 9:16am]

if Jermaine is involved...this cd is NOT going to meet expecatations. I'll bet $$ on it. It will be Mimi part II.

VinnyM27 said:

The Emancipation of Dunk

Graycap23 said:

Yeah, the ideas stopped coming years ago. Janet is stale. Although, I hope for her sake and the sake of her loyal fans that the new cd has something interesting on it.

jayaredee said:

RipHer2Shreds said:

Is that "Always Be My Baby" remix what you were referring to, jayaredee?

I don't really remember that one.

It reminds me of Glitter though, the way Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis were on board and they brought back that Cherrelle joint.

Graycap23 said:

sosgemini said:

you know i'm kinda on the same boat with you. i want to hear it before i buy it. she's been very off with me with the last 2 albums and i'll be damned if i buy another cd of hers that i don't listen to again. plus she's singing this new song with Nelly?! OH FUCK NO!!!! i'm losing interest in this cd more and more.

Damn people are so negative even before you HEAR the track. I for one love the idea of Janet taking it back to 80s funk/R&B...I'm not a fan of Nelly but we'll see.
I think the whole direction of the album actually sounds really retro, really funky, really promising...

badujunkie said:

It depends on your perspective. When I hear the term "retro" and don't EXPECT a bunch of old ass samples. I expect NEW music with an "old" school feel to it. NOT samples.....that is the sign of someone who either has no NEW ideas or just lazy. Take your pick.

Don't even get me started on rock music sounding retro all fucking decade.

CinisterCee said:

Rock music has been in a pretty dire state for almost 10 years now... you're right.

kisscamille said:

That's 'cos Rene Elizondo had been doing a lot of the writing and planning behind the scenes while Janet took front of house plaudits. When he went he took the sense and integrity with him.

damn.

i'm gonna hope this is only a rumor.

whoknows said:

You might be on to something. The last album he worked on was the awesome Velvet Rope.

CinisterCee said:

well, except for the fact that damita jo was haute!

Graycap23 said:

Wrong.

Novabreaker said:

Wronger.

whoknows said:

Wrongest.

badujunkie said:

Ok.....JD.

Rene got alot of credits on those old albums though!

It's a BLOG!

None of this is confirmed. SOHH, like UBG, is completely unreliable. And why the fuck would Jermaine have given a BLOG a preview of the album long before anyone else? No. It sounds like someone wrote some MORE bullshit (first it was "The Glamorous Life" being sampled, remember?) using the info that Nelly IS on the album, which has been confirmed by JD. But we do NOT know if he is featured on "Call On Me".

I also think this is probably bullshit since there's about a 95% chance she's going with an uptempo track as first single.
[Edited 5/15/06 14:48pm]