Caption: Janet Jackson. Hollywood Film Festival 11th Annual Hollywood Awards Gala held at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. Beverly Hills, California - 22.10.07

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February 9th, 2008

JANET JACKSON had to switch seats when she first saw PRINCE live - because she couldn't bear to watch the sexy star perform while sitting next to her God-fearing mother. The Nasty singer was just a teenager when she begged her mother Katherine - a devout Jehovah's Witness, for tickets to see her hero. Mum agreed her daughter could go to the show, but insisted on chaperoning her. Jackson tells Parade.com, "Being a Jehovah's Witness, you grow up in a very religious world. But, as a kid, I loved Prince and The Time - one of my favourite groups. "I would listen to them all the time, even though you're not supposed to do that. When I was 16, I was promoting my first album and I went with Mother to see The Time's concert with Prince. "I did not want to sit next to Mother because I knew they were dirty. I was trying to be cool and calm, but oh my God, I was sweating bullets: `She's going to think, Good Lord, what is my baby into? She really needs more of God in her life! Where did I go wrong?' I could just hear Mother blaming herself for everything! "Luckily, I got someone else to swap seats with me so I was able to enjoy the show." Ironically, Prince was the leading chart rival of Janet's brother Michael throughout the 1980s and 1990s.

Source.

Why would anyone bring their mother (who was a Jehovah's Witness at the time) to a Prince concert in 1983? Makes no sense.Janet should have just went with some of her girlfriends.

Janet always sounds like Norman Bates when she talks about her mom. She doesn't say "mom" or "mama" or "my mother." It's always "Mother." Not "my mother" or "our mother," just "Mother." Creeps me out some.

It's not exactly a newsworthy -- or for that matter, even news. Janet Jackson told this backstory years ago (around the release of "Control") about she and "Mother" going to a Prince/The Time concert. That's how she knew who Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis were when they were paired with her to produce her third album.
[Edited 2/11/08 6:25am]

RipHer2Shreds said:

They ALLLLL do that, actually. I'm not sure about Janet, but I've usually heard several of the Jackson kids refer to their father only by his first "Joseph" as well.

why are they recycling news that made headlines about 22 years ago?

Ottensen said:

Strict southern upbringings maybe?

Thats the only explanation I could come up with I mean how they refer to their mother.

It doesn't strike me as unsual though.

@ "Joseph". I might as well buy my coffin with my own money in advance if I ever called my mother with her 1st name
[Edited 2/11/08 10:58am]

SoulAlive said:

SoulAlive said:

maybe her mom didnt let her go many places alone, she was real strict so most likely she took janet to the concert instead of janet taking her

lowkey said:

Okay,but I wonder why she just didn't go with Michael? He was spotted in the audience at several Prince concerts during this period I can just imagine how uncomfortable Katherine was at this concert,lol.This was a time when Prince was humping the stage and jacking off his guitar!