20 Y.O.
20 Y.O. is the ninth studio album by American singer Janet Jackson. It was first released in Japan on September 20, 2006, by Virgin Records. Its title is a reference to the twentieth anniversary of the 1986 breakthrough album Control, which she made when she was 20, and that she felt 20 in 2006 as she was making 20 Y.O.. The album represents the "celebration of the joyful liberation and history-making musical style" of Control. It is an R&B and dance album. Jackson enlisted a range of producers with whom to work on its material, including LRoc, Manuel Seal, The Avila Brothers, and No I.D., in addition to her longtime partners Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis and then-boyfriend Jermaine Dupri.
20 Y.O. received mixed reviews from music critics, with some of them questioning the involvement of Dupri. The album debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200, making it Jackson's eighth consecutive top-three entry and second consecutive number-two album debut on the chart. The Recording Industry Association of America certified it platinum, becoming Jackson's eighth consecutive platinum album. Worldwide, the album has sold 1.5 million copies. 20 Y.O. earned a Grammy Award nomination for Best Contemporary R&B Album in 2007.
To promote 20 Y.O., the singer appeared in various magazines, and performed on Today and the 2006 Billboard Music Awards. To further promote the release online, Jackson launched the "Design Me" cover contest, giving fans an opportunity to create the artwork for the album by downloading images of her and creating proposed covers for the album. Jackson hand-picked dozens of images to be used in the contest and selected her top four favorites, which were used for the standard edition's cover on American pressings of 20 Y.O.. Three singles were released from the album–"Call on Me", "So Excited", and "With U".
Background and development
In 2004, Jackson performed at the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show with guest artist Justin Timberlake, who accidentally exposed her right breast at the end of their performance. A month later, she released her eighth studio album, Damita Jo. The album debuted at number two on Billboard 200, was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, and sold over three million copies worldwide. However, its singles received minimal airplay due to a blacklist of Jackson's music and videos on many music channels and radio formats caused by legalities surrounding the incident. At the end of 2004, Jackson announced that she intended to start work on a new album project in the coming year. It would involve her then boyfriend—record producer Jermaine Dupri, who was commissioned to executive produce the project—in addition to a roster of other producers. Dupri said at the time,
"For this record, it's gonna be all dance, though. It's gonna be straight 'Control', 'Nasty', hard-ass beats, memorable melodies. It's directed to her fans, people who miss dancing, people who miss seeing videos with dancing. These are sloppy, they don't take it as serious as she do. They don't rehearse for the hours she do. It's serious business for her and her family and her brothers. It's important for kids to see that and bring that back to life".
20 Y.O. became Jackson's final album with Virgin Records, and marked the end of a thirteen-year recording history with the label. Following the album's release Kwamé Holland, a producer who worked on the original 20 Y.O. concept prior to Dupri's involvement, stated, "the finished project we had before Jermaine took everything over is crazy. Ask Jimmy & Terry how they felt when Jermaine came in and changed almost everything." In 2005, Jackson initially worked with various producers, including The Neptunes, Dr. Dre, Kwamé, and Polow Da Don, but the concept was changed when Dupri was selected to manage the project after becoming a division president at Virgin Records. After the album's release, Dupri was condemned for his production and misguidance of the album, and subsequently was removed from his position at Virgin Records. Jackson would later describe the time she released 20 Y.O as "a tough time, a tough period in my life".
Recording and production
For the album, Jackson reunited with longtime collaborators Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis to work with her and Dupri. Conversations between the group began before December 2005, when they elaborated the first themes, and songwriting and recording began in earnest in February. The discussion turned to how Jackson was feeling during the recording of her third studio album Control in 1986. "I started asking questions like, 'What was the feeling of life when you were 20?' I was so intrigued with what was going on in her life then that I just thought her album should be called that", Dupri said. Jam agreed, saying it made sense as a concept because it meant a sense of rejuvenation for her, adding: "A sense of that excitement that people have when they are 20 years old, when their life are beginning." He finished by saying Jackson had that same sense of "hunger and excitement" she had when she was younger. Jackson wanted to create an R&B and dance album, but with an emphasis on dance. Rather than contribute to separate songs for the album, Dupri, Jam and Lewis decided to collaborate. According to the group, the process caused ego and procedural conflicts, but they complemented each other. Jam said: "The great thing about working with Jermaine, he came in with total respect for us, we had total respect for him. The fact is that we were fans of each other and for Janet". Jackson stated:
"This time it was four of us collaborating – Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis, Jermaine and myself. But it was the same process: Everyone getting all of their thoughts and ideas out on the table, then talking about which ideas to keep or throw out. Johntá Austin also played a part in the album. It was really a collaborative effort, and that's what made it so nice. Jermaine would run into the studio and talk about the songs Jimmy and Terry had done on someone's album. Then Jimmy would start playing the song, and Jermaine would say, 'You know what? Let's do something kind of along those lines as a base. He understood them, he understood me and vice versa".
20 Y.O. was recorded chiefly at Jam and Lewis' Flyte Tyme Studios in Los Angeles and Dupri's Southside Studios in Atlanta, with some sections undertaken at The Village in Los Angeles and the Hit Factory in Miami. The concept of 20 Y.O. is a celebration of what was happening musically when Control was released. The addition of Dupri, quotes Jackson as saying, "It's an edge, an attitude, an exciting vibe that's assertive. It's about taking charge. It says, 'Here I am. I'm coming on. Musically, I have it. You want it. And I'm giving it to you.'" With the album Dupri wanted to reconnect Jackson with her urban fan base without losing her pop and dance audience she had built during the last two decades before the album's release. "Times have changed from when Michael and Janet were out in the '80s", he noted, pointing to the fact that urban artists no longer had to cross over to pop genres before achieving maximum exposure and sales. "Janet shouldn't be changing or trying to change to get on pop radio", the producer completed.
Dupri also demonstrated the possibility for a duet with Jackson and American singer Mariah Carey for the album. Carey commented in April 2006, "He never talked to me about that, but if Jermaine has a concept, we should go and write something. I love Janet. I've been a big fan of Janet since 'Con-tro-ol!'". Later, Dupri said that the closer he got to Jackson and Mariah's duet, the more he knew where it should be at, elaborating that he felt it was going to happen. "It depends on how quick my mind moves. We're mixing records for . We're not done yet. When I did Usher's My Way album, the last record I created was 'You Make Me Wanna...'. I'm thinking I might go back in, and I might tamper with it. We gotta try to figure it out", he commented. However, the duet never came to fruition.
Music and lyrics
20 Y.O. is composed by eleven songs, an introduction, three interludes and an outro. It starts off with Jackson stating "There's something to be said for not saying anything. I've covered a lot in my 20 years. And I've uncovered a lot" in its intro. The opening song, second single "So Excited" featuring rapper Khia, is a hip-hop track which samples the drum break and turntable scratches from Herbie Hancock's 1983 song "Rockit". In the song, Jackson promises submission for her lover, singing, "If you like it then I'll do it/I'll go head to toe" and "I'm-a keep your body thumping, baby". "Show Me" follows, with Jackson spelling its title throughout the song. The fourth song, "Get It Out Me", is a dance song which was noted to feature Jackson's vocals sounding like her brother Michael's ones. The following song is "Do It 2 Me". It marks a return to Jackson's conversational style; in the song, She is searching for her lover: "My first and only call is to you, time after time, babe, throughout my life". Its music is punctuated by handclaps and by low swoops of a string section. Sixth song "This Body" lyrically is about men who have appreciation with Jackson's appearances in magazines. She addresses her fans in the line "Just had to buy me, had to try me, oooh, you're in love with the hottest girl in the magazine". The song brings sinuous and dark beats incorporating a rhythmic pattern of heavy breathing and the sound of a jet taking off, which was noted to be a metaphor.An interlude is the opening for eighth track "With U", which was described as "the follow-up to 1986's 'Let's Wait Awhile'", where a couple postpone intimacy. "With U" takes place after the act, which results in romantic confusion. In it, she sings, "I wish you were the one the one I could be with forever". "Call on Me" is the ninth song and lead single from 20 Y.O. It features Nelly, and samples The SOS Band's 1983 song "Tell Me If You Still Care". It includes whispered vocals from both Jackson and Nelly. Second interlude finds Jackson remembering her Good Times days as Penny. "Daybreak", the eleventh song, begins with fairy tale infused chimes before introducing electronic soul handclaps before Jackson starts singing. It has a few lyrics which deal about sex. The following track, "Enjoy", is composed by piano and bass. In the song, Jackson's vocals were heavily treated. Both songs have additional carnival charms, sing-along melodies, and a children's chorus at its end of the latter. An interlude follows, with Jackson calling her lover, asking him to come home. Fourteenth song "Take Care" is a love song which finds the singer pleasuring herself while she waits for her lover. The last song from the album, "Love 2 Love" was recorded by Jackson with her brother Michael in mind. She sings, "We are a couple / Which love knows no bounds". An outro closes the album.