JANET JACKSON

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10/1997 -- Virgin Megastore in Times Square, New York City, NY

   Janet Jackson has been my idol since, well....FOREVER!!  Singer/songwriter/actress/producer/entrepreneur/etc, etc.  Her perseverance and hard work has inspired me in life to never give up and dedicate 400% to whatever I do.  Most importantly, she has shown me that if you have the drive and are willing to put forth the effort, you can make your dreams come true. 

   Back in 1997, Janet was about to release her critically acclaimed album titled "The Velvet Rope".  A crazy amount of hype had already preceded the album, and everybody and their mom could not stop talking about how they could not wait until the album dropped.  I, of course, was one of those people....and when I heard that Janet Jackson was going to do an in-store album signing, I freaked (freaked is an understatement....trust me!)  Janet Jackson, my idol, was going to be in NYC to meet her fans!  I HAD to be there.

   Of course, there's always a catch.  In order to meet Ms. Jackson, fans had to buy her Velvet Rope album at midnight the night before to receive a ticket to attend the in-store signing the next day.  The Janet fanatic that I was....I went to Times Square at midnight just to buy her album to get that coveted ticket (that experience alone is another story in itself....if you want details, feel free to e-mail me :) ).  When I got the ticket, I was told to come back later that day to have Janet sign the album I just bought.  Traveling home, though, I came up with a different idea.  I really wanted to show her how much I appreciated her as an artist and as an inspiration, and I couldn't think of any other way to express my appreciation than through my art.  That night, I arrived home, slept 2 hours, woke up and worked on the portrait.  I had just began drawing portraits at the time and usually one drawing would take me hours.  Hey, this was Janet, and I guess the thought of getting the chance to meet her just sent my creative energies into overdrive, because I finished the drawing in less than 2 hours.

   Tired and weary, I trudged off to my nursing clinical rotation at the local psychiatric hospital (thank God my patient that day was calm).  After that.....it was time to meet Janet!  I picked up my friend and we were off to NYC again.  When we arrived this time, the whole scene had changed.  What we saw was NOTHING like what we saw at midnight.  The calm streets of Times Square had turned into a chaotic frenzy that included the media flashing their cameras at everything and anything, fans screaming their love for Janet, traffic jams for miles on end, and police officers swarming everywhere trying to keep order.  Needless to say, my friend and I were frozen at the awesome sight.

   Entering the Virgin Megastore was like a dream that came alive.  As we walked on the red carpet, cameras were pointed our way, fans were waving and screaming hello, and as we gave the security guard our tickets, he undid the velvet rope that blocked the doorway and allowed us into...well....even more mayhem!  The store was jam packed with fans!  Since my friend and I had tickets, though, we were allowed to the lower recesses of the store where the line to meet Janet Jackson started. 

    We waited for over three hours in line when all of a sudden, the dull commotion that could be heard outside transformed into a high pitched roar. Janet Jackson had arrived!  Us fans who had been waiting patiently clamored to the escalators in order to see Janet descending into the basement of the Virgin Megastore.  As she came down the escalators, the lower floors of the store became filled with nonstop camera flashes, screaming fans, and press people shoving their microphones at the tiny megastar.  Once Janet reached the bottom floor, she was rushed off to a private room to do an interview with some TV station (I'm not all too familiar with the NY TV stations).

    Then, she and her husband at the time, along with a gazillion security people carefully made their way to the center of the basement level of the store to an elevated table.  Before signing anything, Janet made a nice little speech thanking everybody for coming, and then she picked up the closest Sharpie and started signing away.  You know, I was amazed because hundreds of fans showed up to get their albums signed, and not once did I see Janet complain or take a break!  She was so cool....she continually smiled, shook everybody's hand, and signed every single thing that was presented to her (and people gave her some weird things too....like velvet ropes from outside).  

    After about 2 more hours, I finally got to the front of the line.  A man that worked at the Megastore stopped me and asked me where my album to be signed was.  I told him that I did not want my album signed, but I did want her to autograph my drawing.  When he asked where the portrait was, I showed him my portrait book and was about to open it when the EXTREMELY RUDE Megastore employee grabbed the thing from my hand!  I was in shock.  He then flipped to some random, blank page and asked snottily "Is this what you want signed?"  I responded "No!!!!!!  I want this signed!"....and flipped to her portrait.  Just as I was about to grab my portrait book back, he steps back and puts it on the table.

    At this point I was fuming and didn't realize that I was THERE!!  Just as I was about to give this idiot a piece of my mind, he stepped away....and there she was.  I stopped and my jaw dropped....literally.  Janet was so beautiful and tiny.  I was so amazed!  All I could think at that moment was "Oh my God!  This is Janet Jackson....my idol!  And she's 6 inches in front of me! This is crazy!"  What really got me was not that she was 6 inches in front of me....but that she was REALLY staring at my portrait.  I mean, the woman had her head down and her face was inches from the drawing really studying it.  I couldn't believe it.  

    After a bit, she finally looked up, flashed me one of her photogenic smiles, and asked quietly, "Did you draw this?"  My shocked self could only reply "Uh-huh".  She smiled even more and then said "It's good!"  My jaw dropped even more at that point.  Then she really shocked the stuff out of me when she asked "Can I sign it?"  Holy crap....here's Janet Jackson, world megastar worth millions of dollars, loved by millions asking ME if she could sign my drawing?  Yeah....one word could only describe me at that time....SHOCK!  Finally, I stammered "Yeah, you can sign it!  Anywhere!"  She then asked who to make it out to and I told her my name, and then she started signing away.

    Meanwhile, the rapper Q-Tip was sitting beside her.  I have LOVED Q-Tip ever since A Tribe Called Quest came out with the song "Scenario".  I turned to him and yelled out "Q-Tip!  Hey! You're a phat rapper!" and extended my hand.  He graciously shook my hand and said "Thanks....but I'm not really fat" *snicker*  Janet was then done autographing my portrait.  Just before I left, I asked "Janet, can I shake your hand?"  She simply replied "Sure!"  And my God....I don't know what this woman does to work out her hand, but when she shook my hand, I felt like she was going to crush it.  Her hand shake was crazy strong!!  At that point, I was ushered toward the escalators and left.

    Meeting Janet was THE most memorable of my celebrity experiences because this event was the first time I had ever met a celebrity, and it was the first (and only) time that I got to meet my idol.  I was just glad that she liked my portrait...and that she told me that she liked it.  How crazy is that?  As big a superstar as she is, though, Janet is one of the most humble, nicest celebrities out there.  Thank you Janet for a wonderful experience!

Visit Janet Jackson's fan club website 

Visit Janet Jackson's official website at Virgin Records

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Clip playing:

"Got 'Til It's Gone" by Janet Jackson f/Q-Tip and Joni Mitchell

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