In an interview that will air on the Today show on Friday and on Dateline on Sunday, Feb. 13, Janet Jackson reveals that her struggles with body image have gone much deeper than a fluctuating waistline.
I would literally bang my head up against the wall because I didn't feel attractive. … There was a lot of pain in my life. But I did. I felt very unattractive," she told host Meredith Vieira.
Evidently the famous Jackson family — if not the source of the issues — certainly didn't help with her self-confidence. She says her brothers, including Michael, called her names like "horse, pig, cow, slaughter-hog" when she was growing up.
And she was never allowed to call her father "dad."
She says she's much better now, and has written a book about her healing: True You: A Journey to Finding and Loving Yourself. We're thinking that if the insights are good enough to help someone raised by Joe Jackson feel better, they're good enough for us.
Read more at the Scoop.
In other news: Finally! Obama Has Given Up Cigarettes.