Janet Jackson can’t stop because she has a contractual obligation with King Jesus not to—or at least, that’s the best answer I can come up with. Longevity! We love to see it.
At 53, this titan of work ethic and whisper vocals has an upcoming Black Diamond World Tour, which will feature brand-new songs from her upcoming studio album, Black Diamond, as well as a performance commemorating the 30th anniversary of her iconic LP Rhythm Nation 1814, reports Rolling Stone. As if that weren’t enough, she’ll also be headlining this year’s Essence Fest with short king Bruno Mars. Black diamonds are forever, and apparently, so is Janet Jackson.
As part of the run-up to the tour (tickets went on sale today), Jackson swung by The Tonight Show to perform on the segment much-adored by your Facebook super-user Auntie, “Classroom Instruments” with The Roots. She performed her 1995 single, “Runaway,” one of my all-time favorite videos because it’s essentially just Jackson getting the fuck out of town.
Anyway, here’s the video. It’s cute! And for some reason, Fallon keeps waving sparkly flags. As for the vocals, I’ll let y’all debate that among yourselves.