Janet Jackson celebrates the 40th anniversary of ‘Control’

Janet Jackson released her third studio album “Control” on Feb. 4 in 1986, ushering in a whole new era for the music icon.

Janet Jackson has been in control for four decades.

The 59-year-old R&B icon celebrated the 40th anniversary of her breakthrough album “Control” in an Instagram post earlier this week, featuring a montage of clips from that era of her career set to the monologue she delivers on the title track.

“This is a story about control/My control/Control of what I say/Control of what I do/And this time, I’m gonna do it my way,”  Jackson famously says on the track. “I hope you enjoy this as much as I do/Are we ready?/I am/’Cause it’s all about control/And I’ve got lots of it.”

In the caption, she wrote, “Happy 40th Control!” and also tagged producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. 

The album, which arrived Feb. 4, 1986, and was her third studio release, ushered in a new era for the artist, who was just 19 years old. The album landed with juggernaut powerhouse high-energy tracks hits including “Nasty,” “What Have You Done For Me Lately,” “When I Think of You,” and softer ballads like “Let’s Wait Awhile,” and went on to be a giant commercial success, going platinum multiple times. 

Jackson also received three nominations at the 1987 Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance for “Control” as well as Best R&B Song for “What Have You Done for Me Lately,” while Jam and Lewis won Producer of the Year, Non-Classical.

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