When looking back on Janet Jackson‘s trailblazing career, it’s clear her indelible dance moves are as tightly woven into culture as the timeless musical material that boosted her into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this year.
On Friday (July 26), several of her albums are being reissued on vinyl, and Billboard can announce that Janet, her team and UMe are celebrating #DanceToJanet as well. As part of that, UMe connected two key Janet choreographers, Tina Landon and Anthony “Bam Bam” Thomas, with influencers from the dance community’s next generation to recreate some of her iconic moves — and DanceOn is sharing footage of those breakneck sessions.
Tina Landon originally met Janet via Paula Abdul during the video for “What Have You Done for Me Lately,” and eventually went on to choregraph a number of projects for Ms. Jackson, including 1993’s “If,” which she teaches to the younger generation in the clip below. Referring to artists who have asked her to give them Janet-like moves, Landon deadpans, “They have no idea how hard it is to do what she does.”
In another clip, Thomas teaches a masterclass in the unforgettable “Rhythm Nation” choreography, which wraps with a knockout freestyle.
“We wanted to create a celebration of Janet Jackson through the language of dance. Janet is one of the rare triple threat artists who has remained as iconic through her choreography as her music,” says Andre Torres, vp of urban legends at UMe. “As we look to the future of keeping catalog relevant in a digital age, we find what resonates most are activations where we come to the fans. We want to engage fans at their points of natural consumption, appearing in fun ways on the screens and platforms they’re enjoying and making them fall in love with an artist’s legacy through a new medium and lens.
“What’s interesting to us is creating connections. We want to shatter the conception of new and old by making everything feel fresh, especially when celebrating an artist of Janet’s caliber.”
Friday (July 26) also marks the reissue of four classic Janet albums on vinyl for the first time: Rhythm Nation 1814, janet., The Velvet Rope and All For You. Control and Control: The Remixes are also being re-released on vinyl.