Janet Jackson will be honored this year with an award that acknowledges her hit-making dominance in the ’80s and ’90s. The American Music Awards have named her as the recipient of the Icon Award, which she’ll receive during the show’s broadcast on Memorial Day, May 26.
Jackson, 59, is an 11-time American Music Award winner who first appeared on the AMA stage as a child, introduced by her brother Michael. A lengthy career and 180 million records sold, including 20 million alone for her top-selling album, Janet, Jackson has been part of the pop music firmament for four decades and counting. She’ll perform live on the awards—her first TV performance in seven years—from the Fontainebleau in Las Vegas, where she concludes a residency at the end of the month.
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One of the top-selling music artists in history, Janet followed her brothers into the business. Their success as the Jackson 5 and then The Jacksons propelled Michael into the pop music stratosphere where he sat firmly on his throne as the King of Pop until his untimely death in 2009. Janet may be the second-most successful pop star in her family, but she’s one of the top female musicians of all-time.
A five-time Grammy winner, Janet has already received the Billboard Icon award, so this latest award just adds to her already overflowing trophy case. In 1990, she won MTV’s Video Vanguard award, and has also won the GLAAD Vanguard Award, which honors artists who support and advocate for the LGBTQ+ community.
Outside of music, Janet starred on three TV shows, including memorable turns on Good Times and Fame, and in five movies, including Poetic Justice with Regina King and Tupac. In 2019, Jackson was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Despite all her career successes, Janet won’t keep the latest award in her home. She told The Guardian last year that she never focused on accolades.
“I do what I do because I love it. I get so much fulfilment from it, but not one award is in my house, nor has there ever been,” she said. “It sounds so bad, but they’re all in storage.”
She continued, “Nothing in my house is to do with entertainment and me. No shot of me performing, none of that, just photographs of me with my baby and family…Mind you, growing up in my parents’ house with my brothers, all across the walls there were the gold albums. The platinum albums. The covers. Maybe that’s why? Not to rebel against it, just…I grew up with this. I don’t need to do this.”
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