Five-time Grammy Award-winning Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Janet Jackson performed more than 40 songs over two hours earlier this month during one of the final shows of her residency at Resorts World Theatre in Resorts World Las Vegas. The singer, songwriter, dancer, and actress took the crowd on a musical journey, performing hits from the 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, and 2010s all from her extensive catalog.
The global icon, who notched 10 number-one hits on the Billboard charts, opened the show with the mid-tempo “Night” from her 2015 album Unbreakable. Some of the other songs Jackson performed amongst several costume changes included “Son of a Gun (I Betcha Think This Song Is About You),” complete with baseball bats held by her and four male dancers, “All Nite (Don’t Stop),” “It’s All For You,” “Let’s Wait A While,” “Pleasure Principle,” “Control,” “What Have You Done For Me Lately,” “That’s The Way Love Goes,” “If,” “Any Time, Any Place,” ”You Want This“ “Got ‘Til It’s Gone,” “Escapade,” “Miss You Much,” “I Get Lonely,” “Nasty,” and “Rhythm Nation.”
For the biggest fans, or the Janet Jackson stans, the question is: did she perform your favorite songs? As a huge fan myself, I enjoyed hearing her perform some of my personal favorites, like her first number one song about the calming effect thoughts of that special someone has on you when they cross your mind “When I Think Of You,” “Love Will Never Do (Without You),” and one of my and my deceased mother’s favorites, “Alright.”
Outside of her first appearance on stage, the loudest ovation of the night came when Jackson’s older brother, the appropriately named King of Pop, Michael Jackson, who died in 2009, appeared on the screen during the video of the siblings’ duet, “Scream.”
Jackson left the stage briefly and returned for an encore to perform “Black Eagle,” “Better Days,” “Someone To Call My Lover,” and closed the show with “Together Again,” with three photos of a young Janet with three deceased family members: her father Joe Jackson, and older brothers Tito and Michael.
Due to a unique set of circumstances, I was fortunate enough to see nearly 50 minutes of the two-hour show from the front row, but it was not my first time. On October 6, 1998, I had the honor not only of sitting in the first row to see Jackson on her Velvet Rope tour at the now-shuttered Continental Airlines Arena, with Usher as her opening act, but I also participated in a meet-and-greet with her and took photos prior to the concert.
Singer Erykah Badu brings her Mama’s Gun ’25: The Return of Automatic Slim tour to Resorts World Theatre on October 4. The theatre underwent renovations for approximately three months, creating a spectacular VIP area with 67 VIP banquettes that offer beverage service. It reopened for Jackson’s residency earlier this month.
Brooklyn’s own Maxwell will bring his the Serenade 2025 to the theatre on Friday, October 24, with Lucky Day as the opening act, with actor and comedian Martin Lawrence taking the stage on November 15 with his “Y’all Still Know What It Is!” tour.