True You by Janet Jackson Page B

the system and found a way to get his sister better care. He moved her to the city where he was attending college, and in time, she improved. She got her high school degree and was admitted to a business school.
    When the twins wrote me, they were doing well and said, in an almost mystical way, that the musical background of their journey was
Control
and
Rhythm Nation
. The love of one sibling for the other had prevailed. Of course I was flattered and grateful that music could provide positive energy for anyone looking for motivation.
    At the time of
Rhythm Nation
, my motivation was to open my mind and heart to subjects that were calling to me—problems I knew needed to be highlighted. I didn’t want to appear glamorous or hip. I didn’t want to draw attention away from the important matters at hand. I wore the
Rhythm Nation
uniform, an all-black outfit that symbolized the severity of the issues. It was the first time I wasn’t singing about romance or relationships.
    At the start of the project, I was still not comfortable exposing my body. In this sense, I continued to carry that self-consciousness about being too big that had followed me since childhood. I was happy to cover myself from head to foot in black.
    Not long after the record came out, a woman my age wrote me that she had also decided to wear black every day for the next three weeks. For her, it was a protest against what she saw as sexual harassment.

    I work in a field that’s dominated by men, and in an office which is 90 percent male. Because I have a position higher than most of the men, there’s a certain amount of jealousy. And because I am in my early twenties and not unattractive, I’m given an inordinate amount of attention. I’ve dressed conservatively, but I get whispered comments and stares almost every day. Of course those comments and stares make me uncomfortable, but there isn’t much I can do. I’ve just continued with my job and ignored everyone who seems to be objectifying me. Well, last week my boss called me into his office and said that he thought my outfits were provocative. I had no idea what he meant—and told him so. “Your blouses,” he said, “are too tight.” Now I realized there were legal issues here, and I could have called an attorney to get advice. I might even have grounds for a complaint. But it took me a full year to find this job and another two years to rise to the position that I now hold. I need the money for both myself and my mother and I’m not about to get tied up in a legal hassle.
    When I saw your
Rhythm Nation,
Janet, the idea came to me: Wear a black outfit every day. So that’s what I’m doing. Sometimes I wear a black pants suit, sometimes a black dress. When I come dressed in a black skirt, I make certain to wear a loose-fitting black blouse. When the men start questioning me about why I’m wearing black, I keep my answer short. “I like black,” is all I say. I
don’t owe them an explanation. Actions speak louder than words, and I’m sure that my all-black statement is making the point. I’m going about my work with dignity, and I’m letting my boss know how I feel about his ‘advice’ to me. I don’t foresee that I’ll dress this way forever, but so far it’s making me feel extremely good about myself. In fact, I never felt ready to fall in love until I had gained this kind of respect for myself. Now I’ve met a man for whom I feel great love, and I’m optimistic about our future. I had to join up in that
Rhythm Nation
to get things going!
    Rhythm Nation
was a powerful time for me. I was developing a sense of self-esteem, partially because, through these songs, I was able to transcend some of my own problems and concentrate on societal issues. I was able to live with the criticism that I was moving away from the
Control
vibe that had brought me success. I was feeling a great deal of love.
    One man who lived in a foreign country wrote me that the record spoke to him about the