Janet on new album, divorce
Janet Jackson cleared up several rumors about her private life and career during a one-hour interview at Canadian video station MuchMusic in Toronto on April 19th - among them a hot off-the-gossip-mill report that she's peeved that Mariah Carey, who just signed to Virgin Records (Jackson's label), will be making more money per album. Carey will reportedly get $23.5 million, while Jackson gets $10 million.
"That is so untrue," said Jackson. "I just found out that somebody made this rumor up in New York. I sent Mariah flowers saying, 'Welcome to the family.' I'm happy for her."
Wearing blue jeans and asymmetrical off-one-shoulder white tank top, her hair pulled all off her face in a bun and secured by a black headband, Jackson - whose new album, All for You, hits stores next week - fielded questions from media and fans alike. One fan asked Jackson how she feels about newspaper reports that her ex-husband, Rene Elizondo Jr., might reveal private details about her life in a book. The couple was married for eight years, a secret that only surfaced when Jackson filed for divorce last spring.
"It's in the paper. That doesn't necessarily mean that it's true, for one," she said. "And if something like that were to happen, it definitely hurts because you've kept your life so private. I'm big on family and friends and trust and honesty and all that stuff, so to have someone turn on you in such a way, because they're hurting, says more about the person really than anything."
"I wanted to have a normal life," Jackson said in response to a query about the secrecy of the marriage. "It's difficult in the industry trying to have a normal life. It seems like people are married one month and divorced the next or the next year. There's so much negativity, people wondering how long is that going to last, as opposed to wishing them well and hoping that it lasts. And we lasted eight years. We were together for thirteen years, and that's a long time."
Despite various rumors and her current legal battle with Elizondo, Jackson seemed to be in a positive place. She described All for You as "a very up, very hopeful, optimistic happy album. That's the space I'm in. There's a sense of freedom." And she's not about to give up on love. "That would be so unfair to me to say - 'OK, that's it, I'm never gonna love again because one bad apple decided to spoil it for me.' I might miss out on some of the most beautiful relationships in my life and friendships because of what I have gone through with this person. That's not fair to myself. It really isn't. So I refuse to take that path." (Rolling Stone)
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