Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer-songwriter, producer, dancer and actress. She is the youngest child of the Jackson music family and the sister of Michael Jackson. Janet ranks as the ninth most successful artist in the history of rock and roll and the second most successful female artist of all time behind Madonna.
Jackson initially stepped into the limelight as a young actress, appearing in television shows. Upon her father's insistance, she released two studio albums; neither garnered much attention nor success. Jackson is well-known for her detailed dance choreography and music videos. After a brief marriage to James DeBarge, Jackson set out to find her own identity. She collaborated with producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, and the trio created Jackson's breakout album, Control (1986) and the socially-focused follow-up, Rhythm Nation 1814 (1989).
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It's another tournament on clay for Andy Murray next week.
The Masters Series continues in Rome from Monday (5th).
Andy will face a qualifier in Rome, the draw takes places tomorrow (4th). If he defeats the qualifier in R1, he would then face either Marat Safin or Stanislas Wawrinka in R2. Then it's top quality stuff as Rafael Nadal waits in R3, if he makes it past his R2 opponent.
Let's hope he has a better tournament than before, Mario Ancic must be avoided.
Join in the discussion in The Andy Murray Forum.
Elton John is our 80s Star of the week.
In his four-decade career, John has been one of the dominant forces in rock and popular music, especially during the 1970s. He has sold more than 250 million albums and over one hundred million singles, making him one of the most successful artists of all time. He has more than 50 Top 40 hits including seven consecutive #1 U.S. albums, 59 Top 40 singles, 16 Top 10, 4 #2 hits, and nine #1 hits. He has won five Grammy awards and one Academy Award. His success has had a profound impact on popular music and has contributed to the continued popularity of the piano in rock and roll. In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked him #49 on their list of the 100 greatest artists of all time.
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Kylie Minogue was excellent in the 80s, realeasing some superb pop songs through Stock, Aitken and Waterman, then she met Michale Hutchence. IMO, he was the downfall of her, when she met up with him he convinced her to change her style to a more raunchy look with songs away from SAW, this was a disasterous time for her and nearly ruined her career. But only a true megastar has the ability to turn it around, she managed to do that and the rest is history.
I will never forget buying 'I Should Be So Lucky', it was my eighteenth birthday and was just a stunning song with a stunning singer, what more could you want, superb. Another welcome addition to our 80s gallery of stars. Kylie Minogue is our current 80s star.
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Kate Bush is our 80s Star of the week.
One of my favourite singers of all time, she has a unique voice and talent, able to transform even the dullest song into a work of art. Who can forget her version of Elton John's 'Rocket Man', superb.
Kate Bush (born Catherine Bush on 30 July 1958 in Bexleyheath, Kent, now part of Greater London) is an English singer-songwriter with an expressive four-octave voice. She is known for her eccentric, idiosyncratic literary lyrics, and eclectic and meticulous musical and production style.
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Sylvester Stallone is our 80s Star of the week.
Stallone's father was an immigrant from Gioia del Colle (province of Bari, Apulia, Italy). Stallone attended a private boarding school, The Glenholme School, in Washington, Connecticut. In the 1960s, Stallone attended the American College of Switzerland in Leysin, and the University of Miami for three years. He came within a few credit hours of graduation before he decided to drop out and pursue an acting career. After Stallone's request that his acting and life experiences be accepted in exchange for his remaining credits, he was granted a Bachelors of Fine Arts (BFA) degree by the President of the University of Miami in 1999.
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Smokers debate
My opinion is that smokers are a waste of taxpayers money, they should be left out from all help on the NHS as they continue to cost billions of pounds each year of my hard earned cash, should they be banned or not.
Got an opinion, let us know at The 80s Forum.
George Michael is our 80s Star of the week.
Everything you ever wanted to know about George Michael in the 80s, but were afraid to ask.
George Michael (born June 25, 1963) is an English-Greek pop singer/songwriter who (as a solo artist and one half of the duo WHAM!) has sold an estimated total of 80 million records.
It wasn't until he formed the duo Wham! together with Andrew Ridgeley in 1981 that success came for Michael. The band's first album, Fantastic!, was an instant success, and within a year they had released their classic debut single, Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do).
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David Bowie is the star for this week.
David Bowie (born David Robert Jones on January 8, 1947) is an English singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer, arranger and mixer, whose work spans more than four decades.
A knowing, indulgent and occasionally camp figure, he is universally recognised as one of the most accomplished and inspired artists in popular music. Throughout the 1970s he took cues from art, philosophy and literature, and appeared to elevate popular music to a more sophisticated level while cleverly not overplaying the gravitas card. He is also a film and stage actor, music video director and visual artist.
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Ulysses 31 is the star for this week.
Ulysses 31 is a Franco-Japanese anime series (1981) that updates the Greek and Roman mythology of Odysseus (known as "Ulysses" in Roman Mythology, and Ulysse in French, hence the name) to the 31st century. The show comprises 26 half-hour episodes and was produced by DiC Entertainment. The Gods of Olympus are angered when Ulysses, commander of the giant spaceship Odyssey, kills the giant Cyclops to save a group of enslaved children, including his son. Zeus sentences Ulysses to travel the universe with his crew frozen until he finds the Kingdom of Hades, at which point his crew will be revived and he will be able to return to Earth. Along the way they encounter numerous other famous figures from Greek mythology given a futuristic twist.
The A Team are The 80s Forum Star for the Week.
The A-Team is an American action adventure television series about a fictional group of ex-United States Army Special Forces who work as soldiers of fortune while being on the run from the military for a "crime they didn't commit".
The A-Team is an American action adventure television series about a fictional group of ex-United States Army Special Forces who work as soldiers of fortune while being on the run from the military for a "crime they didn't commit".
It remains known in popular culture for its use of over-the-top violence, formulaic episodes and its distinctive opening theme. It has been parodied on numerous websites such as Newgrounds and also on television shows such as Robot Chicken, Family Guy and Spaced. The show also served as the springboard for the career of Mr. T, who portrayed the character of B. A. Baracus, around which the show was largely written.
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The 80s Forum Star of the week is The Pet Shop Boys
The continued success of "It's a sin" was followed by the release of "What Have I Done To Deserve This?" on August 10. Co-written with Allee Willis and also featuring Dusty Springfield on vocals, the single reached number two on the UK Singles Chart. Though the duo had wanted to release this track on their debut album, but they had been unable to persuade their record label that Dusty Springfield was a good idea; Parlophone had suggested that they record it with Tina Turner.
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