A pop superstar for 30-plus years, Janet Jackson could easily rest on her laurels.

Shes been complaining about the citys perpetual construction and the resulting detours.

But there are no jackhammering rigs in front of her right at the moment.

Black and white portrait of Janet Jackson for Allure Magazine’s February 2022 cover story. She wears a puffer-style neckpiece and lots of rings.

Yet shes still blowing her horn.

This moment stands out to me for a single reason.

Fame has a way of making the mundane consequential.

Dramatically lit portrait of Janet Jackson on the cover of Allure Magazine’s 2022 February issue. She stands against a gray background wearing an oversized tan puffer coat that she’s holding closed against her neck. Her hair is braided and stacked on top of her head in two puffs. Text reads Janet Long May She Reign.

Jackson has lived in London going on six years.

She stays because this is where her son was born.

The discussion of her residence fades away on the whispering treble notes of her voice.

Portrait of Janet Jackson for Allure Magazine’s 2022 February cover story. She wears a glam smoky eye, pale metallic lip color, a silver ruffled collar, and silver jeweled helmet.

She is not loud, but she can be firm.

Shes a reminder that certainty does not have to be defined by booming volume and heavy bass.

She wasnt starting from scratch; she had a license.

She was learning to drive in London, which meant remembering to stay to the left.

Two things relax me, the ocean and driving.

So I had to learn how to drive.

I was tired of drivers driving me everywhere, Jackson says.

That was always my thing.

Rick Owens coat, T-shirt, and dress.

Photographed by Tom Munro.

Fashion stylist: Patti Wilson.

Hair: Larry Sims.

Makeup: Preston Meneses.

Manicure: Michelle Humphrey.

Production: Farago Projects.

How many people does it take to purchase ornaments?

Is it an authentically mundane errand in the life of a superstar?

And no, a crowd is not gathering.

Jackson buys me a Christmas ornament a little felt Santa perched atop a pair of wooden skis.

I offer this as evidence of her graciousness and also full disclosure.

Its a very nice Santa.

Her dark hair hangs in long braids highlighted with streaks of cobalt blue.

Her glasses are tinted, but they are stylish rather than camouflaging.

She is a lovely, famous head floating atop a cloud of black.

Jackson isnt trying to hide in plain sight.

She long ago made peace with the realities and illusions of control.

Its only God whos in control of it all.

You know what I mean?

She begins our meal with a silent prayer of grace.

Music had not been her earliest desire.

She wanted to be an entertainment lawyer.

We would always write music growing up.

We had a studio at my parents house; its still there actually.

They were listening to the song.

My father, some of my brothers.

I was so embarrassed.

And thats when my father said, I think you should become a performer.

I said, No, no, no, no, no!

I want to go to school.

Thats how it all started.

Controlwas a blockbuster album in real time and the music remains relevant.

But it was never intended to be a rallying cry for anyone other than Jackson herself.

You just write [about] whats going on with you; at least I did.

It was difficult at times being a woman and being told, No, you cant.

Because women dont do that, Jackson says.

I was never a girly girl.

Even as an early teen, I always had on a suit with a tie or suspenders.

But now, women are coming into their own and taking charge of their identity.

Theyre defining their own beauty standards, Jackson says with admiration.

You had to always be thin and always look a certain way.

And now its all accepted and it is all beautiful and I absolutely love that.

Jackson is blissfully unaware that this stance has brought Lizzo accolades and ruthless criticism.

For years, Jacksons signature style was fully buttoned up.

She remained committed to that aesthetic through her next album,Janet Jacksons Rhythm Nation 1814.

She rejected the sexualization of her body.

In the Rhythm Nation video, she would be a groundbreaking star without showing skin.

I was never a girly girl.

I was always a tomboy.

So it was always about pants, suits, even as an early teenager.

With her 1993 albumJanetshe reconsidered modesty.

For that cover, shes topless, although its implied rather than revealed.

It was an affirmation of control, Jackson says.

Control, theres that word again.

Participation in the skin game is a rite of passage for child stars who want to assert their adulthood.

But before it became any of those things, it was a revelation.

Trying to feel comfortable in embracing that.

Throwing myself in the lions den.

Just going for it, wanting to do something different.

The decision was akin to opening a door.

It took a lot of work, a lot of work, she says.

It was something very tough, very difficult.

But Im glad I walked through it.

Im really glad I got in.

It was a way of accepting and loving, accepting yourself and your body.

I pause for a bit and consider where the conversation has led us: to the gridiron in Houston.

At that time, she pledged never to go into it again.

I wonder how she got through the storm.

Whats really important is going back to having that foundation.

Not just family, but God.

Thats what really pulled me through, Jackson says.

She adds: Its tough for me to talk about that time.

That past imbroglio, after all, wasnt over indiscriminate violence, extreme profanity, or sexual assault.

It was simply anger over a Black womans body thrust into the publics jaundiced gaze.

Yet shes not disheartened by the renewed interest.

I think its important.

Not just for me, but for women.

So I think its important that conversation has been had.

You know what I mean?

And things have changed obviously since then for the better.

Noir Kei Ninomiya jacket.

The money and the accolades are keepers, but fame is a sneaky, bossy bastard.

Its the aspect of accomplishment that can leave a person isolated or forever lashed to their 20-year-old self.

Fame is more gracious and accommodating of men over the course of their careers than it is of women.

Bruce Springsteen, 72, is an eminence grise whose words are given serious consideration in the public domain.

Madonna, 63, is a nuisance.

I would hope that Id be able to continue if I choose to.

You know what I mean?

But only time will tell, she says.

Jackson responded on social media with heartfelt thanks.

She will be allowed to age without judgment or at least with a manageable amount of it.

Im very fortunate to have a very loyal and loving fan base.

And I think they will always accept me for who I am, Jackson says.

Everyone would always want to stay young and this and that, she continues, but its inevitable.

I mean, were all going to get there.

One fan on Instagram, Jackson says, wondered if shes been artificially plumping them up.

Theres another road, she says.

Its a little bit of zhuzh.

I do hope I age gracefully, she says, because, of course, who doesnt?

Its either a little bit of zhuzh or gracefully.

Jackson will control what she can.

And let the rest go.