Incredible! Janet Jackson’s seminal R&B album Control is back on top of the charts, 35 years after its release.

“After its release in February 1986, Control spent 91 weeks on the Billboard top R&B and hip-hop chart, peaking at No. 1 for the first time on April 19, 1986.

It has now gone to No. 1on Apple’s Music Chart.

The album was a declaration of independence with Janet Jackson going her own way, firing her father as manager, working with new producers and showcasing a more sexually provocative urban image.

Control spawned a slew of hits including, When I Think of You, What Have You Done For Me Lately, Nasty, and the ballad, Let’s Wait A While.

 Ace producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis work on Control, setting the template for a number of female urban albums that followed by the likes of TLC, En Vogue, Mariah Carey, SWV, and Brownstone, fusing hip-hop with R&B beats.

Reflecting on Control, Jimmy Jam told Rolling Stone magazine, “ We wanted to do an album that would be in every black home in America…we were going for the black album of all time.”

A critically acclaimed tour de force, Control went on to sell 10 million copies. It is listed by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as one of the 200 Definitive Albums of All Time, going fivefold platinum.

Of Control, Newsweek said: “In an era of big-voiced pop-soul divas, her (Jackson) current hit album, is taut, funky, hard as nails, an alternative to the sentiment balladry and opulent arrangements of Patti LaBelle and Whitney Houston.”

The album set a new standard for urban R&B and was supported with some of the slickest videos of that era, unveiling a more dynamic and sassy Janet Jackson.

“ I think Control is timeless, because it was basically the coming out of a budding flower. That was when Janet found her voice. Prior to the record, people just gave her songs to sing. But on Control she really had the opportunity to figure out who she was musically and what she wanted to say. That was the beginning of everything, in terms of success,” said Terry Lewis.

The new-found interest in Janet Jackson’s Control may be down to Justin Timberlake’s recent apology for ripping her bra cup off during a Super Bowl  half-time show. Mellennials and Gen Z’s wanting to find out what that was all about are discovering a firecracker of an album that continues to resonate through the ages.

On Control going back to No 1., all these years later, Janet said: “I’m so thankful for all of you being in my life. You’re so special to me. I want to thank all of you for making  Control No 1. once again after 35 years. I never in a million years, would think this would happen. I really appreciate you and I love you so, so much.”