Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan have officially dubbed May 30 as Janet Jackson Day.
Flanagan shared the announcement in a social media post on Tuesday evening, during Jackson’s recent Together Again Tour stop at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota.
“Happy @janetjackson Day, Minnesota,” wrote Flanagan in a caption for a photo of her holding the signed proclamation.
Jackson went to Twitter Wednesday morning to express her gratitude. “Thank u to @GovTimWalz & @LtGovFlanagan and the State of Minnesota for the honor of making May 30th officially Janet Jackson Day in the state,” Jackson wrote in a tweet.
As mentioned above, Jackson is presently on tour nationwide. The Together Again Tour, powered by Live Nation and named after her 1997 No. 1 hit, started May 2 and will run until June 21. Rapper Ludacris has supported the tour, as well as Lil’ Kim, who stood in for Ludacris during his Hollywood Walk of Fame induction.
“Kim, thanks so much for filling in while Luda was getting his much deserved star on the walk of fame…Love u sis,” wrote Jackson in a backstage photo of her and Lil’ Kim.
New music is top of mind for Jackson, according to producer Harmony Samuels. In a recent interview with Rated R&B, he confirmed that he and Jackson were back in the studio together after last working on “Made For Now” in 2018.
“Working with Janet Jackson right now. It’s one of the most amazing things I’ve experienced just ’cause she’s so elegant and such a sweetheart,” Samuels exclusively told Rated R&B. “[Sometimes] when you meet people on and off stage, they’re two different people. She’s just as sweet offstage as she is onstage. A beautiful-hearted person.”
Jackson has hinted at a new studio album since 2021. The album is tentatively titled Black Diamond and will mark her first album since 2015’s Unbreakable.
In the interim, Jackson announced a special 30th-anniversary edition of her landmark 1993 album Janet. Arriving July 9, this edition is slated to be reissued in two formats: a two-disc CD and a three-LP set.
Aside from music, Jackson is expanding her relationship with Lifetime and A&E Networks with Janet Jackson: Family First, a sequel to her self-titled 2022 documentary.
Janet Jackson: Family First will follow Jackson preparing for and on the road during her Together Again Tour. No release date has been announced for the film.