[9] Jackson also played the role of Cleo Hewitt during the fourth season of Fame, but expressed indifference towards the series, largely due to the emotional stress of her secret marriage to R&B singer James DeBarge.

[22][30][31] Control was declared "remarkably nervy and mature" for a teenage act, also considered "an alternative to the sentimental balladry" which permeated radio, likening Jackson to Donna Summer's position of "unwilling to accept novelty status and taking her own steps to rise above it.

[40] The album's lyrical content included several themes of empowerment, inspired by an incident of sexual harassment, with Jackson recalling "the danger hit home when a couple of guys started stalking me on the street and instead of running to Jimmy or Terry for protection, I took a stand.

"[29] In retrospect of her influence on the channel, Kyle Anderson of Entertainment Weekly commented: "The videos from Control were all over MTV, and Janet established herself as an instantly dominant pop figure talked about in the same sentences as Madonna and her older brother Michael.

"[43] MTV's Meaghan Garvey asserted "it's hard to overstate the significance of Control, whether in terms of the pop landscape, the evolution of the music video as a vessel for promotion and expression, or Top 40 feminist anthems."

"[48] The album was also considered "the exclamation point on her career", consisting of a "diverse collection of songs flowing with the natural talent Jackson possesses", which effectively "expanded Janet's range in every conceivable direction", being "more credibly feminine, more crucially masculine, more viably adult, more believably childlike.

Joel Selvin of the San Francisco Chronicle wrote "the 23-year-old has been making smash hit records for four years, becoming a fixture on MTV and a major role model to teenage girls across the country", and William Allen, then-executive vice president of the United Negro College Fund, told the Los Angeles Times, "Jackson is a role model for all young people to emulate and the message she has gotten to the young people of this country through the lyrics of 'Rhythm Nation 1814' is having positive effects.

[71] The album experimented with a diverse number of genres, including contemporary R&B, deep house, swing jazz, hip-hop, rock, and pop, with Billboard describing each as being "delivered with consummate skill and passion".

"Together Again", a "post-Aids pop song", and "Free Xone", considered "a paean to homosexuality" and an "anti-homophobia track", were praised for their lyrical context, in addition to Jackson's lesbian reinterpretation of Rod Stewart's "Tonight's the Night".

The event paid tribute to Jackson's career and influence, including commentary from Britney Spears, Jennifer Lopez, Aaliyah, and Jessica Simpson, and performances by 'N Sync, Pink, Destiny's Child, Usher, Buckcherry, Mýa, Macy Gray, and Outkast.

[130] Richard Harrington of The Washington Post said Jackson's performance surpassed her contemporaries,[131] but Bob Massy of Spin thought her dancers "threw crisper moves" and her supporting singers were mixed nearly as high, though declared "Janet cast herself as the real entertainment.

[143] A Mickey Mouse statue wearing Jackson's iconic "Rhythm Nation" outfit was mantled at Walt Disney World theme park the previous year to honor her legacy, but it was removed following her controversial performance.

The foundation's CEO stated "We are profoundly grateful to Janet Jackson for joining amfAR as a chair of its first event in Milan... She brings incomparable grace and a history of dedication to the fight against AIDS.

[243][244] Refocusing the tour's theme to reflect socially conscious messages from Jackson's entire music catalog, many songs selected for the concert set list along with corresponding imagery depicted on stage address racism, white supremacy, fascism, xenophobia and police brutality.

[246] Her emotional rendition of "What About", a song about domestic violence originally recorded for The Velvet Rope, drew media attention highlighting her recent separation from her husband; Jackson's brother Randy alleges she suffered verbal abuse by Al Mana which contributed to the breakdown of their marriage.

"[277] Biographer David Ritz commented, "on Janet's albums—and in her videos and live performances, which revealed a crisp, athletic dance technique [...] singing wasn't the point," saying emphasis was placed on "her slamming beats, infectious hooks, and impeccable production values.

"[67] Eric Henderson of Slant magazine claimed critics opposing her small voice "somehow missed the explosive 'gimme a beat' vocal pyrotechnics she unleashes all over 'Nasty' ... Or that they completely dismissed how perfect her tremulous hesitance fits into the abstinence anthem 'Let's Wait Awhile'.

"[280] Matthew Perpetua of Fluxblog suggested Jackson's vocal techniques as a study for indie rock music, considering it to possess "a somewhat subliminal effect on the listener, guiding and emphasizing dynamic shifts without distracting attention from its primal hooks."

[301] Veronica Chambers declared, "Her impact on pop music is undeniable and far-reaching," adding, "A quick glance at the Billboard chart reveals any number of artists cast in the Janet Jackson mold."

"[302] Janine Coveney of Billboard observed that "Jackson's musical declaration of independence [Control] launched a string of hits, an indelible production sound, and an enduring image cemented by groundbreaking video choreography and imagery that pop vocalists still emulate.

[310] Independent Journalist Nicholas Barber stated "Janet's concerts are the pop equivalent of a summer blockbuster movie, with all the explosions, special effects, ersatz sentimentality, gratuitous cleavage, and emphasis on spectacle over coherence that the term implies.

"[312] Chris Willman of the Los Angeles Times stated the "enthralling" choreography of Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814 Tour "represents the pinnacle of what can be done in the popping 'n' locking style—a rapid-fire mixture of rigidly jerky and gracefully fluid movements.

"[316] Similarly, Chris Willman commented, "even a classically trained vocalist would be hard-pressed to maintain any sort of level of volume—or, more appropriately, 'Control'—while bounding up and down stairs and whipping limbs in unnatural directions at impeccable, breakneck speed.

Steve Dollar of Newsday wrote that "[s]he projects that home girl-next-door quality that belies her place as the youngest sibling in a family whose inner and outer lives have been as poked at, gossiped about, docudramatized and hard-copied as the Kennedys.

"[297] Steve Huey of Allmusic asserted that despite being born into a family of entertainers, Janet Jackson has managed to emerge a "superstar" in her own right, rivaling not only several female recording artists including Madonna and Whitney Houston, but also her brother, while "successfully [shifting] her image from a strong, independent young woman to a sexy, mature adult".

[333][334] A model of reinvention, author Jessie Carney Smith wrote that "Janet has continued to test the limits of her transformative power", receiving accolades in music, film and concert tours throughout the course of her career.

[42] Leon McDermott of the Sunday Herald wrote: "Her million-selling albums in the 1980s helped invent contemporary R&B through Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis's muscular, lean production; the sinuous grooves threaded through 1986's Control and 1989's Rhythm Nation 1814 are the foundation upon which today's hotshot producers and singers rely.

"[165] Sarah Rodman of the Boston Herald remarked: "For every hand-fluttering, overwrought, melisma addict out there aping Mariah's dog calls, there's an equal number trying to match Jackson's bubbling grooves and fancy footwork, including Britney Spears, Aaliyah and Destiny's Child.

[352][353] Elysa Gardner of USA Today wrote: "Jackson claims not to be bothered by the brigade of barely post-adolescent baby divas who have been inspired by—and, in some cases, have flagrantly aped—the sharp, animated choreography and girlish but decidedly post-feminist feistiness that have long been hallmarks of her performance style.

[360] Dan Shanoff stated, "Before J-Lo even thought about being a singing-dancing-acting triple-threat... [Janet] was reinventing music videos, putting on a sick stage show and starring in both "Good Times" and "Diff'rent Strokes.