This article is part of a series in celebration of a new, dynamic voice in Black America: the NUBIANO Exchange. Brace yourself for the NUBIANO experience. 

As the member of the world-famous Jackson family, Janet expected her life to be the subject of certain media scrutiny. Undoubtedly, growing up in the public's eye must have been quite a challenge. Recently, however, since Super Bowl XXXVIII (2004), her personal and professional lives have been in a constant tailspin.

"Nipplegate," the wardrobe malfunction broadcasted across the world, became the most searched event in Internet history and made Janet Jackson's breast, instead of her music, the focus of 2004. The incident also caused Jackson to be blacklisted by some of the music industry's biggest outlets, most notably MTV, an affiliate of CBS, who endured the wrath of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for their Halftime Show.

Unfortunately, for Janet, the timing of "Nipplegate" coincided with the launch of her eighth studio album, Damita Jo (2004). The resulting backlash, you could say, is pop music history. Radio stations across the nation refused to spin singles off of her latest offering and sales for the album were dismal compared to her smash All For You (2001). In the face of the fall-out, Janet proved her "staying power," with "All Nite (Don't Stop)" hitting number one on Billboard's Hot Dance Club Play Chart.

2006 brought Janet's ninth studio album, 20 Y.O., a celebration of Control (1986), her groundbreaking release. Despite the passing of time, the release received a tepid response, with select media outlets still fuming over the "Nipplegate" scandal. (Ironically, her partner in crime, Justin Timberlake, was soaring to new heights with FutureSex/LoveSounds.) Janet once again proved her staying power, as she topped the Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs with her fifteenth chart-topper, "Call on Me." In addition, Jackson went on to capture the number one spot on Billboard's Hot Dance Club Play Chart with her second single, "So Excited."

Taking some notes from her past two offerings, Janet Jackson departed Virgin Records and returned in 2008 with "Feedback," a hip hop/dance-pop song produced by Rodney Jerkins and D'Mile. "Feedback" is certain to be another smash on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play Chart and Hot 100 listing, this time around, with her new label, Island Def Jam, and L. A. Reid at Discipline's helm.

Chart placement aside, some praise and attention must be given to the treatment of the "Feedback" music video. Set in outer space, British director Saam Farahmand managed to capture Janet at her best—ending the piece with two energetic dance routines. The artistic vision behind Janet's solo dance performance shows exactly why she's managed to stay on top after all these years. In the music video format, Jackson always reigned supreme.

Having paid her dues (in extreme public fashion), "Feedback" assertively shows that Janet is the music icon that the industry refuses to acknowledge. MTV's stubbornness, out of all the media outlets, is perhaps the most shocking, since they crowned Janet as their first "ICON," in 2001, yet failed to premiere "Feedback," on January 8, 2008, as BET's 106 & Park and Yahoo Music did. Perhaps, one day, they'll come around.

Nevertheless, in spite of the media's backlash, a handful of female entertainers, most notably Ciara, Rihanna, and Beyonce, have continued to channel the spirit of Miss Jackson in song and dance. None, however, have managed to overshadow her career or have as much cultural significance. On February 26, 2008, with the release of Discipline, the world may very well see Janet Jackson return to take her throne.

Make no mistake, though, Discipline is not a comeback album. "I think a comeback is when you leave and then you … come back," Jackson told Billboard Magazine (January 19, 2008). "People are always quick to use that word 'comeback,' but I never went anywhere, really."