Back in 2004, in what seems like practically another era, there was a Super Bowl incident during a halftime show in which Justin Timberlake reached over and ripped off Janet Jackson's breastplate, exposing the very thing it was covering. Both performers were banned from future Super Bowl performances, and, notably, Jackson took the brunt of the outrage that poured forth, as it will. She was vilified, victim-shamed, disinvited from the Grammys, and blacklisted from VH1 and MTV video plays. Of course, the whole incident was entirely Justin's fault—he reached over, after all; she was just doing her thing—but he faced little backlash and even got some Grammy Awards that year. He's even returning to the halftime show today to perform some of his problematic new songs. Where is this all going? Well, if you're on Twitter, then it's #JanetJacksonAppreciationDay. The hashtag starting trending on Super Bowl Sunday—clearly in response to Timberlake's halftime performance—and the tweets associated with it are phenomenal.
Before we continue, let it be known that today is the thirty-second anniversary of Control's release (it debuted February 4, 1986). On with the love!
This was one of the very first tweets. It didn't take long for more people to get on board.
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From there, some people posted about how Jackson impacted them:
"Leaving the nest and developing self-preservation, This album changed me as a woman 🙌🏾 I embrace every song," wrote one user.
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Other users shared their personal memories with and of the pop queen:
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Some pointed out her biological superpowers:
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Others celebrated with GIFs of Jackson being all sorts of fierce:
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And of course, there was lots of love:
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Every day should be Janet Jackson Appreciation Day in our books, but it's pretty magical how the Internet is giving her all this well-deserved shine. What a legend.
Related Stories:
-The Problem With Justin Timberlake's Return to His Roots
-45 People I'd Rather See Perform at the Super Bowl Than Justin Timberlake
-Justin Timberlake to Perform at 2018 Super Bowl Halftime Show, Internet Outraged
