Who's more successful? Janet or Britney?

[MJ1814]

I agree and yes eventually Britney will pass Janet but that doesn't take away from what she has accomplished.

This is unlikely. Britney is at 80mil albums. Janet is at 100mil+. Britney will need to sell 20mil more albums just to catch Janet. There's no telling how much is in that "+". And in a declining market, it is unlikely that Britney will outsell Janet.

Janet has tried very hard to be successful but it doesn't seem that anyone cares.

Not really. She said during the 20YO that she's done with trying to prove herself. And she even said this during the All For You era and on Larry King in 2008.

Her fans blame it on the Superbowl but I don't buy that at all. Maybe, initially, it was a problem but I don't believe for a second that it had a long term effect on her career, etc. Controversy more often than not usually helps an album sell and even though it possibly did hurt her image at first the incident was forgotten by the time she released her 2nd and third album after the initial shenanigan.

Well of course you'd say something like this. Look who is in your siggy. It's not easy for black women to do things in the industry and get away with it. You see how the media did Whitney. You see how they did Janet. You see how they did Mike. Do you honestly think if Beyonce went thru what Britney went thrur 2006/2007 ppl would even still care about her? Doubt it. Hate to play the race card, but the Superbowl had more of an impact on her career than you thought. "Just A Little While" had like a 2000+ plus bullet on radio, then after the Superbowl it suddenly fell down the charts.

Some fans say she was banned or this or that but those theories really don't hold up. I find it to be more of an excuse (a way that Janet and her fans don't have to take accountability or face the music, so to speak).

Well when you're banned from radio and the most prominent cable outlet for music (MTV) what do you expect? :mello:

It's not at all like with Michael, who purposely wasn't releasing new albums but instead spending actual "quiet time" with his family. Janet was out there husslin' but there wasn't anyone paying attention. Actually, she was releasing more material more frequently with less and less success. With Janet, I find that there is a real lack of interest in her music.

As a rational fan of Janet's, but to say there is no interest is beyond faulty. If there was a lack of interest Damita Jo and 20YO wouldn't have gone platinum. And Discipline wouldn't have debuted at #1, nor would "Feedback" have sold 600k+ downloads. There has, and will always be an interest in Janet. Just look at her last name. That alone is worth the ticket.

I know the hardcore fans don't want to hear that and for that I'm sorry. I simply don't see how anyone can genuinely argue anything other than the general public's interest in her has dried up. You can only play the Superbowl violin for so long before it too loses credibility.

Again, look who is in your siggy. :sigh: In addition to that, Janet is an older artist. Typically they don't get the promotion and sales of younger artists. Unless they leech of one of the artists of "today's" generation for hits and sales. But it's all relative.

Janet needs a new sound and direction. Her music from the last decade is interchangeable and that's the problem. It's played out.

P.S. This is coming from a Janet fan (believe it or not... I don't care). I'm just keeping it real.

I find ironic how Janet needs to find a new sound, yet I don't hear this about any other artists. Just goes to show that ppl are more critical of black artists, and particularly women. Janet has admitted that to a degree the music was one of the problems, but when you have no support from the #1 form of music promotion (radio) there's only so much you can do. I can't tell you how many ppl on Janet's board have said something along the lines of "the radio is playing Janet's 'Feedback'. They haven't played Janet since 2004". Coincidence? I think not.

 

[ASIS]

there is no need to play the race card, the fanboy card (when you're pointing at her/his sig in your post), or the sex card. All arguments so far have been valid and the only one that could raise a few eyebrows is the banning part (I never knew about that really). Janet is very successful, and she doesn't need to prove herself anymore. But we are not talking about that. We are talking about her current and total sales worldwide and how they hold up to Britney's sales. A lot of people think some artists need a new jolt to keep things fresh and I admit janet isn't doing much to freshen up lately, britney and madonna, for instance, are constantly changing their sounds.. That's why I think they are bringing more buzz these days than Janet.

 

[Moogisland]

Em, im not bothered what people say but I have to correct one thing.

Britney has not sold 90 million records. She has sold 66 million albums (83 including singles). Janet has sold 100 million ALBUMS (130 including singles).
So britney will NOT catch up with Janet in a long time. Especially not in 2 albums, which is how many Britney has left before she matches Janets number of album releases.

 

[ASIS]

Britney has 6 albums, Janet has 10. Britney has 4 albums left.. I think it's still possible.

 

[MJkidda]

Britney is more successful but Janet is more talented and smart.I never liked Britney..I think she is a oops I did it again :glare:

 

[Travis]

Ok y'all, yes, I'm a Madonna fan. We get it. That doesn't make what I have to say any less valuable. Get over it. It goes both ways, ya know? If anything, the hardcore fans defending Janet would be less ingenuous due to obvious bias. Believe it or not, I don't have an agenda. We are debating Britney and Janet and no one else. I even said Janet is more successful over all. Sheesh!

However, as always, someone has to pull out names and other tricks out of their hat to distract from the actual topic at hand.

I am a Janet fan too but all this ban talk and this and that is wearing thin these days. It's time to take accountability and call a spade a spade. Take off the rose colored glasses and call off the conspiracy theories. Yes, she's black but it never stopped her before.

The Superbowl incident had to do with decency and gender, not race. Justin got away scott clean because he didn't expose a body part and because he's a man. Was it right, nope. However, men always get away with more which is why it was a gender thing. Let's not forget too that it appeared to be VERY staged despite Janet and Justin saying otherwise. From the line of the song to the choreography and body jewelry, it was hard to swallow that it wasn't intentional. I'm not saying that I didn't believe her, but to the general public, it was very suspicious.

As for MJ, race was never the real issue. He broke that color barrier long ago. His height of fame, inability to cope, and his personal life was his undoing. The slumber parties, child molestation allegations, and extensive plastic surgery fueled the media. He was larger than life and very eccentric but despite it all was still very successful (the most successful of all time).

As for Whitney, that was total self sabotage. Now she's back on top because she cleaned herself up and people still had love and was rooting for her.

Playing the race card is one of the lowest things a person can do and very desperate. I'm sorry, but it is. It shouldn't be played unless absolutely necessary. Yes, racism still exists but the point is that the people you are referring to are some of the most successful artists of all-time. And something else to think about, black people aren't the only race discriminated against. Latinos and Asians can barely even break in to the US market while African Americans dominate it but we don't hear anything about that, do we? Racism extends far past black and white but I think many forget that.

I will close that by saying that the proverbial "race card" should be treated very delicately. It's a touchy subject and should be treated with respect and not used simply when one is trying to put over their favorite artist.

I'm not trying to offend anyone, but again, trying to be realistic without being too harsh or blunt.

Also, the things you are talking about Janet having to face due to her race are all the same things Madonna is currently facing. Ever since Madonna hit 40 she started being referred to as a number, sales dipped, and radio stopped supporting her. She's 51 now and it's VERY hard for her to get radio recognition. It's not a black and white thing. It's an age thing and that much is true.

I don't know if Janet can become relevant again or not but releasing the same album over and over again is certainly not gonna help matters.

 

[Adore]

I think timing also plays a big part in all the sales business.
Like when they both started, how old they were, what the audiences age is & how broad it is also factors like the rise & fall of things like casettes to CDs to MP3's & the internet...I think alot of these things favour Britney in terms of sales.

In fact if anything, it's the complete opposite. Most of Britney's albums have been released during the new era of widespread music piracy. Janet's most successful albums have all been released during the 80's and mid-late 90's, when everyone actually went to a record store and bought the album. The fact that Britney has sold as much as she has all throughout the Limewire age is a testament in itself to her selling power.

Hate to play the race card, but the Superbowl had more of an impact on her career than you thought. "Just A Little While" had like a 2000+ plus bullet on radio, then after the Superbowl it suddenly fell down the charts.

Okay, to play the race card and then to turn around and call yourself a rational fan in the same post is just ridiculous. :doh: Janet's colour has clearly not had an impact on her career (or lack thereof in later years). Janet was most successful in the 80's and 90's, when there was an abundance of white rock bands on tv and radio. There is far more black hiphop, rap, rnb and other genres floating around on radio airwaves than there ever has been. And yet Janet's sales have been declining rapidly ever since Janet. and The Velvet Rope. That has nothing to do with her race and everything to do with the fact that all these albums almost completely consisting of Janet fake orgasming in every song put people off. It's not the Janet that people remember, or know and love. It's one of the things that has lost Janet a lot of her credibility in the music world and amongst her own fans, along with the Superbowl incident (but only to a certain extent).

I can't tell you how many ppl on Janet's board have said something along the lines of "the radio is playing Janet's 'Feedback'. They haven't played Janet since 2004". Coincidence? I think not.

You're right, it isn't a coincidence. Because the only album released by Janet between 2004 and Feedback is 20 Y.O. Which also happens to be one of her worst performing albums on the charts, probably her most panned by critics and just generally agreed amongst listeners to be her most mediocre and subpar effort since her breakthrough. That's why no one requested Janet songs in that time period. Because Janet songs from that time period sucked bigtime. I have never read one single positive review of that album. Janet needs to step up her game unless she wants to fade into obscurity like other singers who hit their peak early and fall into the trap of using the same producers over and over and over again until people get sick of the repetitiveness and stop listening (Toni Braxton).

I am a Janet fan too but all this ban talk and this and that is wearing thin these days. It's time to take accountability and call a spade a spade. Take off the rose colored glasses and call off the conspiracy theories. Yes, she's black but it never stopped her before so why should it now?

Playing the race card is one of the lowest things a person can do and very desperate. I'm sorry, but it is. It shouldn't be played unless absolutely necessary. Yes, racism still exists but the point is that the people you are referring to are some of the most successful artists of all-time. And something else to think about, black people aren't the only race discriminated against. Latinos and Asians can barely even break in to the US market while African Americans dominate it but we don't hear anything about that, do we? Racism extends far past black and white but I think many forget that.

I don't know if Janet can become relevant again or not but releasing the same album over and over again is certainly not gonna help matters.

rep :clapping:

 

[Moogisland]

Britney has 6 albums, Janet has 10. Britney has 4 albums left.. I think it's still possible.

Actually it is 9 albums and 11 albums in you include compilations.

 

[babykinsilk05]

to Lonely17, do you have have credible sources and actual figures to back up this claim about Damita Jo and 20 Y.O?

Also, I believe Janet's 100mil albums sold includes singles as well, does anybody have actual figures that say other wise (besides her last record lable).

 

[BillieJean84]

Its sad to think that Janet and MJ were so close but haven't seen each other in at least 2 years since sometime after the trial ; she has said her brothers and sisters are 'very busy with their lives.'

 

[ASIS]

Actually it is 9 albums and 11 albums in you include compilations.

I don't think people count compilations as well when comparing to musical catalogues.. do they?