The last time Janet Jackson performed on tour in Manchester was 26 years ago. But it’s not been for want of trying that she hasn’t returned to the city until this week. Shows were both scheduled for here in 2001 and 2016, but were cancelled for different reasons and never rescheduled (I myself had fourth-row tickets for that 2016 show in Manchester).
So, there’s been a little bit of trepidation from fans leading up to Tuesday nights show at Co-Op Live . And it’s not all necessary been about whether Janet would actually make it to the city or not. The 58-year-old caused quite a bit of controversy when an interview with The Guardian went viral last month after she repeated comments said by Donald Trump about Kamala Harris’s racial identity.
A retraction was made, before that in itself was also retracted with Janet's team later claiming the original spokesperson had nothing to do with the singer. Her stance on the position remains unclear. In the US, it was described as a 'PR nightmare' and threatened to derail this tour - which has been billed as a celebration of Janet’s expansive yet underrated music career.
READ MORE: Bruce Springsteen tickets for UK and European 2025 tour - how to get them But, with that out the way, the show must go on - it’s a new day and a new month, after all - and as Janet makes her first appearance on stage at the 23,500-capacity arena after her group of dancers waltz out on stage in duvet-like suits, the large majority of the audience ha.