She takes the stage with a forceful strut, clad in black, hands on hips, tossing her head, fixing the audience with a steely gaze. ``That´s right, I´m Janet Jackson,´´ she snarls. ``And nothing goes until I say go.'' But the scene isn't from her Control tour. Not from Rhythm Nation, not from The Velvet Rope. Nope, it's from The Jacksons variety show in 1976. Li'l Janet was all of 10 years old. Even before that, at 9, the boa-draped Jackson was on Dinah Shore's show (one of her first TV appearances), growling her Mae West impersonation and singing a saucy duet (Love Is Strange) with her brother Randy. ``I don´t know how I did any of that stuff,´´ Jackson said in a recent VH1 special.

Indeed, as a performer, the baby of the Jackson family is such a contrast from the other Janet, the one we see in TV interviews so, so shy, speaking in a near-whisper, a tiny voice that can remind us of brother Michael's. And if her visceral performances belie her shyness, so too does her personal style. No, she might not be the Courtney Love of dance pop, but she's always expressed herself. Whether it's been the famous earring key, the kneepads and epaulets, or even the simpler touches like jeans and a tank, Jackson never came off like your garden-variety pop singer.

Not that she can't get freaky when she wants to as in Black Cat (Rhythm Nation), brother Michael's Scream video, or swearing like a sailor on Son of a Gun, a Carly Simon duet on All for You. But every now and then, the camera will catch the curve of Jackson's face at just the right angle. She'll smile or giggle, and it will take you all the way back to that little girl with the top-knot. And if you've watched Janet Jackson grow up, seeing a peek of Penny underneath the legend now known simply as ``Janet´´ that´s a comfort.