Janet Jackson is bold, brash and beautiful and her shows typically earn rave reviews. Privacy is her middle name. Her last name is control. And no, her first name isn't baby. It's Janet -- Miss Jackson, if you're nasty. Such were the words that propelled Janet Jackson into the stratosphere of celebrity back in 1986 -- and such were the words that sparked a now long-burning personal torch of admiration for the youngest Jackson. No, I don't have all her records -- nor do I have posters of her pretty face plastered all over the basement rec room. She's just one of those women about my age who's been able to massage adversity and old-school attitudes to her advantage -- without sucking up, or putting on airs, or compromising a thread of integrity along the way. Not even Madonna managed to salvage her precious sexual mystique in the wake of her tacky Sex book, but Jackson found the perfect fulcrum between public fantasy and personal privacy.

She is a self-made creature, and 15 years after those famed words from her breakthrough single Nasty, she's fulfilled her own prophecy. She is "Janet Privacy Control Jackson." She proved privacy was her middle name last year, when the world found out she had "a secret husband"-- after he filed for divorce. For nine years, Jackson had been married to creative collaborator Rene Elizondo -- but no one knew about the union until the day it ended. Jackson acknowledged the marriage in a written statement, saying only she "tried to keep my marriage private in an effort to have a normal family life." The mere attempt at normalcy not only establishes the youngest Jackson's hard-earned sagacity when it comes to celebrity, it highlights her second life axis: Control. Keeping a marriage secret for nine years is a feat in itself -- but when you're a Jackson, one of the most probed and picked-on clans in the world (next to the Windsors), her secrecy and discretion is enough to make a G-man jealous.

Clearly, Janet Jackson is her own woman, and when she takes the stage at GM Place to launch her 69-date All For You world tour on Monday, chances are few fans will leave disappointed -- unless, of course, they can't make the new date. The show was originally scheduled for tonight but was pushed back as a result of equipment problems. According to a statement released by Orca Bay and SFX Concerts Wednesday, some of Jackson's set was held up as a result of the Canada Day long weekend and the July 4th holiday in the U.S. "Janet has really enjoyed her stay in Vancouver and wants to ensure that Vancouver fans are treated to the best show possible," the statement said.

Jackson has been rehearsing in Vancouver under tight security for the past month -- taking advantage of the cheap Canadian dollar and skilled technical support the city has to offer. Generally considered to put on one of the best "shows" in the business -- one that is as much about dancing and visuals as it is about music -- Jackson's All For You tour will feature a seven-piece band, a troupe of buff dancers, the latest in intelligent lights and a variety of high-tech devices integrated into the Mark Fisher stage design. Fisher is the man who designed the The Wall for Pink Floyd, Popmart for U2 and Bridges to Babylon for the Rolling Stones -- three of the biggest and certainly the most expensive touring shows ever mounted, making Monday's kick-off the biggest concert launch in Vancouver history.

I've never seen a Jackson show, but I saw The Wall and the opening Popmart date in Las Vegas, and as long as there is no five-storey-high mechanical lemon that's supposed to make its way from the back of the stage to the apron with the entire band inside -- then explode open -- it should be a glitch-free ordeal. Then again, how could it not be? Her last name is control. Not only that, but now that Janet Damita Jackson is 35, she's in full bloom -- which means the full range of her influences have been internalized and processed into a unique brand of personal expression.

Building on the solid entertainment foundation erected by her father and her brothers, Jackson began to emerge as a stage artist in her own right with the video for Nasty. With a little help from former L.A. Lakers' cheerleader-turned-choreographer Paula Abdul, the video for Nasty featured the high-styling Jackson bringing some full-blooded, Madonna-inspired female slink to the crisp athletic dance moves her brother Michael made famous and in the process, came up with a new MTV esthetic. Balancing the loose-groove sex-appeal of R&B with the modern production values of mega-platinum pop, Jackson helped pave the way for the modern parade of girl bands and lady hip-hoppers. She put her sexuality front and centre without hesitation -- and with full control -- at the tender age of 20. She still does. One track on All For You, Would You Mind, features Jackson moaning and purring into the microphone about "wanting to make you come" then, just as the whispers shiver to a titillating crescendo, segues into an interlude track called Lame with the following lyrics: "Oooh. The song ended, but I didn't even get to come. Did you? You men, you might want to get this on tape. You men are just lame at times, I'm telling you." My goodness. Not even L'il Kim has the nerve to point the flaccid finger of blame at men when it comes to lack of sexual satisfaction.

Clearly, the road from baby-girl to fully empowered, 40 million-album-selling femme fatale has not been easy. The youngest of eight siblings, and heir to an entire matching set of Louis Vuitton dysfunctional family baggage, Jackson began her career much like her older brothers and sisters -- at the urging of her father, Joseph, who wanted to see her smiling face next to his famous and fabulously lucrative Jackson Five. She was only seven and it was a far cry from her dream of becoming a jockey, but the little tomboy complied. With her apple-cheek face before the public, it didn't take long for the youngest Jackson to land guest spots on TV sitcoms like Good Times and Diff'rent Strokes. The attention led to a contract with A&M records, and in 1982, Jackson became a recording artist in her own right with her eponymous debut. It was the same year that her brother Michael released a little slab of vinyl called Thriller -- and while it shared a lot of the same production and instrumentation, right down to the brass accents on the chorus, Janet's debut disappeared quickly, but not before she made an appearance on American Bandstand. Smiling, warm and vocal, she had a remarkably different rapport with the camera than the rest of her family: She wasn't afraid of the lens. I can remember watching Dick Clark call her "cute as a button" and give her a big hug after her tune. He was smitten and she didn't seem to be afraid of the attention. It was a real moment -- and it was memorable because of its authenticity.

In 1984, Jackson broke free of her family by marrying James DeBarge, of the singing group DeBarge. The marriage didn't last, but Jackson was free to follow her own road -- at arm's length from the manipulations of her dad. She was ready for the next step and when the label suggested she hook up with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis -- two Minneapolis-based musicians who formed The Time and were working with Prince before being fired -- Jackson was ready to take control. "This is a story of control. My control. Control of what I say and control of what I do. And this time I'm gonna do it my way. I hope you enjoy this as much as I do. Are you ready? I am, 'cause it's all about control and I've got lots of it," she sings on the opening track of Control, setting the tone for everything to come. "When I was 17, I did what people told me. I did what my father said and let my mother mould me. But that was long ago. I'm in control. I'm never gonna stop ... and now I'm all grown up."

With a new manager and a new sound, Jackson finally emerged from the shadow of her past and was ready to conquer the world, which she did with Rhythm Nation 1814, which hit the top spot on both the R&B and pop charts in 1989. Attracted by Jackson's pop status and the unbridled potential afforded by her youth, Virgin founder and supreme playboy Richard Branson signed her to one of the richest record deals in history, worth a reported $30 million US. Though she released janet, a movie and a duet with Luther Vandross, her next smash didn't come until 1998's The Velvet Rope, which pushed Jackson's sexual persona even further with suggestions of homosexuality and sado-masochism. Her public was unperturbed and the accompanying tour set a gross revenue record for MCI Center in Washington, D.C., at more than $875,000. The previous mark for a single show was $860,300, set by Yanni Jan. 31, 1998.

All For You finds Jackson a little softer in tone and as smiley as ever, but no less serious. The album features a duet with Carly Simon riffing on You're So Vain and a whole new selection of collaborations with Terry Lewis and Jimmy Jam (James Harris III). But as any Janet Jackson fan knows, it's not just about the music -- it's about the show. So bring it on, Janet Privacy Control. I can hardly wait.