If (Janet Jackson song)
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- For the song of the same title by the pop-rock band Bread, see If (Bread song).
| "If" | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
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| Single by Janet Jackson | ||
| from the album janet. | ||
| B-side(s) | "One More Chance" | |
| Released | July 13, 1993 | |
| Format | CD single CD maxi single Cassette single Cassette maxi single 7" single 12" maxi single |
|
| Genre | Dance-pop/R&B/New Jack Swing | |
| Length | 4:31 | |
| Label | Virgin | |
| Writer(s) | Janet Jackson Jimmy Jam Terry Lewis |
|
| Producer(s) | Janet Jackson Jimmy Jam Terry Lewis Teddy Riley |
|
| Certification | Gold (US) | |
| Chart positions | ||
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| Janet Jackson singles chronology | ||
| "That's The Way Love Goes" (1993) |
"If" (1993) |
"Again" (1993) |
"If" is a single by Janet Jackson, the second from her fifth studio album janet.
Contents |
[edit] Song Information
The song was written and produced by Jackson, Harris, and Lewis and became Jackson's second top five hit from the janet. album. "If" deals with a female narrator's fantasies of being someone's girlfriend. The song contains a sample from Diana Ross & the Supremes' "Someday We'll Be Together" and is built on a heavy metal guitar riff heard throughout the song. The combination of heavy hip-hop and new jack swing beats and electric guitar was a relative departure in sound for Jackson.
The single eventually hit #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #1 on the Hot Dance Club Play chart. The single contains a B-side called "One More Chance" (5:54), a cover of a song her brother Randy wrote, produced and performed on The Jacksons 1984 Victory album.
[edit] Music Video
The video challenged notions of culture and sexuality in a highly stylised and imaginative presentation. Set in China, in an indeterminate future, Mixing ancient cultural references with cutting edge technology. We arrive at a Club, which seems highly exclusive and impossible to get in unless the password is confirmed which is the song's title "If". The idea of voyeurism seems to be central to the many themes woven in and out. We see the patrons in there many guises from androgynous lesbians with painted moustaches, high class prostitutes and glamourous punks. In the middle of the main floor, Janet bursts onto the stage through bright red flowing fabrics to join her ensemble dancers who entertain the Chinese crowd with intricate dance routines and highly sexualised movements and lyrics invloving Janet seducing an onlooker.
Throughout the video, different sub-plots unfold, including the brothel rooms throughout the club in which various couplings of polysexual persuations, view each other through a network of webcams and monitors. This takes us to the end of the video which shows Janet's chosen target who is also viewing her through a screen being suduced and telling him about her wildest sexual fantasies. The climax confirms the idea of fantasy rather than fulfillment with the lyric "If i was your woman, the things i'd do to you....but i'm not".
To summarize, the narrative is a representation of a totally internal world in which fantasy and reality have no barriers. Janet celebrates the imagination as a tool for sexual adventure yet remains purely at a distance exploring the power suggestion and tittilation. The video is very fast paced, blink and you will miss 90% of the real content almost like a video peepshow. Watch the video a few times in order to fully absorb the implications of ones woman's erotic journey.
[edit] Charts
| Chart (1993) | Peak position |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 4 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Airplay | 3 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 R&B/Hip Hop Singles & Tracks | 3 |
| U.S. Billboard Top 40 Mainstream | 2 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Dance/Club Play | 1 (2 weeks) |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Maxi Single Sales | 4 |
| U.S. Billboard Rhythmic Top 40 | 3 |
| ARC Top 40 | 1 (1 week) |
| Official UK Singles Chart | 14 |
| Canadian Singles Chart | 1 |
| ARIA Top 50 | 17 |
| Finland Singles Chart | 12 |
| German Singles Chart | 25 |
| Belgium Singles Chart | 31 |
| Holland Singles Chart | 10 |
| South Africa Singles Charts | 1 |
| Switzerland Singles Chart | 27 |
[edit] Official Versions/Remixes
- Album Version (4:31)
- Radio Edit (3:49)
- Short Single Edit (2:59)
- Extended LP Mix (5:40)
- Brothers In Rhythm House Mix (7:10)
- Brothers In Rhythm Swing Yo Pants Mix (6:20)
- Brothers In Rhythm Dub (7:00)
- Tee's Freeze Mix (6:14)
- Tee's Radio Edit (4:02)
- Tee's Capella (2:09)
- Janet's Jeep Mix (6:26)
- TNT Bass Mix (5:36)
- D&D 7" Mix/Adult 7" Radio Mix (4:41)
- D&D 12" Mix/Adult 12" (5:47)
- D&D JDD Mix/Adult Dub (5:26)
| Janet Jackson |
|---|
| Studio albums: Janet Jackson • Dream Street • Control • Rhythm Nation 1814 janet. • The Velvet Rope • All for You • Damita Jo • 20 Y.O. Other albums: Control: The Remixes • Janet. Remixed • Design of a Decade 1986/1996 |
| Discography • Singles • Videography • Filmography • Tours • Awards and accolades |
