Janet Jackson has recalled suffering an embarrassing wardrobe malfunction with Queen Elizabeth herself looking on.
The 58-year-old pop icon, whose breast was accidentally exposed by Justin Timberlake at the Super Bowl halftime show in 2004, has remembered another awkward moment in front of the late monarch.
She was performing Rhythm Nation in an epic military-style look which she wore as she received her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1990.
During the routine, Janet ‘squatted’ and felt her trousers split at her ‘booty crack’, exposing her bottom on stage.
She was discussing the awkward mishap while breaking down her iconic fashion moments, and chuckled as she remembered the ‘funny story’ about the outfit.
‘I was performing for the Queen of England and doing Rhythm Nation and sure enough, soon as I squatted, my pants split right at my booty crack,’ she told British Vogue.
Janet quickly felt a breeze and realised the extent of the problem, as she found herself changing the choreography on the fly to make sure she didn’t give the Queen a cheeky show.
‘I couldn’t believe it happened. I thought, “Oh my God.” And then I started feeling air back there so then I knew that it had to had really happen,’ she said.
‘And the whole time it was fine until “No, you’re going to perform for the Queen of England.” So I never turned my back to her. Which some of the choreography was supposed to… I just faced forward.’
Janet also wore the Rhythm Nation outfit for her Walk of Fame ceremony, and she had explained how the inspiration came from the 1966 film adaptation of Ray Bradbury’s book Fahrenheit 451.
She recalled: ‘And then needing someone to build it and thinking “Oh my God, who could do this for me?”
‘I went to my brothers, they had someone that they worked with quite often, his name was Bill Whitten. And Bill is the one – cause all those plates had to be made. He did a wonderful job. A beautiful job.’
Two decades ago, Janet faced an almighty global backlash when Justin Timberlake accidentally exposed her breast to the world at the Super Bowl, which he apologised for in 2021 after Hulu’s documentary Framing Britney Spears also highlighted ways in which Justin benefited from their split
He released a lengthy statement acknowledging his treatment of both women, saying that he was ‘deeply sorry for the times in my life where my actions contributed to the problem, where I spoke out of turn, or did not speak up for what was right.’
Justin added: ‘I understand that I fell short in these moments and in many others and benefited from a system that condones misogyny and racism. I specifically want to apologize to Britney Spears and Janet Jackson both individually, because I care for and respect these women and I know I failed.’
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