Guilty Pleasures: Rhythm Nation
Julz Walker
Guilty Pleasures are those songs you never wanted to admit you loved, were too embarrassed to play in public, but deep down they meant something to you. Finally there’s a place to air them, even if it causes breakups of friendships or worse. Julz Walker from Further Faster takes us back to her childhood obsession with Janet Jackson.
8 years old and Saturday’s were of early mornings, recording Janet, Michael, Bananarama and Cindy Lauper on VHS. The rest of the weekend was me and my best friend wrecking the tape and video player with constant pauses and rewinds. Learning every dance move and word.
Back then it was all hairbrush microphones and testing the boundaries of how loud we could turn the stereo up without Dad telling us to shut it off. Years later and I still know the dance moves – and so does my best friend. You can see them live at any wedding dancefloor I happen to be invited too!
Guilty and embarrassed was how I used to feel about my love affair Janet Jackson. Yet here today revisiting the words while pausing and rewinding Youtube (I may cause my Mac to break!), I have no guilt at all.
This song is even more relevant today than it was back in 1989.
Bring it Janet!
People of the world unite
Strength in numbers we can get it right
One time
We are a part of the rhythm nation