"Nothing" is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter
Janet Jackson
Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreog ...
. It was released on March 23, 2010 by
A&M Records
A&M Records was an American record label founded as an independent company by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss in 1962. Due to the success of the discography A&M released, the label garnered interest and was acquired by PolyGram in 1989 and began distr ...
and
So So Def Recordings
So So Def Recordings is an American record label based in Atlanta, Georgia, United States, and owned by producer Jermaine Dupri, specializing in Southern hip hop, R&B and bass music. So So Def has managed artists such as Bow Wow, Kris Kross, TL ...
as a soundtrack single from the film ''
Why Did I Get Married Too?
''Why Did I Get Married Too?'' is a 2010 American comedy-drama film directed by Tyler Perry and starring Janet Jackson, Tyler Perry, Tasha Smith, Jill Scott, Louis Gossett Jr., Malik Yoba, Michael Jai White, Sharon Leal, Richard T. Jones, Lamman ...
'', which starred Jackson. The song was later included on Jackson's compilation album ''
Icon: Number Ones''. It was written by Jackson,
Johntá Austin
Johntá Austin ( ; born June 28, 1980) is an American singer-songwriter, arranger, producer, vocalist and rapper, signed to Jermaine Dupri's So So Def Recordings. He is known for collaborating with producers Bryan-Michael Cox, Jermaine Dupri an ...
,
Bryan-Michael Cox
Bryan-Michael Paul Cox (born December 1, 1977) is an American record producer and songwriter who is notable for his work with artists such as Usher, Mariah Carey, Mary J. Blige, and Toni Braxton. Among his most notable productions are "Be Wit ...
and
Jermaine Dupri
Jermaine Dupri Mauldin (born September 23, 1972) is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, record executive, entrepreneur, and DJ.
Early life
Jermaine Dupri Mauldin was born on September 23, 1972, the son of Tina (Mosley) and Michael ...
and produced by Jackson, Cox, and Dupri. Initially titled "Trust in Me", the song was written about the different character's personas and emotions in the film.
"Nothing" received mostly positive reviews from
music critics
Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on w ...
, who praised it as "classic pop", and noted that it was possibly influenced by her brother
Michael Jackson
Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...
's recent death. Despite the fact that it was not officially released to radio formats for airplay, the song managed to achieve moderate rotation on
adult contemporary
Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quie ...
and
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...
formats. A music video for the song was directed by
Tim Palen
Tim Palen (born 1962) is an American photographer and motion picture marketing executive. During his 17 years at Lionsgate he became known for using his own photography as part of the promotional campaigns for films. After Palen left Lionsgate in ...
and premiered in April 2010. Jackson performed "Nothing" on the ninth season finale of ''
American Idol
''American Idol'' is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to Ap ...
'' and on the
Essence Music Festival
The Essence Festival, known as "the party with a purpose", is an annual music festival which started in 1995 as a one-time event to celebrate the 25th anniversary of ''Essence'', a magazine aimed primarily towards African-American women. It becam ...
, which Jackson headlined.
Background
"Nothing" was composed by Janet Jackson,
Johntá Austin
Johntá Austin ( ; born June 28, 1980) is an American singer-songwriter, arranger, producer, vocalist and rapper, signed to Jermaine Dupri's So So Def Recordings. He is known for collaborating with producers Bryan-Michael Cox, Jermaine Dupri an ...
,
Bryan-Michael Cox
Bryan-Michael Paul Cox (born December 1, 1977) is an American record producer and songwriter who is notable for his work with artists such as Usher, Mariah Carey, Mary J. Blige, and Toni Braxton. Among his most notable productions are "Be Wit ...
and
Jermaine Dupri
Jermaine Dupri Mauldin (born September 23, 1972) is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, record executive, entrepreneur, and DJ.
Early life
Jermaine Dupri Mauldin was born on September 23, 1972, the son of Tina (Mosley) and Michael ...
and produced by Jackson, Cox, and Dupri. It was released on March 30, 2010 as the theme for ''
Why Did I Get Married Too?
''Why Did I Get Married Too?'' is a 2010 American comedy-drama film directed by Tyler Perry and starring Janet Jackson, Tyler Perry, Tasha Smith, Jill Scott, Louis Gossett Jr., Malik Yoba, Michael Jai White, Sharon Leal, Richard T. Jones, Lamman ...
'', which starred Jackson. It was released as a stand-alone single in addition to appearing on the ''Why Did I Get Married Too?'' soundtrack, and was later included on Jackson's ''
Icon: Number Ones'' compilation. "Nothing" was strongly considered for a nomination for "Best Original Song" at the
83rd Academy Awards
The 83rd Academy Awards ceremony, organized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2010 in the United States and took place on February 27, 2011, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles beg ...
, but ultimately was not nominated.
On February 11, 2010 Jackson revealed the song's title on her official
Twitter
Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
account. Janet's official site announced "Janet composed 'Nothing' as an emotional ballad that reflects and supports the powerful themes of the film..
evokes the emotional turmoil the ''Why Did I Get Married Too?'' characters experience throughout the film." Initially titled "Trust in Me", Jackson spoke to ''
The LA Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
'' about the song, stating "Even though it sounds like a sad song, it's hopeful. When you really listen to it, it's really hopeful."
When asked why she felt the song resonated with so many fans, Janet replied that she felt the song helped people relate to the characters in the movie.
Alive Magazine
''alive'' is a monthly Canadian natural health and wellness magazine. The magazine provides readers with information on leading healthy lifestyles, and focuses on a range of topics from natural health, organics, fitness, beauty, and nutrition, to h ...
, April 2010, page 56
Music supervisor Joel C. High, who recruited artists to appear on the film's soundtrack, commented "we were lucky to have Janet involved, especially at a time where she was going through a lot. We were basically finished with the picture when she told
Tyler Tyler may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Tyler (name), an English name; with lists of people with the surname or given name
* Tyler, the Creator (born 1991), American rap artist and producer
* John Tyler, 10th president of the United ...
she wanted to write something. It's a strong love song
..and is our big end title finish."
Co-producer
Jermaine Dupri
Jermaine Dupri Mauldin (born September 23, 1972) is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, record executive, entrepreneur, and DJ.
Early life
Jermaine Dupri Mauldin was born on September 23, 1972, the son of Tina (Mosley) and Michael ...
also spoke about the song, revealing "We had to do this record in like three days to get it into this movie – it was a last minute thing that her and
Tyler ">errytalked about." Dupri also added "You haven't heard Janet sound like this in a long time and I think the song is perfect for the movie. It's a really good record."
Promotion
To promote the song and film, Janet held a contest on her official website titled "Janet's Everything for Nothing Experience", which allowed the winner to receive a personally autographed copy of her ''
Number Ones'' compilation, with the grand-prize winner receiving an autographed ''Why Did I Get Married Too?'' poster. Expressing gratitude to her fans, Jackson
tweeted
Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
"Thank u for all the love on 'Nothing.' I hope u will enjoy
Why Did I Get Married Too
''Why Did I Get Married Too?'' is a 2010 American comedy-drama film directed by Tyler Perry and starring Janet Jackson, Tyler Perry, Tasha Smith, Jill Scott, Louis Gossett Jr., Malik Yoba, Michael Jai White, Sharon Leal, Richard T. Jones, Lamma ...
this week!"
Critical reception
MTV
MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
qualified "Nothing" as having "waves of heartfelt emotion" and "mournful beauty".
''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' described the track as "classic pop," adding that the lyrics reflect the tensions and turmoil between the film characters. Cristen Maher from
AOL Music's ''The Boombox'' called the song "an uplifting ballad...about the ups and downs that occur when two people are in love. The overall message is that when it comes to love, nothing can stand in the way of making things right." Maher adds "Jackson — who is still coping with the loss of her brother Michael — drew inspiration from her grief for her theatrical performance...transferring her sorrow beautifully into a moving and deeply heartfelt ballad."
Idolator
An idolator is a practitioner of idolatry.
Idolater or Idolator may also refer to: Books
*''Os Idólatras'', 1968 Portuguese novel by Maria Judite de Carvalho Music
* Idolator (website), an American music blog
* ''Idolator'' (album), third album ...
stated that the song "reminds us that, despite all the overproduction and sexed-up whispering on her last few singles, Janet can actually still deliver solid vocals—something that was hardly apparent on “
We Are The World 25
"We Are the World 25 for Haiti" is a charity single recorded by the supergroup Artists for Haiti in 2010. It is a remake of the song "We Are the World", which was written by American musicians Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, and was record ...
".
''
Entertainment Weekly
''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...
'' described the song as an "airy ballad, on which she cries out for more communication in a troubled relationship." Deborah Vankin of ''
The Los Angeles Times
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
'' called it "a touching, melodic ballad about truth, trust and relationships", adding that the song is "generating almost as much
Oscar
Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to:
People
* Oscar (given name), an Irish- and English-language name also used in other languages; the article includes the names Oskar, Oskari, Oszkár, Óscar, and other forms.
* Oscar (Irish mythology), ...
buzz as it feels riddled with grief
..Even though Jackson says "Nothing" is not about her brother, whom she won't talk about much these days, the song's melancholy and emotional grit leads one to wonder. It's no stretch to think that Jackson, who's known for having a particularly strong work ethic and occasionally losing herself in creative projects during turbulent times, was channeling the fallout of her personal tragedy into her music."
Music video
Jackson shot the
music video
A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...
for "Nothing" on March 24, 2010, with it being premiered the following week on
AOL Music
AOL (stylized as Aol., formerly a company known as AOL Inc. and originally known as America Online) is an American web portal and online service provider based in New York City. It is a brand marketed by the current incarnation of Yahoo! Inc. ...
. The video was directed by
Tim Palen
Tim Palen (born 1962) is an American photographer and motion picture marketing executive. During his 17 years at Lionsgate he became known for using his own photography as part of the promotional campaigns for films. After Palen left Lionsgate in ...
, photographer and co-President of Theatrical Marketing at
Lions Gate Entertainment
Lions Gate Entertainment Corporation, doing business as Lionsgate, is a Canadian-American entertainment company. It was formed by Frank Giustra on July 10, 1997, domiciled in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and is currently headquartered in ...
, the company that released ''
Why Did I Get Married Too?
''Why Did I Get Married Too?'' is a 2010 American comedy-drama film directed by Tyler Perry and starring Janet Jackson, Tyler Perry, Tasha Smith, Jill Scott, Louis Gossett Jr., Malik Yoba, Michael Jai White, Sharon Leal, Richard T. Jones, Lamman ...
''. The video features several shots of Jackson in mirror-like projections accompanied by powerful and passionate clips from the film.
Internationally, the video was released to music channels on July 19. A behind the scenes segment on the filming of the video was shown on
TV Guide Network's ''
Hollywood 411
''Hollywood 411'' is an entertainment news and gossip television show that originally premiered on August 12, 2005, but later started on January 14, 2008, on the TV Guide Network and is hosted by Chris Harrison. The show was previously hosted by ...
''. The "Nothing" music video was included in the "Special Features" segment of the ''Why Did I Get Married Too?''
Blu-ray
The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of sto ...
and
DVD
The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...
.
AOL Music's ''The Boombox'' commented "the superstar’s newest video for ‘Nothing’ encompasses the message of the song, with a stark blackness acting as a backdrop to Jackson's emotional release."
''
Idolator
An idolator is a practitioner of idolatry.
Idolater or Idolator may also refer to: Books
*''Os Idólatras'', 1968 Portuguese novel by Maria Judite de Carvalho Music
* Idolator (website), an American music blog
* ''Idolator'' (album), third album ...
'' called the video "heavy on the singing, light on the
Nasty", noting the stripped down approach of the clip was "hardly a tour de force".
Live performances
Jackson made a surprise appearance on the ninth season finale of ''
American Idol
''American Idol'' is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to Ap ...
'' to perform a medley of "Nothing" and "Nasty" after joining the contestants to perform a rendition of her hit ballad "
Again
Again may refer to:
Entertainment
* ''Again'' (video game), a 2009 adventure game for the Nintendo DS
* '' Again!!'' manga
* ''Again!'', a 2011 children's book by Emily Gravett
* ''Again'' (film), a 2015 Japanese film
Music
* Again (band), a ...
".
MTV
MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
expressed that Jackson provided the audience with waves of heartfelt emotion as she sang "Nothing".
Zap2it stated that the performance of "Nothing" was moving. Neon Limelight stated that Jackson "brought the crowd to its feet.
The song was also performed at the
Essence Music Festival
The Essence Festival, known as "the party with a purpose", is an annual music festival which started in 1995 as a one-time event to celebrate the 25th anniversary of ''Essence'', a magazine aimed primarily towards African-American women. It becam ...
, which Jackson headlined, with the performance from the event broadcast on
TV One. "Nothing" was later included on the setlist of Jackson's
Number Ones, Up Close and Personal
Number Ones, Up Close and Personal World Tour was the sixth concert tour by American recording artist Janet Jackson. It showcased her sophomore compilation album, '' Number Ones'' and visited Asia, North America, Europe, Australia, and Africa. ...
tour in 2011. The song was performed after a video interlude displaying scenes from Jackson's various acting roles, including ''
Poetic Justice
Poetic justice, also called poetic irony, is a literary device with which ultimately virtue is rewarded and misdeeds are punished. In modern literature, it is often accompanied by an ironic twist of fate related to the character's own action, henc ...
'', ''Why Did I Get Married Too?'', and ''
Good Times
''Good Times'' is an American television sitcom that aired for six seasons on CBS, from February 8, 1974, to August 1, 1979. Created by Eric Monte and Mike Evans and developed by executive producer Norman Lear, it was television's first African ...
''. ''MuuMuse'' commented on the tour's performance, saying "Perched on top of a stool, Jackson delivered a 1-2-3 punch of some of her biggest ballads–including 'Again,' 'Let's Wait Awhile,' and her latest offering, 'Nothing'–as the crowd lovingly swayed and sang along."
Track listing
*Digital single / promotional CD single
(SSD 2631)Janet Jackson - Nothing (CD) at Discogs
/ref>
#"Nothing" – 3:25
Charts
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nothing (Janet Jackson Song)
2010 singles
2010s ballads
Janet Jackson songs
Pop ballads
Song recordings produced by Jermaine Dupri
Songs written for films
Songs written by Bryan-Michael Cox
Songs written by Janet Jackson
Songs written by Jermaine Dupri
Songs written by Johntá Austin
2010 songs
Song recordings produced by Bryan-Michael Cox