April 16 marks the 20th anniversary of the release of Janet Jackson’s blockbuster seventh studio album, All for You. In honor of the milestone, here are five fascinating facts about the album.
5. Janet made All for You after divorcing René Elizondo Jr., whom she’d secretly married in 1991. He's the guy whose hands were covering her breasts on the cover of Rolling Stone in 1993. Despite the split, her producer, Jimmy Jam, said Janet was optimistic about the future, which is why the album was carefree, fun and upbeat.
4. Janet said All for You is “a suite of songs that helped me move from one emotional level to another.” She added, “I feel free, and there’s nothing more wonderful than freedom.” As MTV noted, the album's two themes were "the liberation that comes with ending a bad relationship, and sex."
3. All for You debuted at number one with the biggest opening sales week of Janet’s career, selling more than 605,000 copies. It’s since sold more than seven million worldwide and is one of the best-selling albums of the decade.
2. All for You spun off the number-one title track, and the follow-up hits “Someone to Call My Lover” and “Son of a Gun (I Betcha Think this Song Is About You)." The latter is based around a sample of Carly Simon's 1972 hit "You're So Vain," and Simon added a new spoken-word part to it. A remix added Missy Elliott.
1. The song “All for You,” spent seven weeks at #1, making it Janet's most successful single since 1993's "That's the Way Love Goes." It also made radio airplay history and won a Grammy for Best Dance Recording. To date, it's Janet's most recent Billboard Hot 100 number-one hit.