Janet Jackson – “What Have You Done For Me Lately”: Control Starts Here
Released in January 1986, “What Have You Done For Me Lately” hit like a warning shot. After two albums that didn’t quite land and a career managed by her father, Janet stepped out with a new sound, a new team, and a new attitude. This was the first single from Control, and it didn’t ask for attention—it demanded it.
Written by Janet Jackson, Jimmy Jam, and Terry Lewis, the song was originally intended for Jam and Lewis’s own project. But after hearing the track in the studio, Janet claimed it—and they reworked the lyrics to reflect her recent split from James DeBarge. It became the last song recorded for Control, and the first one released. That sequencing wasn’t accidental—it was a declaration.
Funk with Bite
The production is lean and punchy. Built on a dry funk groove, sharp synth stabs, and rubbery bass, the track has rhythm but no softness. It’s clipped, urgent, and full of attitude. Jam and Lewis stripped things down just enough to let Janet’s delivery cut through.
And she does. “Used to be a time when you would pamper me,” she sings—cool, disappointed, and done. Her voice doesn’t plead. It doesn’t break. It just lays it out. The chorus—“What have you done for me lately?”—isn’t a question. It’s a challenge.
No More Nice Girl
This wasn’t a breakup ballad. It was a boundary. Janet wasn’t playing the victim—she was calling someone out. That shift from passive to assertive was rare for female pop artists at the time, especially in the crossover space she was entering.
The spoken intro between Janet and a friend—“I know he used to do nice stuff for you But what has he done for you lately?”—set the tone for the whole Control era. It was conversational, relatable, and quietly revolutionary. She wasn’t just changing her sound. She was changing the rules.
Chart Performance
“What Have You Done For Me Lately” peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100, topped the Hot Black Singles chart, and hit No. 2 on the Dance Club Songs chart. It also reached No. 3 in the UK, No. 1 in the Netherlands, and landed in the top ten across Germany, Switzerland, and Ireland. The single was certified Gold in the U.S. and earned a Grammy nomination for Best R&B Song.
Music Video
Directed by Brian Jones and Piers Ashworth, the video features Janet and her friends at a diner, talking about relationship drama. Choreographed by Paula Abdul, who also appears in the clip, the video helped redefine Janet’s image—confident, stylish, and in control. It won a Soul Train Music Award for Best R&B/Soul or Rap Music Video in 1987.
Cultural Impact
“What Have You Done For Me Lately” shifted the conversation. In 1986, pop wasn’t exactly overflowing with female voices calling out relationship complacency. Janet flipped that script. She wasn’t pleading for attention—she was holding someone accountable. And that tone resonated far beyond the charts.
Janet’s delivery—cool, clipped, and unbothered—helped redefine what pop could sound like when it wasn’t trying to be sweet. Critics praised her “spunky authority,” and the song helped erase the ingénue image from her earlier albums. It was the moment she stopped being a Jackson sibling and started being Janet.
Over time, the phrase “What have you done for me lately?” became shorthand for self-respect. It’s been used in leadership books, political commentary, and everyday conversations. Not because it’s catchy—but because it’s clear.
Janet didn’t follow a trend. She set one—and it still holds.