Janet gave a surprise performance of "Nothing" and "Nasty" on tonight's season finale of American Idol. Prior to her walking on the stage, several of the contestants performed a few lines of "Again" and Janet joined in with them before she began singing the other songs.
Photos and videos of the performance will be posted shortly.
Tickets for the American Music Festival, which is reported to include a performance by Janet, will not go on sale on Saturday as had been previously announced.
The Daytona Beach News Journal is reporting that although ticket sales have been postponed, festival organizers are insisting that the event is not in jeopardy.
Manuel Bornia, president of the Community Cultural Foundation, is now saying that artists for the festival have not been finalized and the organization is still in negotiations with them, including Janet. Representatives for Janet have not yet confirmed whether she will actually participate in the event.
The fate of the festival appears to be in question. Yesterday, the News Journal reported that publicists for several of the announced artists are denying their participation in the event.
A new video featuring Whyley Yoshimura, one of Janet Jackson's current dancers, has been posted a video onto YouTube that apparently features portions a never-before-heard 2004 song by Janet titled "Ruff."
In the newly posted video, which has been titled "London Class - Ruff," a dance class in London uses an uptempo track that features Janet singing lyrics that use the word "ruff" several times. Speculation among fans on the internet is that this could be that never-before-heard song.
"Ruff" was recorded by Janet for the Damita Jo album, however it did not make the final cut. At the time of the album's release, Janet mentioned the song in several interviews, but it never saw the light of day.
In a 2004 interview posted on the Virgin Records UK website, Janet said that "Ruff" was the song she had most fun recording for the Damita Jo album, even though it didn't make the cut. She said at the time, "This didn't end up on the album but we had such a laugh making it. I'm sure it will become a b-side in the future but we'll have to see!"
Jam! Music also reported in 2004 that "Ruff" was produced by Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, with programming work from Dave Hodge. The main synth riff in the song was apparently provided by the Neptunes.
The video Yoshimura posted on YouTube, featuring portions of the song in question, is embedded below:
In a post on Twitter this afternoon, Jermaine Dupri confirmed that Janet Jackson will give a surprise performance on tonight's season finale of American Idol:
@Oceans7LTL: Lifers once again be sure to watch American Idol tonight the QUEEN Icon @JanetJackson will B performing "Nothing" 2nite! @bmc_1201 @LTLline @johntalsr
Rumors about Janet's surprise performance have been circulating on the internet for the past several days. There have been previous surprise performances on past season finales, including one most recently by Prince.
The ninth season American Idol two-hour finale airs live on Fox at 8 p.m. ET.
In the interview, Janet revealed that she has indeed been seeing someone new, however she did not identify this person. Recent gossip reports have said that she was dating Wissam Al Mana, a Qatari businessman whom she was photographed with at severalfashionshows earlier this year.
"I'm seeing somebody special and it's great right now. He's making me incredibly happy," she told Piper.
UPDATE: Dean Piper has posted more from the interview on his blog.
Janet has been announced to be one of the performers at the inaugural American Music Festival in Daytona Beach, Florida.
The Daytona Beach News-Journal is reporting that Janet will be joining Usher, the Jonas Brothers, Rihanna, Christina Aguilera, Justin Bieber, Carrie Underwood, Demi Lovato and Selena Gomez at the festival, which will be held at the Bandshell.
The festival will be held in two rounds, one slated for June 25-27, and the other for September 3-5. It has not yet been announced which date each performer is scheduled for. Festival organizers said that information will be finalized within the next few days.
Tickets for the festival are scheduled to go on sale May 29.
UPDATE: The Daytona Beach News-Journal is now reporting that each act will perform a 45-minute set, not a full production.
Janet Jackson was photographed by paparazzi today in London while walking down a sidewalk and sporting a much shorter hairstyle than she has previously been photographed in.
As was previouslyreported, she is in London for the week promoting the release of Why Did I Get Married Too?
Janet Jackson is scheduled to be a guest on the British comedy chat show The Graham Norton Show on Monday, May 24, at 10:35 p.m. on BBC One, according to the schedule on the BBC's website.
She will appear on the show to promote her film Why Did I Get Married Too?, which will be released in the UK later this year. This will also be Janet's first foreign television interview since the death of her brother Michael Jackson.
The episode will be recorded on Thursday, May 20, at The London Studios on the South Bank. Other guests on the episode include English comedian Marcus Brigstocke, and Monty Python actor Eric Idle.
Episodes of The Graham Norton Show usually air in the United States on BBC America a week or two after they are initially broadcast in the UK. As of now, it is not known when this episode will air on BBC America.
As was previously reported, Janet will also be attending a special one-off screening of Why Did I Get Married Too? in London on Friday, May 21.
Janet Jackson and Tyler Perry will be in London for a special one-off screening of Why Did I Get Married Too? on Friday, May 21.
The two stars will give an introduction to the film, beginning at 7:50 that evening at Ritzy Cinema in Brixton. Tickets for the event have sold out. Additional information is available at the Ritzy Picturehouse website.
Janet reportedly has already arrived in London for the event.
Last night, Janet attended the Costume Institute Gala Benefit to celebrate the opening of the "American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity" exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.
The exhibition explores developing perceptions of the modern American woman from 1890 to 1940 and how they have affected the way American women are seen today. It runs at the museum from May 5 until August 10.
Janet attended the Art of Elysium's 2nd annual "Bright Lights" fundraiser in New York City on Friday, April 30. The organization encourages actors, artists and musicians to give their time to children battling serious illnesses.
A press release from Lionsgate Entertainment announced that Janet's new film For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf is scheduled to begin filming on June 1 in Atlanta.
It is unknown exactly when Janet will film her scenes. It had been previously reported that she would be filming her portion of the film in New York City.
The film is scheduled to be released nationwide on January 14, 2011.
Janet Jackson is scheduled to be a guest on the British comedy chat show The Graham Norton Show on Monday, May 24, at 10:35 p.m. on BBC One, according to the 
