Labels Itching To Grab Janet

Is Janet Jackson the most wanted woman in pop?

She’s certainly acting that way. For the past few weeks industry buzz has risen to a deafening roar over Jackson’s alleged $100 million asking price for a new album deal. (Jackson’s lawyer Donald Passman won’t confirm or deny the figure).

Regardless, Jackson already put herself in a strong position for this deal several years ago. Back in ‘91, Jackson landed what was then one of the industry’s most lucrative contracts, with Virgin Records (worth $33 million according to a source, and $50 million according to Jackson’s PR machine).

As several sources explain, the most clever part of Jackson’s Virgin contract was an extremely rare clause allowing her to ditch the label after just one album should owner Richard Branson sell the company. Last year he did just that - to EMI putting Jackson in a position to reap another windfall now.

Some observers further speculate that Branson may have signed big names like Jackson (and before her, the Rolling Stones) for especially generous sums specifically to build Virgin’s image in advance of a planned sale.

Now Jackson stands to capitalize on a far broader shift in the music industry. Over the past year the music biz has seen a boom in startup labels, overseen by top execs ousted by recent power plays. Music biz lawyer Michael Sukin says this situation has created a virtual “seller’s market. There’s a whole bunch of heavily funded labels that have no artists. They need a Janet Jackson in the worst way to put them on the map.”

Right now, Sony’s Work label looks likely to get their girl. A source at Sony says, “Janet’s up here all the time.” To boot, the company’s headed by the guys who signed Jackson to Virgin.