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Album of the day. Bold, independent, and assuredly cool, Janet Jackson got sworn into pop royalty with her breakthrough third album, 1986's Control, which was released 40 years ago today. Groove alchemists Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis formed a defining bond with Jackson, tailoring her grown-up declarations with a slamming set of tough, digitized Minneapolis funk that owed much to the pioneering synth-laced, boogie-influenced productions that the savvy Prince protégés helmed earlier for the likes of Cherrelle, Alexander O' Neal, The S.O.S. Band, Thelma Houston, and several others. The opening trio of killer feminist-laden singles that front-load this classic—"Control," "Nasty," and "What Have You Done for Me Lately"—would be more than enough to build an album around lesser artists, but Jackson and the team went several steps ahead and delivered more heavy-hitters like the effervescent, hook-laden "The Pleasure Principle," the breezy, light giddiness of "When I Think of You," and the plush sexual boundaries anthem, "Let's Wait Awhile." Both massively successful and influential, Control's crossover success helped pave the way for new jack swing and the '90s R&B wave. Not to mention, the impact of its themes on Black female empowerment and independence in modern R&B and pop can't be understated, as they have been modeled, imitated, and immortalized many times over. With its pile-driving beats thumping and sharply defined, Jackon’s vocals effortlessly moving from dreamy to utterly cocky and a highly efficient musical aesthetic, Control remains a masterful mean lean statement, anchored by grooves that act as a clarion call to the dance floor, and songs with addictive hooks around each corner.