Soulful siren Janelle Monae has been flying under the pop radar for some time. Though the Bad Boy signee has been touring all over the country for more than a year now, it was just last night that she got the kind of exposure that could push her to superstardom. In her trademark white and black uniform, Monae and her Wonderland Arts Society brought “Tightrope,” her funky single about making it through tough times, to ABC’s ratings monster Dancing with the Stars. Shimmying across the stage like James Brown, Monae obviously won over a few million new fans. Check out the performance after the jump.
What do you think of here performance? Let us know.
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Snore. Another chick dressing like a freak to celebrate “individulaism”. Whats wrong Jenelle? Afraid no one will notice you unless you dress like a weirdo? Mommy didnt give you enough attention? Garbage
Wow. You really hate yourself, don’t you.
Don’t pay any attention to him. He obviously has his own feelings of inadequacy he’s trying to work out on the EW forums.
Damn, bitter!
Peter, if you weren’t so ignorant you would know that she wasn’t dressing like a freak, she was paying homage to James Brown and sixties style. Her clothing, shoes, and pompadour were all referencing that era. However, you are too stupid to know that. Do you even know who James Brown is? If you did you would have understood her outfit.
Also, costumes are a wonderful part of entertainment. If you don’t like them, why are you watching Dancing with the stars?
And what kind of sexist loser still calls women “chicks”? You are projecting. YOUR mother didn’t love you, and she certainly didn’t raise you properly.
There’s nothing freakish about her outfit unless you’re viewing it through an ignorant lens. What’s the matter, do all “chicks” have to whore around in tiny dresses like Katy Perry in order to meet your approval? Douchebag.
yeee except she’s been around for a while and her album is one of the highest rated albums of the year. She pays tribute to the working class by dressing in black and white. if you wanna be ignorant, thats fine, but if you want everything else on mainstream radio to sound like absolute crap, listen to JM, she’s got the voice, the moves and the unparalelled talent.
You are extremely ignorant…would you rather she be popping her behind while doing handstands and wearing a mini skirt?…maybe you should research her history, the life she had, and the reason behind her dressing like she does Mr.PeterBilt…*Unknowing=Ignorance*
This woman has talent. Im sorry that you dont see that. James Brown was classic MOTOWN and that is just what she performed. If you don’t like it, dont watch it!
She’s so flippin’ talented. I love how the crowd gave her a standing O.
She was fantastic! I loved the dancing, the James Brown tribute, and WOW, does she have a voice!!
i’ve enjoyed her the few times i’ve seen her on tv (dwts, sytcyd) but i saw her live about a month ago as an opening act, and she was terrible. i’m not sure if the venue just wasn’t suited to her voice (she was insanely echoey, you couldn’t hear her over her band/music; it was a covered outdoor venue) or if she just isn’t that great live yet. but she definitely has a lot of spunk. i hope she does alright!
I saw her live recently and she was fantastic. They may have finally gotten the sound balance right. She sings like a bird and the show was nothing short of spectacular.
Janelle Monae is one talented lady. Her album The ArchAndroid is amazing, and I hope appearances like this grow her fanbase. She deserves to be heard.
Janelle is so talented and her album Archandroid is an amazing work of art. I love her and she deserves all the success in the world.
Her album is so phenomenal. I hope she catches on.
She killed it- the best thing that’s ever come on DWTS other than Cloris Fieldman LOL
She already performed this on SYTYCD this summer, and a routine was choreographed to it a few weeks before that. So I would say that gave her the exposure to send her to superstardom. As soon as I heard it there I downloaded it. The studio version is great, but both times she has performed live, it has been terrible.
newest single?! ughm…it’s been out for quite some time…
Monae is awesome, but that was terribly directed. Why did they cut to a closeup shot of an instrument everytime Monae and her dancers started dancing?
When the camera should have been on her it was on one of the instruments & more than once this happened.
Janelle Monae is my opinion is the breakthrough artist of our time. Her looks alone would suggest that she will be singing sad R&B songs that really now a days arent like they used to be but she is breaking through in her own unique way with her style and songs she is def a STARRR!!! LOVE YA JM
Peter, and anyone else who thinks Janelle is a “weirdo”, I would encourage you not to judge, and instead learn a little bit more about Janelle Monae before making up your mind. The first time seeing her, I thought it was weird too, but then I read interviews of hers and understand her point in doing it. It would take a longer conversation than is possible online for one to realize that Janelle Monae does everything she does for a purpose. After personally seeing her perform last week at the University of Illinois, I’m convinced she will be one of the most powerful figures in music in the years to come. She is really amazing, and I hope you might be able to suspend judgement, learn about her and her history, and instead of hate on her, share in her talent and future success.
Probably the worst act DWTS has ever had on. I know they have to fill time but come on, this was crap!
I agree Christopher, wish I could have been there to throw rotten fruit and beer bottles.