Janet Jackson | When I Think Of You (Change Request ReVision)

For this ReVision, I recreated my favorite song off of my favorite album of Ms. Jackson’s. 

Written by Jackson, and her newly adopted two dads: Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. Already having much success with their recent productions for SOS Band, and a host of the endless talent that Minneapolis was manufacturing at that time—such as Cherrelle and Alexander O’ Neal—this dynamite trio would go on to influence pop music immeasurable over the next three decades, as a team, and individually. 

The third single from Janet Jackson's third studio album, 1986’s Control, “When I Think of You" would be Janet Jackson’s first Billboard Hot 100 Number 1 Hit. 

At just 20 years old, she was the youngest artist since Stevie Wonder to have a Number 1 Billboard Top 100 record, which also made her and brother Michael the first two siblings to both share that accomplishment. 

This song—as well the album Control—features the very early era of Jam and Lewis adapting their Minneapolis Sound of electronic funk—developed alongside former band members, and high school mates, Morris Day, and The Purple One, Mister Jamie Starr—to Pop Music. 

The second single, “Nasty”—with its innovative phrase sampling usage and a unique timpani melody—is widely regarded as the blueprint for the birth of a genre they would ultimately godfather, New Jack Swing. 

I reimagined this song with the standard Minneapolis Orchestrations in play: pitched up LinnDrum, snappy and mid-range Oberheim DX, Moog Bass, and the new editions of early FM Synth sound with the Yamaha DX7, Roland D-50, and 1984’s Roland Super Jupiter, the MKS-80.

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Janet Jackson | When I Think Of You (Change Request ReVision)

Andrew Emil // Change Request 

A preeminent artist of Chicago's 3rd wave, Andrew Emil is one of house music’s most staunch stalwarts. A concert-trained percussionist since age 11, he earned a chair in his native Kansas City Symphony before eventually moving to Chicago. 

As a traditional musician, Andrew Emil has worked as a keyboardist, arranger, and an orchestrator on recording sessions and productions, cutting his teeth at the former Chicago Trax Recording Studios. 

Credited on over 200+ recordings, his composition and studio productions have ranged from concert works and sound design to film scoring stages and hundreds of releases of electronic music productions. 

After a life in live music performance, from orchestra percussion sections to punk rock ensembles, he crafted a reputation for House Music productions in Chicago under his own name, as well as Broadway & Wilson, and Uptown Tones. 

One of the earlier innovators of the “Jackin House” genre under the Broadway & Wilson moniker with Jeff Bloom, Andrew is never content to stay in one place or style of musical thought for very long. 

He is the only recording artist to do production work simultaneously for Derrick Carter’s Classic Music Company, Mark Farina’s Great Lakes Audio, Gene Farris’ Farris Wheel Recordings, and four-time GRAMMY nominee Steve “Silk” Hurley’s S&S Records.

A string of double-digit singles for prominent labels, including remixes for artists such as Common, Kanye West, Little Louie Vega, Jamie Principle, Steve "Silk" Hurley, Iz & Diz, Fast Eddie, Shalamar, Roland Clark, David Morales, Colette, Amp Fiddler, JT Donaldson, and Gene Farris, to name a few. 

2012 saw the emergence of his epithet, Change Request, with the Change Theory EP on four play music. This new persona allowed the freedom to explore hybrids of mid-tempo live instrument focused jazz-dance-fusion. 

Following this release was “After All” on Seasons Recordings, with another single thereafter featuring house music icon, Chez Damier, “I Wanna Go Back”, including a remarkable rework from Glenn Underground, on Glenview Records. 

The ever-growing collection of songs and musical dialogue eventually led to the conceptual album series from Change Request. Each full-length effort containing a completely separate story and scored via its own unique incidental subtext. 

Emil created AstraVox Music with the award-winning Los Angeles-based composer, Mr. Nathaniel, as a home for his increasing catalog of incidental dramatic musical compositions. 

www.andrewemil.com