Janet Jackson considered cancelling her tour after her father died.

Janet Jackson

Janet Jackson

The 52-year-old singer didn't know how to "move forward" when Joe Jackson passed away last month aged 89 after battling cancer and she admitted his death has been "really hard" for her to come to terms with.

Speaking on stage at New Orleans' Essence Festival on Sunday (08.07.18), she said: "A little less than two weeks ago, my father passed away. He was comforted by my family and me.

"You know, it's always difficult when you lose a loved one and to be quite honest it was really hard for me. I didn't know what to do. I didn't know how to move forward. If I should cancel this festival, cancel the entire tour."

But the 'Together Again' hitmaker felt the most appropriate way to honour her "strong" father was to stick to her commitments.

She fought back tears as she continued: "Then I talked to my brother and we started to speak about my father's strength. He was very strong. Without his drive, his strength, we wouldn't have the success. We're a black family that came from Gary, Indiana, and we broke all kinds of records around the globe. That's truth.

"My father was a great man and my brother, he asked me, he said, 'If he were here right now, listening to this conversation, what do you think he would say to you?'

"And I think my father would've said, 'Janet, please. Finish what you've started.'"

Last week, Janet shared a video on Instagram in which he thanked her fans for their support following Joe's death.

She wrote: "Hey you guys, it's been a pretty rough week. But we're excited. I'm excited. We cannot wait to see you. It's been way too long. I miss you guys way too much. I'm about to jump on this plane and start this tour. Like I said, I can't wait to see you. I love you, I'll see you soon."

Tagged in