Black Cat

This was the only song on the Rhythm Nation album written entirely by Jackson. It was produced by guitarist Jellybean Johnson, who also performed on the track. The song finds Janet warning her bad-boy boyfriend that he needs to shift his priorities before he loses both her and his life. Two superstitions/folk tales come into play on the track: cats having nine lives and black cats being a sign of bad luck. Janet sees her man as someone whose lives are quickly running out, and also a negative influence on her.

Although she didn't win the Grammy Award for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance with this song (she lost to Alannah Myles for "Black Velvet"), Janet became the first artist to earn nominations across Pop, Dance, Rock, Rap, and R&B categories when "Black Cat" was nominated.

Jimmy Jam, another of her producers, encouraged Jackson to tap into her Rock side with this song. "One night I told her I wanted her to sound like a Rock and Roll queen on it - she usually uses one of her other voices to sing R&B funk. This, you wanted to be funky, but more rocked out. That was what I was trying to get her to do, and she did it in one or two takes."