Mr. Marcus Recalls the Moment Janet Jackson Recognized Him Backstage

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Mr. Marcus says one of the most surreal moments of his career happened when Janet Jackson recognized him backstage at the singer’s concert in New Orleans.

During a new interview on The Art of Dialogue, released April 6, the veteran adult film performer, whose real name is Jesse Spencer, recalled meeting Jackson shortly after Hurricane Katrina while attending Essence Festival.

Mr. Marcus said he had traveled to New Orleans to promote his book, The p**n Star Guide to Great Sex, and had appeared as a guest speaker during the festival.

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Jackson was one of the event’s major headliners and later performed at the Superdome.

According to Mr. Marcus, the city was still visibly recovering from Katrina at the time. He remembered walking through New Orleans and seeing water lines still marked on buildings nearly a year after the storm.

After Jackson’s show, he said he was invited to an afterparty by one of the drummer’s bandmates and made the long walk across the city to attend.

Once he arrived, however, getting close to Jackson proved difficult. Mr. Marcus said security initially blocked him from entering the upstairs VIP area where Jackson was sitting.

He eventually found another staircase, made his way upstairs, and ordered a drink at the bar. That is when, he said, a member of Jackson’s band spotted him and pulled him toward the private section.

“Come on, I want you to meet Janet,” he recalled the drummer telling him.

Mr. Marcus said the moment quickly became chaotic when his drink spilled across his white shirt just before he was ushered behind the velvet rope. He said Jackson then stood up, walked over, and greeted him directly.

“She said, ‘I know you. You be in those movies,’” Mr. Marcus recalled.

The performer admitted he was so caught off guard that he barely managed a response. “I didn’t know how to respond,” he said. “I just mumbled something.”

According to Mr. Marcus, the brief exchange ended almost immediately, with Jackson returning to her group while security quietly guided him away.

Jackson remains one of pop music’s most recognizable stars decades after the release of Rhythm Nation 1814, while Mr. Marcus built his name in the adult film industry, appearing in more than 1,800 films.

Mr. Marcus’ career later became overshadowed by controversy. In 2013, according to USA Today, he was sentenced to 30 days in jail after pleading no contest to exposing co-stars to syphilis and altering medical test results.

Prosecutors said he returned to work after modifying the results of a second screening, although he later maintained he believed he was no longer contagious.

Despite that history, Mr. Marcus said his memory of meeting Jackson has stayed with him for years. He described the singer as “very shy” and “very reserved,” adding that he had long admired her music, especially Rhythm Nation, which he said he listened to while working early-morning furniture delivery jobs before entering the entertainment industry.