Janet Jackson is finally getting her due — and she's using it to advocate for women around the world.
At the Mnet Asian Music Awards in Hong Kong on Friday, Dec. 14, the singer was honored with the Worldwide Inspiration Award — an apt prize for an artist whose massive influence was finally recognized this year by the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame when it announced this week she'll be inducted into its ranks in 2019.
After an almost giddy introduction from K-pop stars BTS, Jackson told the crowd she was"excited and honored" to be recognized, according to Vogue.
She used the rest of her time onstage to give a moving speech about women's empowerment and the need for global unity and peace.
"I'm deeply humbled by the idea that I've inspired others," Jackson said.
"I dream of an immediate future when women will no longer be controlled, manipulated, or abused. I dream of the end of bigotry and discrimination in any form. I dream of a world in which we join hands across all borders and unite as one. Finally, I dream of a planet where hatred turns to compassion, tolerance turns to understanding, and a healing and lasting peace prevails."
She ended her speech with a shout-out to her son, saying, "Mama loves you, Eissa."
Twitter comments from others at the awards show indicated her words were met with "girls screaming in support."
Jackson echoed a similar sentiment back in May when she accepted the Icon Award at the Billboard Music Awards, telling the crowd that in spite of the "challenges" we face in 2018, we're now living in "a moment" when women have "made it clear" they'll no longer accept unfair treatment of any kind, saying she "stands with" the women and men who are "outraged by discrimination" and have been supportive of change.
During her State of the World tour, which wrapped in October, the singer revisited "What About," a song focused on domestic abuse that she had largely stopped performing. When she began singing it again live — often while crying or looking visibly distraught — it sparked questions about her relationship with her ex-husband, Wissam al Mana, who is rumored to have been abusive toward her.
She even addressed her experience with abuse last month when she accepted her second Icon Award of the year at the MTV Europe Music Awards.
"Tonight I feel moved to speak for women whose voices have been stifled," she said on Nov. 4. "I am one of those women. Women who have been gagged, both literally and emotionally. Women who have been abused. Women who have been [intimidated]. Women who have lived in fear."
As HuffPo reported in September, the singer's suffered intimidation professionally as well as personally, having been reportedly blackballed by Les Moonves after her "wardrobe malfunction" at the 2004 Super Bowl.
A recent op-ed from NBC News suggested that it was fitting that her Rock Hall honor should come on the heels of Moonves' ouster from CBS over sexual harassment allegations.
Janet will officially be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame on March 29. This week, CBS announced it will dock Monves' severance, donating instead to women's rights groups.