Janet Jackson Weighs In On Nutrisystem Diet Plan

We have to admit, this one caught us off guard:

Janet Jackson has been named the new face of the Nutrisystem diet plan.

But maybe there is a clever strategy here.

The talented singer joins two other famous divas in the weight loss TV ad wars---Mariah Carey with Jenny and Jennifer Hudson with Weight Watchers.

Janet Jackson is appearing in two 60-second Nutrisystem ads, which will be officially broadcast starting Dec. 26. Oh yeah, just in time for the New Year. The commercials were shot in Australia during the singer's recent worldwide tour.

The sister of the late Michael Jackson isn't saying how many pounds she is still trying to lose. Apparently, the singer initially did not lose weight on the Nutrisystem diet, but she is sticking to the plan now, and signed up with the brand, she says, because "weight is something I’ve dealt with it all my life."

Janet's theme urgers dieters to 'Get On It,' in the “Success” program being introduced tomorrow by Nutrisystem Inc.

But here is another angle to Janet's mission, and we like it:

Nutrisystem and Janet Jackson are creating Nutribank to distribute meals to the hungry, launching with $10 million in company food contributions for 2012. The company has pledged one dollar’s worth of company food for each pound lost by Nutrisystem customers next year.

Pretty incredible!

Let's be frank....weight loss diet programs are HUGE business, and adding another iconic name to the competition is smart thinking, because people DO care what celebrities endorse, and DO admire when a celebrity has to get in shape just like everyone else.

Bravo, Janet Jackson! We look forward to the TV ads.