Janet Jackson stays completely covered up as she vacations with billionaire boyfriend

SLIDESHOW - Janet Jackson was photographed today in Porto Cervo, Italy while enjoying a lengthy yachting vacation with her boyfriend Wissam Al Mana...

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Janet Jackson was photographed yesterday in Porto Cervo, Italy while enjoying a lengthy yachting vacation with her boyfriend Wissam Al Mana. While temperatures in the Italian Riveria are currently soaring, Jackson remained tightly under wraps in a ground-skimming, baggy tunic. Her billionaire boyfriend, by contrast, wore a sleeveless top and even stripped down to board shorts to shower on the cruiser’s deck. Jackson’s style of dress on this vacation is a striking contrast to the body-bearing looks the pop superstar typically rocks.

“The singer, 46, was seen today in a grey maxi dress and fedora, trading body-con clothing for chic lounge wear as she boarded a speed boat in Porto Cervo,” reports the Daily Mail about her unusual ensemble yesterday. “After spending days in baggy head-to-toe black ensembles, Janet, who has been dating Qatar businessman Al Mana since July 2010, showed a hint of skin as she sipped a beverage on a yacht with her beau on Thursday.”

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The web site for the UK paper also notes that the singer and actress has spent this entire week in layers of black clothing, one day donning “a long-sleeve top, a hooded sweater, long trousers, and a hat,” despite the intense heat.

By contrast, the much younger singer Rihanna, who is also vacationing in the region, is sporting barely-there bikinis, partying-up big-time on deck with her gaggle of gal pals in near nudity. Spying the photos of Rihanna, it makes one wonder: Why is Janet so covered?

Janet Jackson has made international headlines recently for slimming down considerably as the spokesperson for the Nutrisystem weight-loss program. Jackson — who has struggled with her weight throughout her career — admitted to Us magazine “I’ve had a problem with my body image,” in an intimate interview last year.

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She also said her weight loss came with a healthy dose of self-accpetance. “You need to look at yourself and say, ‘I like this, I feel good about this. I feel healthy, I feel strong and this is where I want to be,'” Jackson added about her relationship with her body.

Regardless of why Jackson has chosen to shield her body –perhaps from the elements or the prying eyes of the paparazzi — her statements show that regardless of outside pressures she works to maintain a positive attitude about herself.

Follow Alexis Garrett Stodghill on Twitter at @lexisb.

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