Janet Jackson to Honor Her Brother at the MTV Video Music Awards

The highest-profile act of the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards on Sunday night's show will be Janet Jackson's tribute to her brother Michael.

Though the details about the tribute remain closely guarded, fans have already built up expectations for the bit that will open this year's awards.

"I think it's really fitting, and obviously she'll do him justice," said Katie Smith from the U.K. Her traveling companion, Jen Birch, agreed. "It's a bold move. He was just so good, but if anyone can do it she can," she said.

"It's going to be special. Everyone will be really happy that she's doing it," Jordan Kearny said.

The fans agree that the performance will clearly be out of a special kind of enthusiasm and will come from the heart. "She's the best candidate, because she was probably one of the people who knew him the best," Jennifer Kaufman said.

Lana Matthews of Michigan agreed: "I think it comes out of a place of passion and love for him. She's obviously not doing it to sell a record or anything. A lot of tributes have been done for Michael so far, and I haven't quite gotten it, and I think the creativity that ran through his veins runs through hers. It's probably hard for her to do, but it's probably something important for her to go through," MTV.com reports.

News agencies report, Janet Jackson, speaking to Harper's Bazaar about Michael Jackson's daughter Paris and her speech at the Michael Jackson memorial tribute at the Staples Center back in July. In her first big interview since the death of her brother Michael, Janet talked at length about the media attention that always surrounds her family and the painful transition she has been going through since his passing. "People can have rhinoceros skin, but there's a point when something's going to hurt you. Not everyone is stone," she told the magazine. "I haven't watched the news in weeks. I had to ask my chef, 'How's Obama doing?' I haven't read a newspaper. On top of that, [we've lost] a family member." Janet will of course be present at this Sunday's MTV Video Music Awards, where she will open the show with a tribute to her late brother, MTV.com reports.

It was also reported, Janet Jackson, who will honor her late brother Michael during a special appearance at the MTV Video Music Awards on Sunday night, admits in her first interview since his death, "I've been doing okay," but adds, "It's really hard to believe he's passed."

The singer, 43, who appears on the cover of the October issue of Harper's Bazaar, tells the magazine the last time she saw Michael alive was at family gathering on May 14, where they cracked each other up over Thai food. "We had so much fun that day ... [He] would laugh so hard, he would just start crying," she says, People Magazine reports.