The Jacksons headed to Las Vegas for residency

Britney Spears has just started luring younger crowds to her recently launched Las Vegas spectacle inside Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino. But the pop star is about to gain some new neighbors at a smaller venue nearby.

The Jacksons have inked a residency deal with Planet Hollywood that will see them perform 40 concerts, promoters for the show announced on Thursday.

The group was tapped as the next act to anchor the hotel’s “RockTellz & CockTails� concert series. They are scheduled to make their debut Feb. 20.

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RockTellz & CockTails is pegged as a “high-energy, one-of-a-kind live show� built around a concert and “intimate, personal stories.� It sounds like “VH1 Storytellers� tailored for very seasoned acts. The Jacksons will rotate with Meat Loaf, who debuted last fall and returns in February.

In 2012 -- almost three years after the death of Michael Jackson -- Jackie, Tito, Jermaine and Marlon announced they would go back on the road for their first tour together in nearly three decades.

Dubbed the Unity Tour, the 2012 outing was saddled with the sort of headlines the Jackson family has unfortunately long been associated with.

After the 27-date trek was first announced, 11 stops were canceled and tickets for some performances were sold for as much as 66% off on discount sites such as Goldstar. And their performance at the Greek Theatre came at the height of a messy -- and public -- family spat that culminated with reports that matriarch Katherine Jackson had gone missing. Worse still was the show’s poor attendance.

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In an interview with The Times about their reunion, Jermaine claimed the tour troubles were not a result of low demand but, rather, a conscious decision to make time to record the follow-up to their last album together, 1989’s “2300 Jackson Street.� New material from these sessions has yet to surface.

Last summer the group helped headline the inaugural BET Experience alongside Beyonce, Snoop Dogg, R. Kelly and New Edition. That performance also came with controversy. The festival was produced and promoted by AEG Live which, at the time, was in the midst of a billion-dollar wrongful death lawsuit from Michael’s mother, Katherine. AEG was ultimately found not liable.

The Jacksons have struggled to answer one big question: Are they a viable act without Michael? Maybe they will find their answer in Vegas. But even this residency can’t escape Michael’s glittering shadow as his music and likeness form the backdrop for Cirque du Soleil’s “One� at the nearby Mandalay Bay Resort.

“RockTellz & CockTails presents The Jacksons� will be performed Thursday through Sunday inside the PH Showroom at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino from Feb. 20 to April 27.

Tickets are $54 to $129, with an exclusive meet and greet package available for an additional $400 (not including tickets). Tickets go on sale Saturday at 10 a.m. through Ticketmaster.

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