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Prince Rogers Nelson (born June 7, 1958) is an American musician. He performs under the mononymous name of Prince, but has also been known by various other names, among them an unpronounceable symbol (usually spelled out as O(+>), which he used as his name between 1993 and 2000, during which time he was usually referred to as The Artist Formerly Known as Prince.
Prince is a prolific artist, having released several hundred songs both under his own name and with other artists.
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Prince Rogers Nelson (born June 7, 1958) is an American musician. He performs under the mononymous name of Prince, but has also been known by various other names, among them an unpronounceable symbol (usually spelled out as O(+>), which he used as his name between 1993 and 2000, during which time he was usually referred to as The Artist Formerly Known as Prince.
Prince is a prolific artist, having released several hundred songs both under his own name and with other artists. He has won seven Grammy Awards and an Academy Award, and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2004. In 2004, he was named the top male pop artist of the past 25 years by ARC Rock on the Net, and Rolling Stone ranked Prince #28 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.
From his early material, rooted in R&B, soul and funk, Prince has expanded his musical palette throughout his career, absorbing many other genres including pop, rock, jazz, new wave, psychedelia and hip hop. Some of his primary influences include Sly Stone, Miles Davis, Jimi Hendrix, Joni Mitchell, James Brown, Parliament-Funkadelic and Carlos Santana. The distinctive characteristics of his early-to-mid 1980s work, such as sparse and industrial-sounding drum machine arrangements and the use of synthesizer riffs to serve the role traditionally occupied by horn riffs in earlier R&B, funk and soul music, were called the "Minneapolis sound" and have proved very influential.
Early life
Prince Rogers Nelson was born June 7, 1958 in Minneapolis, Minnesota to John L. Nelson and Matti Shaw. John was a pianist and songwriter, and Matti was a jazz singer. He was named after his father, whose stage name was Prince Rogers, and who performed with a jazz group called the Prince Rogers Trio. In a 1991 Current Affair interview, John L. stated, “I named my son Prince because I wanted him to do everything I wanted to do.” His childhood nickname was Skipper.
After the birth of his sister Tyka in 1960, Prince's parents gradually drifted apart. After they formally separated when Prince was ten, he had a troubled relationship with his stepfather that resulted in him going to live with his father. Prince lived briefly with his father, but was thrown out after his father found him in bed with a female friend and later he settled in with a neighborhood family, the Andersons, befriending their son, Andre Anderson (later called André Cymone).
Prince and Anderson joined Prince's cousin Charles Smith in a band called Grand Central that they formed in high school. (Smith would later be replaced by Morris Day.) His initial contributions were on piano and guitar, but would share vocals with Anderson in what was mainly an instrumental band, playing clubs and parties in the Minneapolis area. As time went by and Prince's musical interests broadened, he found himself producing the arrangements for the band. Grand Central evolved into Champagne and started playing original music drawing on a range of influences including Sly & the Family Stone, James Brown, Earth, Wind & Fire, Miles Davis, Parliament-Funkadelic, Carlos Santana and Jimi Hendrix. At one point Prince was a student at the Minnesota Dance Theatre.
In 1976, he started work on a demo tape with producer Chris Moon in a Minneapolis studio. Prince also had the patronage of Owen Husney (of The High Spirits), to whom Moon introduced him, a connection that helped him produce a high-quality demo recording. Husney started contacting major labels and ran a campaign promoting Prince as a star of the future, resulting in a bidding war eventually won by Warner Bros. Records as they were the only label to offer Prince creative control of his songs.
First steps: 1977–1980
Pepe Willie, husband of Prince's cousin, Shantel, was an early influence in Prince's career. Along with Husney, Willie was mentor and manager for Prince during the Grand Central days, and he employed Prince for his own recordings. In 1977, Willie formed the band 94 East, with Marcy Ingvoldstad and Kristie Lazenberry that would later include Andre Cymone and Prince. Prince would compose most of the music for Willie's lyrics and typically played guitar and keyboards in the studio, while also contributing many songs for the group, including "Just Another Sucker." The band recorded an album, Minneapolis Genius – The Historic 1977 Recordings. Although it was not a solo album and was not commercially released until many years later, it is considered Prince's first professional album. For unknown reasons, Prince does not acknowledge the existence of this album. In 1995, the original recordings with Prince and Cymone were released by Willie as 94 East featuring Prince, Symbolic Beginning.
Prince released his first major-label album, For You, on April 17, 1978. The majority of For You was written and performed by Prince, except for the song "Soft and Wet" (lyrics co-written by Moon). This was the first of Prince's albums containing the now ubiquitous legend: "Produced, Arranged, Composed and Performed by Prince." Like most albums in his career, For You was recorded without a band; Prince purportedly played all 27 instruments on the album, though they were different types of string, percussion, and keyboard instruments.
Prince spent twice his initial advance recording the album, which sold modestly and charted low on the Billboard 200, while the single "Soft and Wet" performed well on the R&B charts. Prince used Prince's Music Co. for publishing songs from this album. The single reached #12 on the Soul chart and #92 on the pop chart. "Just as Long as We're Together" flopped at #91 on the soul chart.
By 1979, Prince had recruited his first backing band featuring childhood friend Andre Anderson, rechristened André Cymone, on bass, Dez Dickerson on guitar, Gayle Chapman and Doctor Fink on keyboards, and Bobby Z on drums. Prince intentionally enlisted a multi-racial, mixed-gender group, much like the band put together by one of his greatest influences, Sly Stone. They had their first shows at the Capri Theatre on January 5 and 6th in 1979. Reportedly, Prince mostly mumbled into the microphone, whilst Dez and Andre ran back and forth into the audience. Warner executives were at the second show, which was plagued with electrical difficulties and a snowstorm, and decided Prince had promise but the band needed more time to gel before it could tour. This was just after their gear was stolen from their rehearsal base at Del’s Tyre Mart.
In October 1979, Prince released his follow-up self-titled album Prince, which reached #4 on the Billboard R&B charts, and contained two R&B hits: "Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad?" and "I Wanna Be Your Lover". These two R&B hits were performed on January 26,1980, on the American Bandstand with this first backing band. Legend has it that Prince became annoyed when, during the interview segment, Dick Clark expressed surprise that Prince and his bandmates hailed from Minneapolis "of all places." Prince refused to speak, instead answering a question by gesturing with his hand. It was later admitted by Dez Dickerson that it was planned from the beginning as a way to throw Dick Clark off his game. Dickerson was quoted as saying, "Great. We're illiterate, but we play well." For his second album, Prince used Ecnirp Music – BMI for publishing his songs, which he would also use for his next album Dirty Mind. Prince was certified gold status, while the single "I Wanna Be Your Lover" hit #11 on the Billboard Top 100 and reached #1 on the R&B charts. Prince opened for Rick James' 1980 Fire it Up tour with the label "punk funk" being applied to both artists, although it reportedly didn't sit comfortably with Prince.
Controversy era: 1980–1984
Prince gained critical acclaim with his 1980 release of Dirty Mind, again entirely self-recorded and released using the demos of the songs. Dirty Mind is particularly notable for its sexually explicit material, in particular the title track, "Head", and controversial "Sister". During this period, Prince began to attract attention for the clothes he wore on-stage: high-heeled shoes, boots and black bikini briefs and tended to flaunt and express an intense sexuality on-stage. On tour, Lisa Coleman replaced keyboardist Gayle Chapman in the band, who felt the sexually explicit lyrics and stage antics of Prince's concerts conflicted with her religious beliefs.
His stylistic choices brought him trouble as an opening act for The Rolling Stones' for two Los Angeles Coliseum shows in 1981, where he was infamously pelted with garbage while wearing bikini briefs, leg warmers, high-heeled boots, and a trench coat, eventually booed off the stage for his wardrobe and androgynous lyrics. These shows occurred just before the release of Controversy and also when he was breaking in his new bassist Mark Brown (later BrownMark), who was then just 18 and out of high school.
Soon after he released the album Controversy, with the single of the same name charting internationally for the first time. In February of 1981, Prince made his first appearance on Saturday Night Live performing "Partyup". Starting with the album Controversy, Prince used Controversy Music – ASCAP for publishing his songs, which he would use for his following sixteen records until Emancipation in 1996.
In 1981, Prince formed a "side project" (a misnomer label, given that his band was only used for performances and contributed little to recording sessions) band called The Time. Prince was able to do this thanks to a clause in his contract with Warner Bros. The Time released four albums between 1981 and 1990, with Prince writing and performing all instruments and backing vocals throughout, with the lead vocals handled by Morris Day.
In 1982, Prince released the 1999 double-album which "broke" Prince into the mainstream in the US and internationally, selling over three million copies. The title track was a protest against nuclear proliferation and became his first top ten hit internationally. With his video for "Little Red Corvette" he joined Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie as part of the first wave of African American artists on MTV. The song "Delirious" also went top ten on the Billboard Hot 100. The album was placed at number six in The Village Voice's annual Pazz & Jop critics poll for 1983.
Around this time Prince began crediting his band as The Revolution, which consisted of Dez Dickerson on guitar, Lisa Coleman and Doctor Fink on keyboards, Bobby Z. on drums, and Brown Mark on bass. The band's name was printed in reverse on the cover of 1999; however Prince refrained using the name "The Revolution" until Dickerson left the band due to religious reasons, while in the 2003 book Possessed: The Rise and Fall of Prince, Alex Hahn states that Prince wanted Dickerson to commit to a new three year contract with the group, but Dickerson refused and struck out on his own. Dickerson was replaced by Wendy Melvoin, a childhood friend of Lisa. The band members were known for being solid musicians and a strong live act, but their talents would be used sparsely in the studio. Their presence in Prince's recordings, however, would increase through the mid-1980s.
The Revolution: 1984–1987
Prince's 1984 album, Purple Rain (concurrent with the film of the same name) sold more than thirteen million copies in the US and spent twenty-four consecutive weeks at #1 on the Billboard 200. The Academy Award-winning film grossed more than $80 million in the US alone, and has proved to be Prince's biggest cinematic success to date.
Two songs from Purple Rain, "When Doves Cry" and "Let's Go Crazy", topped the US pop singles chart and were hits around the world, while the title track reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100. Prince simultaneously held the spots #1 film, #1 single, and #1 album in the US. He won the Academy Award for Best Original Song Score for "Purple Rain", and the album ranks at 72 in the top 100 of Rolling Stones 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list; the album is also listed in The All-TIME 100 Albums of TIME Magazine.
It was the album's song "Darling Nikki" that Tipper Gore overheard her twelve-year-old daughter, Karenna, listening that inspired her to found the Parents Music Resource Center. The center has enacted the mandatory use of a warning label ("Parental Advisory: Explicit Lyrics") on the covers of records that have been judged to contain language or lyrical content unsuitable for minors.
In 1985, after the successful Purple Rain Tour, Prince announced that he would discontinue both live performances and music videos after the release of Around the World in a Day, which held the #1 spot on the Billboard 200 for three weeks. Prince's ban on music videos supposedly ended when the album stalled in the charts and, after a video for "Raspberry Beret", then reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100.
Prince released the album Parade in 1986. The album hit #3 on the Billboard 200 and #2 on the R&B charts. The first single, "Kiss", would top the Billboard Hot 100. The song was originally written for another Prince side project, Mazarati. At the same time, another song originally written for Apollonia 6, "Manic Monday" by The Bangles, reached #2 on the Hot 100.
Parade served as the soundtrack for Prince's second film Under the Cherry Moon. Prince both directed and starred in the movie, that also featured Kristen Scott Thomas as his love interest, Mary Sharon, in her first feature film role. Following the film and album release, Prince returned to touring with several spot concert shows in the U.S., dubbed the "Hit N Run Tour" and embarked on his first full scale European tour in the summer of 1986, and ending the tour in September with his first appearance in Japan.
At the end of the Hit N Run - Parade Tour, Prince disbanded The Revolution, as he fired Wendy and Lisa, replaced Bobby Z. with Sheila E., and Brown Mark quit, having wanted to leave before the Hit N Run Tour. All that remained of the original line-up was keyboardist Matt Fink. Brought in to replace them were Miko Weaver on guitar, Atlanta Bliss on trumpet, Eric Leeds on saxophone, (all of whom had joined the expanded "Counter-Revolution" line-up on the Hit N Run Tour) Boni Boyer on keyboards, Levi Seacer, Jr. on bass, as well as dancer and love interest, Cat Glover.
Prince also appeared on Madonna's studio album Like a Prayer, co-writing and singing the duet "Love Song" and playing electric guitar (uncredited) on "Like a Prayer", "Keep It Together", and "Act of Contrition".
Solo again and spiritual rebirth: 1987–1991
Prior to the disbanding of the Revolution, Prince was working on two separate projects. The Revolution album, Dream Factory and a solo effort, Camille. Unlike the three previous band albums, Dream Factory included significant input from the band members and even featured a number of songs with lead vocals by Wendy and Lisa, while the Camille project saw Prince create a new persona primarily singing in a sped up, female-sounding voice. With the dismissal of The Revolution, Prince consolidated material from both shelved albums, along with some new songs, into a three-LP album to be titled Crystal Ball. However, with the low sales of his previous two albums, Warner forced Prince to make the release a double album and Sign "?" the Times was released on March 31, 1987.
The album peaked at #6 on the Billboard 200 albums chart. The first single, "Sign "?" the Times", would chart at #3 on the Hot 100. The follow-up single, "If I Was Your Girlfriend" charted poorly at #67 on the Hot 100, but went to #12 on R&B chart. The third single, a duet with Sheena Easton, "U Got the Look" charted at #2 on the Hot 100, #11 on the R&B chart, and the final single "I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man" finished at #10 on Hot 100 and #14 on the R&B chart.
Despite the album receiving the greatest critical acclaim of any album in Prince's career, including being named the top album of the year by the Pazz & Jop critics' poll, album sales steadily declined, although it eventually sold 3.2 million copies. In Europe however, it performed well and Prince promoted the album overseas with a lengthy tour. Putting together a new backing band from the remnants of the Revolution, Prince added bassist Levi Seacer, Jr., Boni Boyer on keyboards, and dancer/choreographer Cat Glover to go with new drummer Sheila E. and holdovers Miko Weaver, Doctor Fink, Eric Leeds, Atlanta Bliss, and the Bodyguards (Jerome, Wally Safford, and Greg Brooks) for the Sign ?' the Times Tour.
The tour was a huge success overseas with Warner and Prince's managers wanting to bring it to the U.S. to resuscitate sagging sales of Sign "?" the Times, however Prince balked at a full U.S. tour, as he was ready to produce a new album. A compromise was made where he filmed the last two nights of the tour to be released in movie theaters as a concert film. Unfortunately, the film quality was deemed subpar and reshoots were performed at his Paisley Park studios. The film Sign ?' the Times was released on November 20, 1987. Much like the album, the film was critically praised, (at least more than the previous year's Under the Cherry Moon) however its box office receipts were minimal and it quickly left theaters.
The next album intended for release was to be The Black Album. More instrumental and funk and R&B themed than recent releases, The Black Album also saw Prince experiment with rap on the songs "Bob George" and "Dead on It". Prince was set to release the album with a complete monochromatic black cover with only the catalog number printed, but at the last minute, even though 500,000 copies had been pressed, Prince had a spiritual epiphany that the album was evil and had the album recalled. (Although it would later be released by Warner Bros. as a limited edition album in 1994.) Prince went back in the studio for eight weeks and recorded Lovesexy.
Released on May 10, 1988, Lovesexy serves as a spiritual opposite to the dark The Black Album. Every song is a solo effort by Prince, with exception of "Eye No" which was recorded with his backing band at the time, dubbed the "Lovesexy Band" by fans. Lovesexy would reach #11 on the Billboard 200 and #5 on the R&B albums chart. The lead single, "Alphabet St.", peaked at #8 on the Hot 100 and #3 on the R&B chart, but finished with only selling 750,000 copies.
Prince again took his post-Revolution backing band (minus the Bodyguards) on a three leg, 84 show Lovesexy World Tour, that although, it played to huge crowds and were well received shows, financially lost money due to the expensive sets and props incorporated.
In 1989, Prince began work on a number of musical projects, including Rave Unto the Joy Fantastic and early drafts of his Graffiti Bridge film, but both were put on hold when he was asked by Batman director Tim Burton to record several songs for the upcoming live-action adaptation. Prince went into the studio and produced an entire 9-track album that Warner released on June 20, 1989. Batman peaked at #1 on the Billboard 200, selling 4.4 million copies. The single "Batdance" topped the Billboard and R&B charts. Additionally, the singles "Partyman" (also featuring the vocals of Prince's then girlfriend, nicknamed Anna Fantastic) charted at #18 on the Hot 100 and at #5 on the R&B chart, while the love ballad "Scandalous" went to #5 on the R&B chart. However, he did have to sign away all publishing rights to the songs on the album to Warner Bros. as part of the deal to do the soundtrack.
In 1990, Prince went back on tour with a revamped band for his stripped down, back-to-basics Nude Tour. With the departures of Boni Boyer, Sheila E., the horns, and Cat, Prince brought in Rosie Gaines on keys, drummer Michael Bland, and dancing trio, The Game Boyz, Tony M., Kirky J., and Damon Dickson. The European and Japanese tour was a financial success with its short, greatest hits setlist. As the year progressed, Prince finished production on his fourth film, Graffiti Bridge and the album of the same name. Initially, Warner Bros. was reluctant to fund the film, however with Prince's assurances it would be a sequel to Purple Rain as well as the involvement of the original members of The Time, the studio greenlit the project. Released on August 20, 1990, the album reached #6 on the Billboard 200 and R&B albums chart. The single "Thieves in the Temple" reaching #6 on the Hot 100 and #1 on the R&B chart. The film, released on November 20, 1990, was a critical and box office flop, grossing just $4.2 million. After the release of the film and album, the last remaining members of the Revolution, Miko Weaver and Doctor Fink left Prince's band.
NPG and name change: 1991–1994
1991 marked the debut of Prince's new band, the New Power Generation. With guitarist Miko Weaver and long-time keyboardist Doctor Fink gone, Prince added bass player Sonny T., Tommy Barbarella on keyboards, and a brass section known as the Hornheadz to go along with Levi Seacer (taking over on guitar), Rosie Gaines, Michael Bland, and the Game Boyz. With significant input from his band members, Diamonds and Pearls was released on October 1, 1991. Reaching #3 on the Billboard 200 Diamonds and Pearls saw the singles "Gett Off" chart at #21 on the Hot 100 and #6 on the R&B charts while "Cream" gave Prince his fifth US number one single.
1992 saw Prince and the New Power Generation release his twelfth album titled with an unpronounceable symbol (later copyrighted as Love Symbol #2). O(+> would peak at #5 on the Billboard 200. While the label wanted "7" to be the first single, Prince fought to have "My Name Is Prince" as he "felt that the song's more hip-hoppery would appeal to the same audience" that had purchased the previous album. Prince got his way but "My Name Is Prince" only managed to reach #36 on Billboard Hot 100 and #23 on the R&B chart. The follow-up single "Sexy M.F." faired worse, charting at #66 on the Hot 100 and #76 on the R&B chart. The label's preferred lead single choice "7" would be the album's lone top ten hit, ironically reaching #7. O(+> would go on to sell 2.8 million copies worldwide.
After two failed attempts in 1990 and 1991, Warner Bros. finally released a greatest hits compilation with the 3-disc The Hits/The B-Sides in 1993. The first two discs were also sold separately as The Hits 1 and The Hits 2. In addition to featuring the majority of Prince's hit singles (with the exception of "Batdance" and other songs that appeared on the Batman soundtrack), The Hits includes an array of previously hard-to-find recordings, notably B-sides spanning the majority of Prince's career, as well as a handful of previously unreleased tracks such as the Revolution-recorded "Power Fantastic" and a live recording of "Nothing Compares 2 U" with Rosie Gaines. Two new songs, "Pink Cashmere" and "Peach", were chosen as promotional singles to accompany the compilation album.
1993 also marked the year in which Prince changed his stage name to the Love Symbol, which is a combination of the symbols for male and female. Because the symbol was/is unpronounceable, he was often referred to as "Symbol", "The Artist Formerly Known as Prince", or simply "The Artist".
Increased output: 1994–2000
In 1994, Prince's attitude towards his artistic output underwent a notable shift. He began to view releasing albums in quick succession as a means of ejecting himself from his contractual obligations to Warner Bros. The label, he believed, was intent on limiting his artistic freedom by insisting that he release albums more sporadically. He also blamed Warner Bros. for the poor commercial performance of the Love Symbol album, claiming that it was insufficiently marketed by Warner. It was out of these developments that the aborted Black Album was officially released, approximately seven years after its initial recording and near-release. The "new" release, which was already in wide circulation as a bootleg, sold relatively poorly.
Following that disappointing venture, Warner Bros. succumbed to Prince's wishes to release an album of new material, to be entitled Come. When Come was eventually released, it confirmed all of Warner's fears. It became Prince's poorest-selling album to date, struggling to even shift 500,000 copies. Even more frustrating was the fact that Prince insisted on crediting the album to "Prince 1958–1993".
Prince pushed to have his next album The Gold Experience released simultaneously with Love Symbol-era material. Warner Bros. allowed the single "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World" to be released via a small, independent distributor, Bellmark Records, in February 1994. The release was successful, reaching #1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and #1 in many other countries, but it would not prove to be a model for subsequent releases. Warner Bros. still resisted releasing The Gold Experience, fearing poor sales and citing "market saturation" as a defense. When eventually released in September 1995, The Gold Experience failed to sell well, although it reached the top 10 of the Billboard 200 initially, and many reviewed it as Prince's best effort since Sign o' the Times. The album is now out-of-print.
Chaos and Disorder, released in 1996, was Prince's final album of new material for Warner Bros., as well as one of his least commercially successful releases. Prince attempted a major comeback later that year when, free of any further contractual obligations to Warner Bros., he released Emancipation. The album was released via his own NPG Records with distribution through EMI. To publish his songs on Emancipation, Prince did not use Controversy Music – ASCAP, which he had used for all his records since 1981, but rather used Emancipated Music Inc. – ASCAP.
While certified Platinum by the RIAA, some critics felt that the sprawling 36-song, 3-CD set (each disc was exactly 60 minutes long) lacked focus, and might have worked better as a single or double disc set. Emancipation is the first record featuring covers by Prince of songs of other artists: Joan Osborne's top ten hit song of 1995 "One of Us"; "Betcha by Golly Wow!" (written by Thomas Randolf Bell and Linda Creed); "I Can't Make You Love Me" (written by James Allen Shamblin II and Michael Barry Reid); and "La-La (Means I Love You)" (written by Thomas Randolf Bell and William Hart).
Prince released Crystal Ball, a 5-CD collection of unreleased material, in 1998. The distribution of this album was disorderly, with some fans pre-ordering the album on his website up to a year before it was eventually shipped to them, and months after the record had gone on sale in retail stores. The retail edition has only four discs, as it is missing the "Kamasutra" disk. There are also two different packaging editions for retail, one being in a 4-disc sized jewel case with a simplistic white cover and the love symbol in a colored circle; the other is all four discs in a round translucent snap jewel case. The discs are the same, as is the CD jacket. The Newpower Soul album released three months later failed to make much of an impression on the charts. His collaboration on Chaka Khan's Come 2 My House, and Larry Graham's GCS2000, both released on the NPG Records label around the same time as Newpower Soul met with the same fate, despite heavy promotion and live appearances on Vibe with Sinbad, and the NBC Today show's Summer Concert Series.
In 1999, Prince once again signed with a major label Arista Records to release a new record, Rave Un2 the Joy Fantastic. In an attempt to make his new album a success, Prince easily gave more interviews than at any other point in his career, appearing on MTV's TRL (with his album cover on the front of the Virgin Megastore, in the background on TRL throughout the whole show), Larry King Live (with Larry Graham) and other media outlets. Nevertheless, Rave Un2 the Joy Fantastic failed to perform well commercially. A few months earlier, Warner Bros. had also released The Vault: Old Friends 4 Sale, a collection of unreleased material recorded by Prince throughout his career, and his final recording commitment on his contract with Warner Bros. The greatest success he had during the year was with the EP 1999: The New Master, released in time for Prince to collect a small portion of the sales dollars Warner Bros. had been seeing for the album and singles of the original 1999. Both critics and fans panned The New Master, declaring it unimaginative.
The pay-per-view concert, Rave Un2 the Year 2000, was broadcast on 31 December 1999 and consisted of footage from the 17 December and 18 December concerts of his 1999 tour. The concert featured appearances by many guest musicians including Lenny Kravitz, George Clinton, and The Time. It was released to home video the following year. A remix album, Rave In2 the Joy Fantastic (as opposed to "Un2") was released exclusively through Prince's NPG Music Club in April 2000.
Turnaround: 2000–2005
On 16 May 2000, Prince ceased using the Love Symbol moniker and returned to using "Prince" again, after his publishing contract with Warner/Chappell expired. In a press conference, he stated that, after being freed from undesirable relationships associated with the name "Prince", he would formally revert to using his real name. Prince still frequently uses the symbol as a logo and on album artwork and continues to play a Love Symbol-shaped guitar.
For several years following the release of Rave Un2 the Joy Fantastic, Prince primarily released new music through his Internet subscription service, NPGOnlineLtd.com (later ). Two albums that show substantive jazz influence were available commercially at record stores: 2001's The Rainbow Children and, later, the 2003 instrumental record N.E.W.S which was nominated for a Best Pop Instrumental Album Grammy. Another album of largely jazz-influenced music, Xpectation, was released via download in 2003 to members of the NPGMusicClub.
In 2002, Prince released his first live album, One Nite Alone... Live!, which features performances from the One Nite Alone tour. The 3-CD box set, which also includes a disc of "aftershow" music entitled It Ain't Over!, failed to chart. During this time, Prince sought to engage more effectively with his fan base via the NPG Music Club, pre-concert sound checks, and at yearly "celebrations" at Paisley Park, his music studios. Fans were invited into the studio for tours, interviews, discussions and music-listening sessions. Some of these fan discussions were filmed for an unreleased documentary, directed by Kevin Smith. Smith discusses what happened during those days at length in his An Evening with Kevin Smith DVD. Performances were also arranged to showcase Prince's talents, as well as to collaborate with popular and well-established artists and guests including Alicia Keys, The Time, Erykah Badu, Nikka Costa, George Clinton, Norah Jones.
On 8 February 2004, Prince appeared at the Grammy Awards with Beyoncé Knowles. In a performance that opened the show, Prince and Knowles performed a medley of "Purple Rain", "Let's Go Crazy", "Baby I'm a Star", and Knowles' "Crazy in Love" to positive reviews . The following month, Prince was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The award was presented to him by Alicia Keys along with Big Boi and André 3000 of OutKast. As well as performing a trio of his own hits during the ceremony, Prince also participated in a tribute to fellow inductee George Harrison in a rendition of the deceased artist's "While My Guitar Gently Weeps", playing a long guitar solo that ended the song .
On 19 February, The Tavis Smiley Show broadcast included a performance of "Reflection" from Prince's Musicology album. Prince was accompanied by Wendy Melvoin, formerly of the Revolution.
In April 2004, Prince released Musicology through a one-album agreement with Columbia Records. The album rose as high as the top five on a number of international charts (including the United States, United Kingdom, Germany and Australia). The US chart success was assisted by the CD being included as part of the concert ticket purchase, and each CD thereby qualifying (as chart rules then stood) towards US chart placement.
That same year, Pollstar named Prince the top concert draw among musicians in USA. Grossing an estimated $87.4 million, Prince's Musicology Tour was the most profitable tour in the music industry for 2004. The artist played an impressive run of 96 concerts; the average ticket price for a show was US$61. In Dallas, Texas, Prince was surprised by a female audience member jumping out of her front row seat, getting onto the stage while he was singing, and kissing him. The woman had to be escorted out by security. Further highlighting the success of the album, Prince's Musicology went on to receive two Grammy wins, for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for "Call My Name" and Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance for the title track. Musicology was also nominated for Best R&B Song, Best R&B Album, while "Cinnamon Girl" was nominated for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance. The album became the artist's most commercially successful since Diamonds and Pearls, partly due to a radical scheme devised which included in Billboard's sales figures those that were distributed to each customer during ticket sales for the Musicology tour.
Prince was ranked in Acclaimed Music's list of The 1000 Greatest Artist of All Time. In 2004, Rolling Stone magazine ranked Prince #28 on their list of the . In December 2004, Prince was ranked #5 on the Top Pop Artists of the Past 25 Years list by www.rockonthenet.com. He was the highest-ranked male performer on the list.
In April 2005, Prince played guitar (along with En Vogue singing backing vocals) on Stevie Wonder's single "So What the Fuss", Wonder's first since 1999.
In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, which devastated the city of New Orleans on 29 August 2005, Prince offered a personal response by recording two new songs, "S.S.T." and the instrumental "Brand New Orleans", at Paisley Park in the early hours of 2 September. Prince again performed all instrumental and vocal parts. These recordings were quickly dispersed to the public via Prince's NPG Music Club, and "S.S.T." was later picked up by iTunes, where it reached #1 on the store's R&B chart. On 25 October, Sony Records released a version of the single on CD.
Move to Universal: 2005–2006
In late 2005 Prince signed with Universal Records to release his album, 3121, on 21 March 2006, (3/21). The first single was the Latin-tinged "Te Amo Corazón", the video for which was directed by actress Salma Hayek and filmed in Marrakech, Morocco, featuring Argentine actress and singer Mía Maestro. The song was covered by Viktoria Tolstoy on her album Pictures of Me, along with another Prince song, "Strollin'". The video for the second single, "Black Sweat", was nominated at the MTV VMAs for Best Cinematography. The immediate success of 3121 gave Prince his first #1 debut on the Billboard 200 with the album.
To promote the new album, Prince was the musical guest on Saturday Night Live on February 4, 2006, seventeen years after his last SNL appearance. He performed two songs from the album, "Fury" and "Beautiful, Loved & Blessed", with Támar. Prince also held a contest to win a trip to see a 'Purple Ticket Concert' at his private residence in Hollywood, California. Seven winning tickets were placed inside 3121 CD packages in the US, and other tickets were given away in various contests on the internet and around the world. On 6 May 2006, twenty-four prize winners (with a guest each) attended a star-studded private party and performance at Prince's home.
On June 12, 2006, Prince received a Webby Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of his "visionary" use of the Internet; Prince was the first major artist to release an entire album, 1997's Crystal Ball, exclusively on the internet.
Only weeks after winning a Webby Award, Prince abruptly shut down his official NPGMC website at 12:00 AM on July 4, 2006 after over five years of operation. The NPGMC sent out an email, claiming that "in its current 4m there is a feeling that the NPGMC gone as far as it can go. In a world without limitations and infinite possibilities, has the time come 2 once again make a leap of faith and begin anew? These r ?s we in the NPG need 2 answer. In doing so, we have decided 2 put the club on hiatus until further notice." On the day of the music club's shutdown, a lawsuit was filed against Prince by the British company HM Publishing (owners of the Nature Publishing Group, also NPG). Despite these events occurring on the same day, Prince's attorney has called it pure coincidence and stated that the site did not close due to the trademark dispute.
Prince appeared at multiple award ceremonies in 2006. On February 15, 2006, Prince performed at the BRIT Awards along with Wendy and Lisa and Sheila E. He played "Te Amo Corazón" and "Fury" from 3121 and "Purple Rain" and "Let's Go Crazy" from Purple Rain. On June 27, 2006, Prince appeared at the BET Awards, where he was awarded Best Male R&B Artist. In addition to receiving his award, Prince performed a medley of Chaka Khan songs for Khan's BET Lifetime Award. Prince had previously written and performed several songs with the singer. In November 2006, Prince was inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame, appearing to collect his award but not performing. Also in November 2006, Prince opened a nightclub named 3121 in Las Vegas at the Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino. He performed weekly on Friday and Saturday nights until April 2007 His contract with the Rio ended.
On August 22, 2006, Prince released Ultimate. The double disc set contains one CD of previous hits, and another of extended versions and mixes of material that had largely only previously been available on vinyl record B-sides.
Prince wrote and performed a song for the hit 2006 animated film Happy Feet. The song, entitled "Song of the Heart", appears on the film's soundtrack, which also features a cover of Prince's early hit "Kiss", sung by Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman. In January 2007, "Song of the Heart" won a Golden Globe for Best Original Song. Prince arrived late supposedly due to traffic problems and thus was unable to make an acceptance speech, but actor Hugh Grant prompted him later in the ceremony to take a bow.
Current work: 2007—
On February 2, 2007, Prince played at the Super Bowl XLI press conference. He and the band played a set comprising of Chuck Berry's hit, Johnny B. Goode", "Anotherloverholenyohead" from Parade and "Get On the Boat" from 3121. Prince performed at the Super Bowl XLI halftime show in Miami, Florida on February 4, 2007. The performance consisted of three Purple Rain tracks ("Let's Go Crazy", "Baby I'm a Star" and the title track), along with cover versions of "We Will Rock You" by Queen, "All Along the Watchtower" by Bob Dylan, the Foo Fighters song "Best of You" and "Proud Mary" by Creedence Clearwater Revival. Coincidentally, Miami had rain on the day of the Super Bowl, which was lit purple during the performance of "Purple Rain". He played on a large stage shaped as his famous symbol. The event was carried to 140 million television viewers, the largest audience of his life.
Prince announced that he would play 21 concerts in London over the summer of 2007. The "Earth Tour" included 21 nights at the 20,000 capacity O2 Arena. Tickets for the O2 Arena were priced at £31.21 (including a free copy of Prince's latest album), in order to make the concerts "affordable for everybody". The residency at the O2 Arena was increased to 15 nights after all 140,000 tickets for the original seven sold out in just 20 minutes. It was then further extended to 21 nights.
On May 10 2007, Prince performed a 'secret' gig at London's Koko in front of a small crowd (between) fans and celebrities. Tickets went on sale that morning on a first-come-first-served basis (again at £31.21). A prelude to the forthcoming summer gigs in London, Prince played a relaxed set of classic hits ("Kiss", changing the lyric from "You don't have to watch Dynasty" to Desperate Housewives; "Girls & Boys"; and "Nothing Compares 2 U") alongside more recent tracks, plus a well-received cover version of Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy".
Prince made an appearance at the 2007 ALMA Awards, performing with Sheila E. in June 2007. On June 28, 2007, the UK national newspaper The Mail on Sunday revealed that it had made a deal to give Prince's new album, Planet Earth, away for free with an "imminent" edition of the paper, making it the first place in the world to get the album. This move sparked controversy among music distributors and also led the UK arm of Prince's distributor, Sony BMG, to withdraw from distributing the album in UK stores. The UK's largest high street music retailer, HMV decided to stock the paper on release day due to the giveaway.
On July 7, 2007 Prince returned to his hometown of Minneapolis to perform three shows in what was unofficially declared Prince Day in Minnesota. He performed concerts at the Macy's Auditorium on Nicollet Mall, the Target Center and First Avenue.
On April 25, 2008, Prince performed on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, where he debuted a new song, "Turn Me Loose". Days after, he headlined the Coachella Festival 2008.
In October 2008 Prince released a live album entitled Indigo Nights, as well as 21 Nights, an accompanying book of poems, lyrics and photos. The book chronicled his record-breaking tenure at London's O2 Arena in 2007, while the album is a collection of songs performed live at aftershows in the IndigO2.
On December 18, 2008, Prince premiered 4 songs from his new album on LA's Indie 103 radio show, comprising a cover of "Crimson and Clover" by Tommy James and the Shondells, together with "Colonized Mind", "Wall of Berlin" and "4ever". The same day, another new Prince composition entitled "(There'll Never B) Another Like Me" premiered on the website, mplsound.com - replacing a shorter, instrumental version of the song which streamed several days previously. In a subsequent interview with the Los Angeles Times, Prince announced his intention to release three separate albums in 2009: Lotusflow3r, MPLSOUND, and an album, credited to the new protege, Bria Valente, called Elixir.
On January 3, 2009, a new website (http://www.lotusflow3r.com) was launched, streaming some of the recently-aired material ("Crimson and Clover", "(There'll Never B) Another Like Me" and "Here Eye Come") and promising opportunities to listen to and buy music by Prince and guests, watch videos and buy concert tickets for future events. Prince recently released 3 more songs on his new website: "Chocolate Box", "A Colonized Mind", and "All This Love".
On January 31, 2009, Prince launched more music on , releasing two new songs: "Disco Jellyfish", and "Another Boy".
Personal life
In the 1980s and early 1990s, Prince was romantically linked with many celebrities, including Madonna (although that proved to be false), Anna Fantastic, Carmen Electra,, Apollonia Kotero (also proved to be false, as Kotero was married throughout her days during Purple Rain, and still is today), Kim Basinger, Stevie Nicks (proved untrue, he only played on one of her songs, "Stand Back"), Sheena Easton, Robin Arcuri, Kirstie Alley (proved untrue), Troy Beyer, Susanna Hoffs and Nona Gaye.
Prince had an on and off relationship with high school girlfriend Susan Moonsie from about 1980 till 1985. There were a combination of reasons that led to the end of their relationship, she first attempted to end their relationship around 1983 when Prince was infatuated with fellow Vanity 6 bandmate, Denise Matthews, aka Vanity. Moonsie chose to stop her relationship with him and even became good friends with Vanity, although after the disintegration of that relationship, the two began seeing one another although never an official couple again. The relationship continued as such until 1984, as Prince got as close to a monogamist relationship with Susannah Melvoin (Wendy's twin sister) and resulted in a heated argument that served as the inspiration for "When Doves Cry".
During the Dirty Mind Tour in 1980, Prince met 18 year-old back-up singer, Jill Jones who was performing with Teena Marie as an opening act for his tour. Prince loved her voice, encouraged her to sing, and stayed in touch with Jones. She became a backup vocalist, and girlfriend, for Prince when he invited her to the Sunset Sound recording studios in 1982, to sing backing vocals for several tracks on the 1999 album and went on tour with him for the 1999-Triple Threat Tour.
In 1982, he met then B-movie actress and nude model Denise Matthews at a American Music Awards backstage party. Prince re-named her Vanity, stating he saw his female reflection when he looked at her. However, the relationship was very tumultuous, as Vanity was very strong-willed woman where as Prince liked timid women. The fact that she wasn't his only girlfriend at the time led Vanity to drinking and drug abuse heavily and ultimately left the Prince camp just before shooting was to begin on the Purple Rain film.
He dated, and was secretly engaged to Susannah Melvoin for a period in the mid-80s (Revolution guitarist Wendy Melvoin's sister). Susannah was a member of the Prince-formed band The Family, sang backup during the Parade tour and sang on the Around the World in a Day, Parade and Sign o' the Times albums.
He married his backup singer and dancer, Mayte Garcia, on Valentine's Day, 1996. They had one son named Gregory, (born October 16, 1996) who was born with Pfeiffer syndrome and died shortly after birth. They were divorced in 1999.
In 1997, Prince approached funk bassist Larry Graham, one of his childhood idols, with questions about his Jehovah's Witness faith. In a later interview, Graham stated that Prince was in need of Biblical answers and advice and that Graham was glad to answer. Prince apparently became very interested in the religion. He was baptized as one of Jehovah's Witnesses in 2001, marking his formal conversion to the faith. It was at this time that he released the album The Rainbow Children, which relied heavily upon Jehovah's Witness religious themes. The Jehovah's Witness organization has since discommunicated Prince because of his public persona and continuation as a secular musician. However, Prince still follows the Jehovah's Witness faith and teachings.
On December 31, 2001, Prince married Manuela Testolini in a private ceremony, but she filed for divorce in May 2006.
Prince is a vegan. In 2006 he was voted the "world's sexiest vegetarian" in PETA's annual online poll.
Stage names
In 1993, during negotiations regarding the release of Prince's album The Gold Experience, a legal battle ensued between Warner Bros. and Prince over the artistic and financial control of Prince's output. During the lawsuit, Prince appeared in public with the word "slave" written on his cheek. Prince explained his name change as follows:
The first step I have taken towards the ultimate goal of emancipation from the chains that bind me to Warner Bros. was to change my name from Prince to the Love Symbol. Prince is the name that my mother gave me at birth. Warner Bros. took the name, trademarked it, and used it as the main marketing tool to promote all of the music that I wrote. The company owns the name Prince and all related music marketed under Prince. I became merely a pawn used to produce more money for Warner Bros...
I was born Prince and did not want to adopt another conventional name. The only acceptable replacement for my name, and my identity, was the Love Symbol, a symbol with no pronunciation, that is a representation of me and what my music is about. This symbol is present in my work over the years; it is a concept that has evolved from my frustration; it is who I am. It is my name.
"Prince" is a trademark owned by Paisley Park Enterprises, Inc. It was initially filed with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) in 2005 in the categories of printed materials, clothing, electronic commerce, and entertainment services based on first commercial in 1978 Various searches to the USPTO did not find any registrations or transfers of "Prince" or related names by Warner Bros. In 1991, PRN Music Corporation assigned the trademarks "Prince," "The Time," "Paisley Park," "New Power Generation," and "Prince and the Revolution" to Paisley Park Enterprises.
Critics have argued Prince's name change as an attempt by the artist to reinvent himself, providing an opportunity to redevelop his style. One commentator noted:
Prince started his career as a big R&B star with limited mainstream success. At that point, he left the middle of the road and headed for the ditch. In 1980, it was risky to record new wave songs with lusty lyrics that assured no radio airplay (the classic Dirty Mind), but it paid off. Critics took notice and he became an underground favorite. This paved the way for his huge success with 1999 and Purple Rain. Certainly that was the pinnacle of his career, as far as worldwide earnings and universal adulation are concerned. But by heading for the ditch again, by changing his name and experimenting with his style, by lowering his stock value and escaping his record contract, Prince has become an underground artist again. In late 1996, the first collection of Prince music since his break with Warner Bros. appeared in record stores, a sprawling three-hour extravaganza integrating great dance grooves and slow-burning ballads. Critical response has been overwhelmingly positive, and sales have been brisk despite the high price of a 3-CD set. It's no coincidence that he titled this album Emancipation.
Prince often uses pseudonyms and monikers to separate himself from the music (either his own or that of others) he has had input in; he has said that he was tired of seeing his name everywhere, and that only egotistical people take credit for everything they do. He is also recognized by the names of various characters he has played on film, the most well-known of which is The Kid, protagonist of Purple Rain.
Stance on copyright ownership
In 1995, Prince threatened to sue a 900 line operated by Nathan Wright for his Purple Underground Magazine Phone line for playing to the public for the first time segments of the Black Album. Prince's attorneys Lavely & Singer demanded royalties in a cease and desist letter served to Wright. Instead Wright offered to work with Prince and split the profits. Wright and Prince's attorneys then worked on deal to share profits but the deal never transpired (copies of these documents are available for verification). Instead Prince started his own 900 line while Wright was able to continue his without any further action.
On September 14, 2007, Prince announced that he was going to sue YouTube and eBay because they "appear to choose not to filter out the unauthorized music and film content which is core to their business success." A representative told Reuters, "The problem is that one can reduce it to zero and then the next day there will be 100 or 500 or whatever. This carries on ad nauseam at Prince's expense."
In October 2007, Stephanie Lenz filed a lawsuit against Universal Music Publishing Group, claiming they were abusing copyright law, after the music publisher had YouTube take down Lenz's home movie in which the Prince song "Let's Go Crazy" played faintly in the background.
On November 5, 2007, several fan sites of Prince formed "Prince Fans United" to fight back against legal requests made by Prince to cease and desist all use of photographs, images, lyrics, album covers and anything linked to Prince's likeness. While Prince's lawyers claimed that the use of such representations constituted copyright infringement, the Prince Fans United claimed that the legal actions were "attempts to stifle all critical commentary about Prince." On November 8, 2007, 'Prince Fans United' received a song named "PFUnk" providing a kind of "unofficial answer" to their movement. The song, originally debuted on the PFU main site, was retitled "F.U.N.K.," and is available on iTunes.
On November 14, 2007, it was reported that the satirical website b3ta.com had pulled their "image challenge of the week" devoted to Prince after legal threats from the star under the DMCA (Digital Millenium Copyright Act). b3ta co-founder Rob Manuel wrote on the site:
"Under threat of legal action from Prince's legal team of "potential closure of your web site" - We have removed the Prince image challenge and B3ta apologises unreservedly to AEG / NPG and Prince for any offence caused. We also ask our members to avoid photoshopping Prince and posting them on our boards."
At the 2008 Coachella Music Festival, Prince performed a cover of Radiohead's "Creep" but immediately after, he forced YouTube and other sites to remove footage that fans had taken of the performance, despite Radiohead's wishes for it to remain on the website.. Days later, YouTube reinstated the videos, while Radiohead claimed "it's our song, let people hear it."
Discography
For You1979: Prince1980: Dirty Mind1981: Controversy1982: 19991984: Purple Rain1985: Around the World in a Day1986: Parade1987: Sign o' the Times1988: Lovesexy1989: Batman1990: Graffiti Bridge1991: Diamonds and Pearls1992: Love Symbol1994: Come1994: The Black Album (Recorded in 1987)1995: The Gold Experience1996: Chaos and Disorder1996: Emancipation1999: Rave Un2 the Joy Fantastic2001: The Rainbow Children2002: One Nite Alone...2003: Xpectation2003: N.E.W.S2004: Musicology2004: The Chocolate Invasion2004: The Slaughterhouse2006: 31212007: Planet Earth2009: Lotusflow3r
Awards
category Outstanding Male Artist
category Best Original Song – Motion Picture (from movie "Happy Feet" (2006)) for "The Song of the Heart"
category Best Male R&B Artist
category Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance for "Musicology"
- 2005: Won Grammy Award
- 2005: Won Myranda's Heart
category Best R&B Vocal Performance – Male for "Call My Name"
- 2005: Won NAACP Vanguard Award
- 2005: Won NAACP Image Award
category Outstanding Album for "Musicology"
- 2004: Won World Soundtrack Special Award
for Purple Rain (1984)
shared with Wendy Melvoin; Lisa Coleman; Bobby Z.
category Performer
- 2000: Won Soul Train Music Award
category Artist of the Decade – Male
- 1995: Won Award of Merit
- 1993: Won Brit Award
category Best International Solo Artist
- 1992: Won Soul Train Heritage Award
category Career Achievement
category Best International Solo Artist
category Most Performed Songs from Motion Pictures (from movie "Graffiti Bridge" (1990)) for "Thieves in the Temple"
category Most Performed Songs from Motion Pictures (from movie "Batman" (1989)) for "Partyman"
- 1990: Won AMA Award of Achievement
- 1988: Won MTV Video Music Award
category Best Male Video for "U Got The Look"
- 1988: Won MTV Video Music Award
category Best Stage Performance Video for "U Got The Look"
category Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group for "Kiss"
shared with The Revolution
category Worst Director for Under the Cherry Moon (1986)
category Worst Original Song (from movie "Under the Cherry Moon" (1986)) for "Love or Money"
category Worst Actor for Under the Cherry Moon (1986)
- 1986: Won MTV Video Music Award
category Best Choreography for "Raspberry Beret"
category Best International Artist
shared with The Revolutions
category Best Music, Original Song Score for Purple Rain (1984)
category Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or Television Special for Purple Rain (1984)
shared with Lisa Coleman; Wendy Melvoin; John L. Nelson
- 1985: Won American Music Award
category Favorite Soul/R&B Single for "When Doves Cry"
- 1985: Won American Music Award
category Favorite Soul/R&B Album for "Purple Rain"
- 1985: Won American Music Award
category Favorite Pop/Rock Album for "Purple Rain"
category Best R&B Song for "I Feel For You"
category Best Rock Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group for "Purple Rain"
shared with The Revolution
External links
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