TheBigBopper
Banned
Prince is my all time favorite artist. I’ve been a fan of his since I was 12, but I’ve always thought he occupied a strange position of being a superstar who paradoxically wasn’t part of the mainstream. I was honestly shocked at the global recognition his death received and hadn’t realized he was as famous as he was. I think you could make the case that he’s the world’s biggest cult artist. This is why:
1. Purple Rain was his biggest album, but the most successful singles on it, Purple Rain, Let’s Go Crazy and When Doves Cry, were at odds with what was (and still is) considered traditional black music. The former two songs are unambiguous rock anthems and challenge listeners to re-establish the conventional boundaries of funk and R&B.
2. His follow up albums, Around the World in a Day and Parade, were deliberate attempts to move further away from even the white mainstream and explore his creative freedom. Both albums were critically acclaimed, earning Prince Beatles like status among music writers, but his shift from popular tastes reflected in sales, with each album only doing 2-3mm in sales each compared to Purple Rain’s 13mm.
1987’s Sign ‘O’ the Times, is often more highly regarded than even Purple Rain. While avant garde, with tracks like If I Was Your Girlfriend, the album was a return to Prince’s R&B and funk roots, but it too only did about 3mm in sales. Prince’s only other albums to approach Purple Rain like commercial success were the Batman soundtrack and Diamonds and Pearls. Both are more traditional pop and R&B.
2. His androgynous image made it very difficult to be a fan of his. In some ways it was a strength—how many 5’2” light skinned black men are there running around in makeup? His image helped him stand out among the crowd, but I also think it caused many to overlook his talent and assume he was just some sort of bizarre gimmick singer. His name change to a symbol, although I am sympathetic to his reasoning for doing so, further alienated his fan base and sent Prince into relative obscurity during the mid to late 90s.
3. He became a full fledged independent artist in the early 2000s, self publishing several jazz based instrumental heavy albums. While Prince was heralded for exploring another musical genre, reviews were mixed and the albums were commercial failures. The most infamous of these is the Rainbow Children, a concept album recounting his becoming a Jehovah’s Witness, and features narration from Prince portraying God, using an electronically modulated voice reminiscent of Darth Vader. Sales were abysmal and the album remains one of Prince’s worst performing at about 250k units global.
Despite Prince’s business challenges in the mid 90s through early 2000s, his career made a complete resurgence in 2004 onwards. His 2004 Musicology tour was the most financial successful tour of the year and his 2007 Super Bowl performance cemented his legendary status, reintroducing him to the mainstream. Many critics believe it was the greatest Halftime performance ever.
what do y’all think?
1. Purple Rain was his biggest album, but the most successful singles on it, Purple Rain, Let’s Go Crazy and When Doves Cry, were at odds with what was (and still is) considered traditional black music. The former two songs are unambiguous rock anthems and challenge listeners to re-establish the conventional boundaries of funk and R&B.
2. His follow up albums, Around the World in a Day and Parade, were deliberate attempts to move further away from even the white mainstream and explore his creative freedom. Both albums were critically acclaimed, earning Prince Beatles like status among music writers, but his shift from popular tastes reflected in sales, with each album only doing 2-3mm in sales each compared to Purple Rain’s 13mm.
1987’s Sign ‘O’ the Times, is often more highly regarded than even Purple Rain. While avant garde, with tracks like If I Was Your Girlfriend, the album was a return to Prince’s R&B and funk roots, but it too only did about 3mm in sales. Prince’s only other albums to approach Purple Rain like commercial success were the Batman soundtrack and Diamonds and Pearls. Both are more traditional pop and R&B.
2. His androgynous image made it very difficult to be a fan of his. In some ways it was a strength—how many 5’2” light skinned black men are there running around in makeup? His image helped him stand out among the crowd, but I also think it caused many to overlook his talent and assume he was just some sort of bizarre gimmick singer. His name change to a symbol, although I am sympathetic to his reasoning for doing so, further alienated his fan base and sent Prince into relative obscurity during the mid to late 90s.
3. He became a full fledged independent artist in the early 2000s, self publishing several jazz based instrumental heavy albums. While Prince was heralded for exploring another musical genre, reviews were mixed and the albums were commercial failures. The most infamous of these is the Rainbow Children, a concept album recounting his becoming a Jehovah’s Witness, and features narration from Prince portraying God, using an electronically modulated voice reminiscent of Darth Vader. Sales were abysmal and the album remains one of Prince’s worst performing at about 250k units global.
Despite Prince’s business challenges in the mid 90s through early 2000s, his career made a complete resurgence in 2004 onwards. His 2004 Musicology tour was the most financial successful tour of the year and his 2007 Super Bowl performance cemented his legendary status, reintroducing him to the mainstream. Many critics believe it was the greatest Halftime performance ever.
what do y’all think?
Last edited:
