actually, you are quite wrong on this. i know from actual sources this is false. musicology was on the charts of an old tactic that even Murder Inc took practice in which was buying your own releases and boosting the numbers. Besides that he stacked the numbers by the tour tickets. 1.2 were not sold at retail. That figure is so off I won't even go into the "Captain Obvious" statistics...Prince apologists crack me up.


I'm not a prince apologist, it annoys me that people say stuff like 'musicology sold NOTHING unless prince gave it away' when it sold 330k on its first week at retail. christ knows where you're getting YOUR stats from, i never said it sold 1.2 million at retail, i said it sold a million or maybe less.

i suppose i can't argue with you about buying his own releases, you don't quote anyone but then again its not like you can necessarily reveal your sources. i'd question it personally but there ya go.

I don't know why people complain so much about him more or less cheating the system to get his cds into the hands of people at his shows. so what?! like the record industry hasn't ripped off millions of artists, then someone finds a loophole and exploits it and everyone complains. good on him i say, and good on everyone else who followed it and tried to do the same or something similar (i'm sure the cure were said to be following what he did, as were cheap trick etc, basically any act with a greatest hits live following but who would struggle to get support for a new album).

to be honest i've never seen anyone go round saying how big a hit musicology was, sure some articles mention it, but they're not even researched and half the time its AP or Reuters or something cut and pasted. people on here are well aware the majority of 'sales' came from the live ticket promotion, its just other people saying 'it sold NOTHING' etc that winds me up abit.

as for only playing 5 songs from his new album on tour, and only 3 in one gig. so what? it was a greatest hits show mostly, yeah ok on his last couple of tours he played every song, but they were a different format for a different crowd. personally i'd prefer it if he played more from the album he was promoting, but i'm also a realist and know this won't happen everytime.

re prince not wanting to go down the whole 'last time for the hits' route, yeah didn't someone at the meet and greets at the australia shows ask him and he said then he wasn't going to play them the last time, they're his songs so why should he stop playing em, i think it was obvious to people on this board it was stuff he had to do to get promotion.

i appreciate alot of people on this board may be blind to everything prince does that isn't genius or perfect but thankfully i'm not one of them. i have no doubt prince puffs out his chest, remember that interview around the rave era when he went on about his vault, and it having the 'headiest, jazziest work the revolution ever did, this and that with miles davis etc', its ok for him to boast, knowing full well he doesn't have to release it for people to judge.
i agree with you on that stuff - the guys got an ego problem, he wants to prove he can have a hit whenever he wants etc. personally i think he seems alot calmer with himself in the past few years - if he was so obsessed with his album charting high then why not also pay radio stations to play his song and manufacture a hit if thats what he really really wants. i suppose, like you say, alot of companies won't go near him now. so that answers that one i suppose.

as for the numbers musicology sold after the tour, yeah they were very low. he wasn't promoting it anymore, he'd had the run of singles, he'd been on tour ages and the album had been out ages. it'd already done its run at retail really, selling 900k or whatever, however many of those prince bought!

softandwet said:

- Maybe...but I insist..."Musicology" (the song) wasnt a HIT like Cream and Gett Off...songs that even non-fans (like I was back then) knew. At least here in Brasil it wasn´t. "Gett Off" is the kind of song that even the haters remember the video or know it. For me, THIS is a hit.

Let me break it down for you. This song will not be a hit no matter how much promotion or money is put behind it. Simple fact is it's not good whether it's from Prince or someone else.


Musicology was a big hit due to the curiosity factor of the mass public. That took place because of his Grammy performance with Beyonce. The masses had not seen Prince in the public eye for close to six years. It was like WOW it's Prince when he stepped out, it was a shocker. Plus to top that off it was the 20th Anniversary of Purple Rain his most successful lp and him being inducted into the R&R Hall of Fame. The curiousity factor is over plus he actually has to sell records now. The best thing to do is sale them at the show.


Reality--His lps are getting worse with each release. Do you honestly expect a great lp? This is the lead single .."Hello!! "

Enjoy the live shows and hopefully he will work with his older musicians at some point and pump out some stronger material.

Everybody seems to be forgetting that Prince himself said a couple of weeks ago that this was NOT the lead single of 3121. It's just kind of a preview that he's throwing out there with a fancy video. Why make a fancy video for a song you don't intend to be a single? I don't know, Prince does weird things.... But yeah, it turns out, this is indeed a single you can buy- but this isn't the single he is going to push hard with to promote 3121.

The purple genius is at it again. He is clearly targeting the long neglected RICKY MARTIN fan base. I saw the single at border's the other day and just could not spend the 3.49 for the song. I've been a fan since '81. I have purchased a lot of P music over the years good and bad. Just couldn't do it. Not motivated by the song. Can't wait for the album.
[Edited 12/23/05 20:58pm]

jtgillia said:

Keep dreamin'. Universal didn't release this to sit on the shelf or flop.

Wait for the Album to be released on CD

I just bought it at towers today, so I did my part.

kpowers said:

Can you buy 40,000 more.

Trickology said:

DiamondGirl said:

?


Don't get it, "Vegas"?

So Musicology sold next to nothing then , Prince was buying his own releases at the wreckastows eh , hilarious . Was Prince buying his own tickets to his sell-out shows too , were the huge audiences at every gig just in our imagination . That $94m he made last year was just his own money then ??
The lengths some people will go to on here to put down any success Prince has is pathetic , it really is . Prince was THE MOST FINANCIALLY SUCCESSFUL artist of 2004 , some of you people must really hate that fact , you're probably the same ones who went on and on about how he was past it for 5 years until he had his super-successful year during which you had to bite your tongue and shut the hell up , now thats over here you are again , full up on haterade and grasping at any straw you can find to downplay what an INCREDIBLY SUCCESSFUL artist Prince is once again . NINETY FOUR MILLION FREAKING DOLLARS ,
IN ONE YEAR , read it and weep haters !

moonshine said:

- Maybe...but I insist..."Musicology" (the song) wasnt a HIT like Cream and Gett Off...songs that even non-fans (like I was back then) knew. At least here in Brasil it wasn´t. "Gett Off" is the kind of song that even the haters remember the video or know it. For me, THIS is a hit.[/quote]


yeah i'd have no problem agreeing with you, you should have just said that in the first place! musicology the single didn't even chart, though i think supposedly it would have been top40 if iTunes downloads were counted back then, at least that was the 'prediction'.
cream was number one and gett off was top20, call my name DID chart but i think peaked at 83, which isn't bad for airplay alone for prince, if it was on iTunes with a proper cd single and silver tongue as bside, it might have gotten much much higher. but it was on the charts for nearly half a year which was a success and a 'hit' by prince's post 1994 standards. but yeah, i don't really think many people think musicology was much of a big 'hit'.

softandwet said:

yeah i'd have no problem agreeing with you, you should have just said that in the first place! musicology the single didn't even chart, though i think supposedly it would have been top40 if iTunes downloads were counted back then, at least that was the 'prediction'.
cream was number one and gett off was top20, call my name DID chart but i think peaked at 83, which isn't bad for airplay alone for prince, if it was on iTunes with a proper cd single and silver tongue as bside, it might have gotten much much higher. but it was on the charts for nearly half a year which was a success and a 'hit' by prince's post 1994 standards. but yeah, i don't really think many people think musicology was much of a big 'hit'.[/quote]

these days unless your a chart freak like me people dont even look at the charts but if they heard or saw the Musicology video lots of times most people probably thought it was a hit

GoldiesParade said:

is this prince????

kpowers said:

these days unless your a chart freak like me people dont even look at the charts but if they heard or saw the Musicology video lots of times most people probably thought it was a hit[/quote]


i suppose that could work to princes advantage if people think he keeps having big hits when he's not even charting!

I also hardly see it on VH1, which is sad. Prince´s music is not catchy. It has to be heard few times before it grows on you. I don´t know why the media don´t give it higher spin. It´s annoying that whenever I turn on TV, I see Shakira´s Don´t bother. Today I´ve cought it 3 times while changing channels.

Never frikkin fails...once Prince does something and if it doesnt blow up, people throw in their hats. This always happens to him and most of the time, he flips it up on people in the end. I CANT WAIT.

2 pence...

VH1 were given the world exclusive, plus interview and all that the P / Universal camp would offer. Despite this it's still hardly getting played. Usually when a channel is made 'media partner' for a big project they guarantee blanket coverage (note: Shakira's 'Don't Bother'). Bad sign. VH1's sister channel MTV won't even give it charitible spins (they are also hammering Shakira). very bad sign.

regardless of the sucsess of (or lack of) Musicology, this 3121 project is off to a very bad start. If you think Universal are about to drop a heavy marketing budget behind this you are mistaken. Prince can create himself a very generous contract all he wants, but all the extra's he gets, he takes away for Universal. On paper im sure Universal do OK if 3121 is very sucsessful, but as soon as a project starts smelling bad record companies cut their losses quick. This single needs to start connecting....

cynical and harsh and the truth.

NME said:

A sad, but true assessment, NME. And for those who're saying "it's only been out a few weeks", well.....if you're going to sit around hoping that this elevator music will get heavy rotation on ANY radio station or MTV, you're sadly mistaken. The song is utterly dreadful in the boring, uninspired "why the fuck did he choose this" kind of vein. Me, personally, I don't give a shit about MTV, VH1 or any of the Radio 1 or other corporate radio giants. But hey, Prince signed with Universal, so he must be seeking at least some commercial success with this project; otherwise, he would've just released it all online through the wonderfully useless NPG Music club.

I hope the 3121 project is a success, as well as next year's tour, but Te Amo Corazon is both a stupid choice for lead single (or any released single, for that matter) and a waste of a really beautiful video.

"why the fuck did he choose this"
So Prince is wrong to release the single of his choice cuz you dont understand huh? Theres logic.

JonnyApplesauce said:

It's not that I don't understand. I understand clearly: this is a terrible choice for a lead single from what Prince obviously hopes will be a commercially successful album to generate interest/ticket sales for a tour. Are you going to sit there and tell me, with a straight face, that this song is going to be a hit? That it's a track that will have legs and generate interest in 3121? Perhaps the video will because of the association with Hayek, but I'm afraid that, on its on merit, this song does nothing. Perhaps VH1 will install video screens in elevators to offer a visual to accompany this sorry, no account tune.

Octavius said:

You have no more idea what his intentions are w/ that song, that video or anything else hes doing than you do what color his boots are today. The only thing youre clear about is that you dont like the song. Further, I'll sit here w/ a straight face and tell you your disproportionately nasty rants about the song are unwarranted and say more about you than they ever will about a reasoned opinion.
[Edited 12/29/05 21:59pm]

JonnyApplesauce said:

Hey Sauce, let's not make this thing personal, ok? I hate the song; that's true. But am I not entitled to an opinion just like you? You like the song, but you don't hear me saying that this means you're a shallow person or anything like that. Just take my assessment as mere opinion. This is all subjective; it is music, after all, and not every creation will be pleasing to all fans.

And it's not that I have unrealistic expectations of Prince and his music. It wasn't me (or anyone else on the org) who raised the bar so high. Prince set these standards by offering up such great music in the 80s and early 90s, some of it released, most of it not. So when I hear something like "Te Amo Corazon", to me, it's just a major disappointment because it's coming from Prince. Honestly, if some other entertainer were to release this song, very few people on this site would give it a second thought.

But anyway, to my original point - we can criticize Prince's music here and let our perspectives clash; it is a forum, after all. But let's not attack each other. It really adds nothing to the discourse.

Octavius said:

Disproportionately negative and unecessary extremes add nothing to the discourse. Its a funky tune.

Octavius said:

- I don´t expect Shakira´s fans to buy it, but people like Sting and Sade sell VERY well "elevator music"...so, there is a market for that. Universal should promote Prince to THIS audience.

First things first, I do like the song.

However, I don't understand why Prince or anyone else would think this song would be a hit. I just can't see it having a mass appeal with todays record buying public.

Obvioulsy Prince hasn't released it expecting it to not be a hit otherwise there'd be no point in releasing it but I seriously can't see it. What I think is that maybe he's been blinded by the success of the most beautiful girl and that's led him into thinking that a ballad should be a lead single.

I obviously can't say for sure but he's certainly not always made the best decisions regarding singles. Wasn't the greatest romance the lead single from Rave? Was Betcha By Golly the lead from Emancipation? You only have to look at the recent Allan Leeds interview where he talked about If I Was Your Girlfriend being the second single from Sign Of The Times. He said that everyone thought Housequake should have been single two, even Prince. The trouble was it was too obvious and Prince wanted to do something different for the second single.

I don't see that he's come any further in his single releasing decisions.

P.S. dont' forget the first line of this post. I'm not hating here.

GustavoRibas said:

On Friday, I came home from a hard and long day at work and after unwinding and sitting on my sofa, I turned on Te Amo and you know what, it had an effect. Speaking to the point on elevator music, the song has a nice rhythm and base to it and its perfect for relaxing. Maybe it will be a flop, but its the best song to chill out to.