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Thread started 12/28/09 5:02pm

2freaky4church
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Prince is an egotist first, a genius second.

I really don't think Prince actually cares about art or creating a lasting body of great work. He's more about his own ego than anything else. You see someone like Bob Dylan, who is in his sixties, but the guy keeps cranking out amazing work. Work even better than his sixties stuff, which is amazing. This would be like the Sex Pistols putting out a new disk better than Never Mind The Bollocks. Prince is about getting on the radio and selling out concerts. He knows radio won't play him but doesn't give up. His ego can't take it. In my view it is better to be great then to sell records. He used to do both. He needs to remember what made him great and stick to that:

1.Weirdness as a virtue. Put it in the music, not just your life.

2. Original melodies, not watered down Hendrix or James Brown cops.

3. Amazing lyrics, not b-boy schlock.

4. Genius drum programs, not Casio on stun.

5. The amazing use of backing vocals as full bodied choir.

6. The Verse, chorus interplay of his genius stuff.

Get with it Prince, you are embarrasing me..lol
All you others say Hell Yea!! woot!
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Reply #1 posted 12/28/09 7:18pm

ernestsewell

2freaky4church1 said:

Prince is about getting on the radio and selling out concerts. He knows radio won't play him but doesn't give up. His ego can't take it. In my view it is better to be great than to sell records.

That's not really true. Prince has long said he doesn't care about radio, and really doesn't even try to get a song on the radio. It's a 50/50 shot if he makes a video for a song and even attempts to give it to a station that will play it; same with a single. Sure promo singles might be sent out, but radio stations don't care. Sending out a promo single is just part of the business. It doesn't mean he's trying to nudge a General Manager into playing his track.

He made two videos from the Lotusfuck3r set, didn't release them to anyone except site members, successfully pulled them from YouTube and other places, throwing a fit to keep his "control" intact, rather than understand what free promotion and word of mouth is all about. Once the videos did come out a bit more, no one gave a shit.

Every artist wants to sell out a tour. That's not a Prince thing, that's a musician thing.

Every artist wants to sell records. No one releases anything in hopes of it being a flop. The fact that Prince 'was taken care of' for his Target venture shows that he is about the bottom line. He had a #2 record w/ that drivel, so someone bought it. There's no harm in an artist wanting to sell music and make a living. It's just when the music is crap that there is a problem (and another thread).

What made Prince great still keeps him great in the annals of history. But what makes Prince "Prince" now is $$$$.
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Reply #2 posted 12/28/09 7:53pm

Genesia

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Nobody climbs to the heights Prince has without a massive ego. Nobody.
We don’t mourn artists because we knew them. We mourn them because they helped us know ourselves.
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Reply #3 posted 12/28/09 8:20pm

babynoz

Genesia said:

Nobody climbs to the heights Prince has without a massive ego. Nobody.



Very true. And if he was really into getting radio play he'd pay like everyone else. lol

He said himself that he wouldn't be doing this if he didn't think he was bad. As far as I'm concerned he still is.
Prince, in you I found a kindred spirit...Rest In Paradise.
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Reply #4 posted 12/29/09 11:53am

Tame

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Come on...Prince is an artist, it is obvious he cares about style and delivery...God has obviously touched Prince's life with a beautiful nature...genius is somewhat superficial in comparison to blessed. cool
"The Lion Sleeps Tonight...
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Reply #5 posted 12/29/09 12:08pm

skywalker

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2freaky4church1 said:

I really don't think Prince actually cares about art or creating a lasting body of great work. He's more about his own ego than anything else. You see someone like Bob Dylan, who is in his sixties, but the guy keeps cranking out amazing work. Work even better than his sixties stuff, which is amazing. This would be like the Sex Pistols putting out a new disk better than Never Mind The Bollocks. Prince is about getting on the radio and selling out concerts. He knows radio won't play him but doesn't give up. His ego can't take it. In my view it is better to be great then to sell records. He used to do both. He needs to remember what made him great and stick to that:

1.Weirdness as a virtue. Put it in the music, not just your life.

2. Original melodies, not watered down Hendrix or James Brown cops.

3. Amazing lyrics, not b-boy schlock.

4. Genius drum programs, not Casio on stun.

5. The amazing use of backing vocals as full bodied choir.

6. The Verse, chorus interplay of his genius stuff.

Get with it Prince, you are embarrasing me..lol


You could always, you know, stop being a Prince fan. Or make a shirt that says "1978-1988" or some shit like that. And it's definitely a big ol' pile of your opinion that Bob Dylan is better now than in his hey day.
"New Power slide...."
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Reply #6 posted 12/29/09 12:33pm

rwn

2freaky4church1 said:

I really don't think Prince actually cares about art or creating a lasting body of great work. He's more about his own ego than anything else. You see someone like Bob Dylan, who is in his sixties, but the guy keeps cranking out amazing work. Work even better than his sixties stuff, which is amazing. This would be like the Sex Pistols putting out a new disk better than Never Mind The Bollocks. Prince is about getting on the radio and selling out concerts. He knows radio won't play him but doesn't give up. His ego can't take it. In my view it is better to be great then to sell records. He used to do both. He needs to remember what made him great and stick to that:

1.Weirdness as a virtue. Put it in the music, not just your life.

2. Original melodies, not watered down Hendrix or James Brown cops.

3. Amazing lyrics, not b-boy schlock.

4. Genius drum programs, not Casio on stun.

5. The amazing use of backing vocals as full bodied choir.

6. The Verse, chorus interplay of his genius stuff.

Get with it Prince, you are embarrasing me..lol


Bob Dylan´s ego is probably about as huge as Prince´s.
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Reply #7 posted 12/29/09 1:33pm

PurpleLove7

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moderator

skywalker said:

2freaky4church1 said:

I really don't think Prince actually cares about art or creating a lasting body of great work. He's more about his own ego than anything else. You see someone like Bob Dylan, who is in his sixties, but the guy keeps cranking out amazing work. Work even better than his sixties stuff, which is amazing. This would be like the Sex Pistols putting out a new disk better than Never Mind The Bollocks. Prince is about getting on the radio and selling out concerts. He knows radio won't play him but doesn't give up. His ego can't take it. In my view it is better to be great then to sell records. He used to do both. He needs to remember what made him great and stick to that:

1.Weirdness as a virtue. Put it in the music, not just your life.

2. Original melodies, not watered down Hendrix or James Brown cops.

3. Amazing lyrics, not b-boy schlock.

4. Genius drum programs, not Casio on stun.

5. The amazing use of backing vocals as full bodied choir.

6. The Verse, chorus interplay of his genius stuff.

Get with it Prince, you are embarrassing me..lol


You could always, you know, stop being a Prince fan. Or make a shirt that says "1978-1988" or some shit like that. And it's definitely a big ol' pile of your opinion that Bob Dylan is better now than in his hey day.


Peace ... & Stay Funky ...

~* The only love there is, is the love "we" make *~

www.facebook.com/purplefunklover
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Reply #8 posted 12/29/09 6:46pm

Mindflux

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2freaky4church1 said:

I really don't think Prince actually cares about art or creating a lasting body of great work. He's more about his own ego than anything else. You see someone like Bob Dylan, who is in his sixties, but the guy keeps cranking out amazing work. Work even better than his sixties stuff, which is amazing. This would be like the Sex Pistols putting out a new disk better than Never Mind The Bollocks. Prince is about getting on the radio and selling out concerts. He knows radio won't play him but doesn't give up. His ego can't take it. In my view it is better to be great then to sell records. He used to do both. He needs to remember what made him great and stick to that:

1.Weirdness as a virtue. Put it in the music, not just your life.

2. Original melodies, not watered down Hendrix or James Brown cops.

3. Amazing lyrics, not b-boy schlock.

4. Genius drum programs, not Casio on stun.

5. The amazing use of backing vocals as full bodied choir.

6. The Verse, chorus interplay of his genius stuff.

Get with it Prince, you are embarrasing me..lol


He's more about his own ego than anything else. - somewhat like you and this thread confused
...we have only scratched the surface of what the mind can do...

My dance project;
www.zubzub.co.uk

Listen to any of my tracks in full, for free, here;
www.zubzub.bandcamp.com

Go and glisten wink
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Reply #9 posted 12/30/09 3:53am

MuyMalaPersona

Genesia said:

Nobody climbs to the heights Prince has without a massive ego. Nobody.


You're dead wrong. He came to that heights thanks to his talent, and despite his ego.
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Reply #10 posted 12/30/09 4:00am

Imago

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Reply #11 posted 12/30/09 5:37am

Genesia

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MuyMalaPersona said:

Genesia said:

Nobody climbs to the heights Prince has without a massive ego. Nobody.


You're dead wrong. He came to that heights thanks to his talent, and despite his ego.


Wrong. There are countless uber-talented people in this world who never make it because they lack the drive. The drive to develop their talent. The drive to make it known to the world.

That drive has a name - it's ego. It means you always think you're the shit - even when nobody else does. And you're by-god going to prove it.

If Prince didn't have that, he'd be just another no-name slob living in Minneapolis, working for Best Buy or Target during the day, trying to gig at night, and freezing his ass off nine months out of the year.
We don’t mourn artists because we knew them. We mourn them because they helped us know ourselves.
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Reply #12 posted 12/30/09 11:50am

MuyMalaPersona

Genesia said:

MuyMalaPersona said:



You're dead wrong. He came to that heights thanks to his talent, and despite his ego.


Wrong. There are countless uber-talented people in this world who never make it because they lack the drive. The drive to develop their talent. The drive to make it known to the world.

That drive has a name - it's ego. It means you always think you're the shit - even when nobody else does. And you're by-god going to prove it.

If Prince didn't have that, he'd be just another no-name slob living in Minneapolis, working for Best Buy or Target during the day, trying to gig at night, and freezing his ass off nine months out of the year.


You can make it to the top if you got some of these (not necesary all):
talent,charisma,image,confidence,"market flexibility", and yes some luck.
Big ego is more of a problem than a help, at least at Prince's egocentrism levels.
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Reply #13 posted 12/30/09 12:09pm

ernestsewell

MuyMalaPersona said:

Genesia said:

Nobody climbs to the heights Prince has without a massive ego. Nobody.


You're dead wrong. He came to that heights thanks to his talent, and despite his ego.

That's totally wrong. He wasn't some humble little boy making his way in the world of music, sex, God, et al. You don't get onstage and hump the fuck out of a bed, or a girl, without having an ego. You don't ask a new band member to get on their knees and simulate oral sex during a guitar solo, or to sing into your phallic shaped, crotch-oriented, microphone w/o having some ego to do so.

You don't use the godlike term "I am music", and not have an ego. Of course Lucifer had the same attitude, and look where it got him. (And he was an angel of music, by the way.)

Yeah, Prince has ego, AND talent. In music, they go hand in hand.
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Reply #14 posted 12/30/09 1:13pm

MuyMalaPersona

You are confusing self confidence or 'attitude' with egocentrism.
Egocentrism is a problem because it means you can't get into other people thinking neither get advice, so you limit yourself drastically and you will probably market yourself the wrong way.
His genius/ego helped him to create his own original musical universe, no doubt.
But he should have been much bigger than he is today, according to his talent.
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Reply #15 posted 12/30/09 1:27pm

ernestsewell

MuyMalaPersona said:

You are confusing self confidence or 'attitude' with egocentrism.
Egocentrism is a problem because it means you can't get into other people thinking neither get advice, so you limit yourself drastically and you will probably market yourself the wrong way.
His genius/ego helped him to create his own original musical universe, no doubt.
But he should have been much bigger than he is today, according to his talent.

Sweetie, I'm a grown man. I'm not confused about anything. My point stands.
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