sweething said:

That's pretty much Prince's Dirty Mind era clothing. He should be dressed up like this again and then dropped in Tehran.

LOVEVERY1 said:

Actually Prince (has) met in person, face to face,

numerous Muslim women, men and children

[Edited 6/24/11 19:24pm]

There's no such thing as a muslim child. A child no more picks a religion than deciding on a preferred political ideology. Imagine if someone said a neo-conservative child, or an anarcho-syndicalist child? Sounds silly huh?

Dsoul said:

sweething said:

That's pretty much Prince's Dirty Mind era clothing. He should be dressed up like this again and then dropped in Tehran.

robertgeorgeakabob said:

BlackandRising said:

This is the first time that I have ever read anything that Prince has said where my first and most valid thought was "fuck EVERYTHING about this".

For him to imply that a society that adheres to a theocracy is "fun" when women are literally second class citizens, stoned to death or flogged because they are raped...in other words held responsible for every ill in society whereas men are excused because everything they do that is a sin is a direct result of women, is, in a word, fucked. I have literally contemplated not buying anything else he does record for this one statement, if it is indeed what he said, because it encompasses everything that is wrong with religion. There's order, which is great, so what if women are subjected to the most heinous lives one can imagine? Some people bitch about everything..being beheaded, raped, flogged, having acid thrown in one's face, being gay and hanging for it, etc., etc., etc.

He's better come out and clarify this statement. It's the most abhorrent thing he's ever said in my opinion.

"there's order. you wear a burka." err correction prince, WOMEN wear a burka. the reason prince thinks its fun being in islamic countries is because they have order over their women. he claims to love women but the reality is he's always felt threatened by strong minded women. the clues have always been there, such as depicting the anti christ as a whore in annie christian, which now seems even more sinister in light of these comments.

Although in Thunder Jesus is a woman

Cravens said:

TheFreakerFantastic said:

[..], he would probably have been punished for acting gay. [..]

Well... I don't necessarily think so. The Islamic culture doesn't really have the western stereotypes of gay men, where being affirmative or feminine is seen as gay. In most of Middle East ordinarily heterosexual men tend to be very, let's say, touchy and intimate with each other. When I travelled Turkey back in the 90s (great f' country for a tourist on foot) I saw a lot of men grabbing each other's crotches, almost as like a handshake-thing, like a way of saying "You the maaan".

I think Prince in the Middle East would rather than be seen as gay, would be seen as someone who is overly excessive - and that would probably be sinfull.

But I'm no expert.

[Edited 6/24/11 4:21am]

Oh, yes, the Islamic culture DOES have pretty much the same stereotypes of gay men as far as being effeminate and wearing flamboyant clothes are concerned ( you really meant effeminate and not affirmative, right?). But that doesn´t mean that there´s no room for people who want to be like that. Sure, the physical contact between men is much closer than in England or most other north European countries but then again, Brazil, Italy, Greece and Spain are not Islamic countries but you can see a close physical bond between men ( and men and women) there, too.

Personally, I am not that much into physical contact, hugs or kisses between men but that´s just me.

As far as Prince is concerned....he was quite popular in Turkey between Sign of the Times and Diamonds and Pearls but he never really paid enough attention to his fanbase there and these days he is not that popular anymore but a show, regardless of his stage attire and lyrics and all, would have been very welcome back in the day. He had a concert scheduled there in 1993 in Istanbul but it never happened. (It was part of the Act II tour).

Madonna and all kinds of other artists with risqué shows have given numerous concerts in Turkey without any problems.

Turkish popstar Tarkan´s show is highly sexual and there are still rumors of him being gay or bisexual but it isn´t really a problem in Turkey. Turkey is, thankfully, not really an Islamic country by definition but rather a secular country with a 99% Muslim population, and most of them more or less practising, some are devout, some only nominal Muslims. That´s a big difference. Most people there don´t like radical Muslims and half of the population is not very happy with some of the changes that the Erdogan administration has brought in the past decade but I don´t want to digress here.

Below you can see a couple of pictures of Zeki Müren, one of my favourite singers, and he was gay. Sometimes he would wear elegant stuff like this:

[img:$uid]http://www.zekimuren.net/resim/zekimuren003.jpg[/img:$uid]

[img:$uid]http://baharyeli.com/album/2009/zekimuren.jpg[/img:$uid]

But most of the time he´d wear very flamboyant stuff like this, kind of like Liberace. He admired Liberace and they met in the USA one day, and Zeki borrowed a lot from Liberace when it comes to his appearance. Unfortunately, Zeki Müren died in 1996, and the whole country mourned his death.

[img:$uid]http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_d17Np1KoBhg/Sc0qsrKr3aI/AAAAAAAAAtk/apkR-Cy3Igg/s400/LiveImages_G%C3%BCzelim_zeki+m%C3%BCren_0444335_4.jpg[/img:$uid]

[img:$uid]http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_d17Np1KoBhg/Sc0piyLio7I/AAAAAAAAAtc/R8R150NAP3U/s400/zeki+m%C3%BCren_0191077_4.jpg[/img:$uid]

Despite being gay, people loved him, including the very macho and anti-gay military. He would often give concerts for the military and when he died he left all his money to the veteran´s fund of the military.

Turkey was hysteric when he died, gay or not, people loved him. Turkey is not Iran or Saudi-Arabia.

Another singer who would not fit into people´s stereotypes of Turkey or Islam is Bülent Ersoy, another famous singer. He used to be a man and then changed his sex and became a woman and even got married to a man later on. Before surgery, he would dress and look like a woman, and , believe it or not, he was and still is a devout,practising Muslim who has studied the Koran.

Bülent Ersoy is a very bold, daring and very respected person in Turkey not only because he(or rather she) always spoke her mind and did what he/she wanted to do as far as sexuality is concerned, but more than that , Bülent Ersoy had the balls to criticize the military and the civil war in the east and said if she could bear a son, she would never send him to the army because that would be a waste of life. Hats off to her.

In this clip she looks a bit like Prince during his Tora Tora /Get Wild days....she´s performing with Coskun Sabah, a quite macho type of musician, but they get along fine:

As far as Prince´s comments are concerned....of course it´s shocking that he downplayed the injustice and lack of equal rights in countries that practise sharia law but then again, he´s Prince....after the lyrics of The Rainbow Children and his highly mysogynistic statements regarding women either in his lyrics or his interviews or his antics in his private life, this interview doesn´t surprise me at all and I can´t really understand the hoopla here on the org.

I mean, this is Prince we´re talking about.....chemtrails, theocratic order, Muse 2 the Pharaoh Prince. The guy who rips his fans off, charges them tons of money for stuff that he doesn´t deliver, the guy who rants against coverversion and plays tons of coverversions himself, the guy who´s been a walking contradiction since the 1980s, so no surprise here.

I have always liked the spiritual vibe he creates during his live shows but, as a non-Christian and as a not practising Muslim (and I wouldn´t even label myself as such because religion sucks) I never really got into his whole religious trip, whether it was the Christian message during the Purple Rain tour or Lovesexy, I couldn´t care less.

He´s a brilliant musician and his music and shows ooze positivity but hey, he is only human and says stuff that does sound stupid quite often. Won´t make me stop from following him as an artist.

When you google "being in Islamic countries is fun" you´ll get hundreds of results that take you to articles about this incident, but none of them and none of us were there when Prince said what he said and it is probably taken out of context. He was probably just saying that being in Islamic countries is not as bad as people think it is, which doesn´t really surprise me coming from someone like Prince. He has been to Egypt and to Abu Dhabi and he has a lot of Muslim friends, and I rather try to see the positive aspects of it. Despite being a JW, he has no problem with other religions and lifestyles, and he is quite critical of the US foreign policy and propaganda on Fox News,and that´s not necessarily a bad thing.

I think it goes without saying that I´m absolutely against sharia law and homophobia, and I´ve gotten into heated arguments and even fights because of my views, but I also understand why someone like Prince would see the positive aspects of such a society, and he didn´t say that such a society is something to strive for, he did mention the dark side, the other side of the coin.

When I visit strictly religious people, whether Muslims, Christians or any other devout group, I do sense a certain peaceful vibe in those homes, a certain order, and I can relate to why Prince sees this as something positive, but that peace and order that is felt at home in families does not mean that laws based on religion should be imposed on a whole society.

THAT´s where I disagree with Prince.....societies should ALWAYS be secular, and religion should ALWAYS be private and should not interfere with the lives of other people in a society, but didn´t we all know that Prince is heavily into religion and not so much into democracy?

Why do people freak out now? I just shrug my shoulders and think it´s Prince being Prince again.

He´s always been quite intelligent, but never an intellectual. Saying stupid stuff is his forté, right after playing guitar.

TheFreakerFantastic said:

We all better hope to God he doesn't become a Muslim, he would burn his whole entire vault for heresy.

Fans would then look back to his time as a JW as a golden age!!

It strange because if Prince grew up in a Muslim country he would no way have been allowed to be the person he was creatively, he would probably have been punished for acting gay. I can't bear it when people argue against things that enabled them to be who they are, ie. praising Islam as opposed to the freedom given in Christian based societies.

Those countries you think of are not free because they are "Christian based" but rather because they either got rid of religion or they separated religion and politics. Times were just as dark in "Christian" societies as they are in sharia countries when religious dogma was still strong in Europe.

It was the enlightenment and the renaissance that brought those freedoms, not the church or Christianity, and the less religion plays a part in politics, the more relative freedoms a citizen has in a country, as compared to places where religious dogma is still strong, regardless of Christianity or Islam or the Jewish religion.

Religion and freedom don´t really go hand in hand.

I like these kinds of articles better

http://blogs.montrealgaze...-hour-set/

Oh Prince, Prince, wherefore art thou?

Don't you just long for the days when he didn't speak to the press. How fortunate we were back then.

now i can c why Prince does not allow recorded interviews...people will speculate, say what they wanna say, spread rumours

without even knowing what it is that he said

this interview actually broke my heart, is prince so disheartened with society that he just wants to hide away from us now? i agree with his comment about digital music which is why he should open back up the fan club and send us physical music! charge us per release so noone can moan about pricing, make a simple black website with his name and the name of the current release with no preview and a snail mail/ phone number to get in contact to order it. if this article is correct he's pretty much quit music. absolutely the worst news ever.

[Edited 6/25/11 5:01am]

WaterInYourBath said:

Prince said:

First of all it's lazy. Then/secondly it's as if you've erased/ruined/wiped out the original version. This only happens only in music. Can you imagine if everybody did their own version of the Harry Potter film or book? Do you want to hear somebody else singing 'Kiss'? Not me.

Everyone who has read this quote and goes to his future concerts should start booing/jeering very loudly every time he starts playing other artists' songs. Seriously.

Prince whines about the internet, people stealing his songs, and him not getting royalties from it, but yet he does covers of other people's songs in concerts. I wonder if the artist whose song is redone as a cover get royalties every time Prince or another artist performs it in concert?

[Edited 6/25/11 5:05am]

prince... a riddle wrapped up in an enigma...that phrase suits him soo well....

.

.

LOVEVERY1 said:

Actually Prince (has) met in person, face to face,

numerous Muslim women, men and children.

Omg, really? actual face to face eh? Wow what a revelation for him.

Sadly to me this prove that he needs to step out of his Princeland bubble. I'm actually starting to feel a bit sorry for him.

catpark said:

LOVEVERY1 said:

Actually Prince (has) met in person, face to face,

numerous Muslim women, men and children.

Omg, really? actual face to face eh? Wow what a revelation for him.

Sadly to me this prove that he needs to step out of his Princeland bubble. I'm actually starting to feel a bit sorry for him.

Prince met real Muslims. Was this a misprint that he actually said he met real "musicians"?? LMAO!!

I wonder if those Muslims are just as confused by him as we are!

NouveauDance said:

sweething said:

Damn, that Apollonia 6 reunion isn't going as well as expected is it....

I'll say!

The point here is the hypocrytical nature of some of the comments on this thread where some are denouncing Prince for having a certain viewpoint--which, if we're going to accept diverse viewpoints, all should be respected without repraisal.

That's all.

2 Sides 2 Every Story When It Comes 2 Prince

www.drfunkenberry.com

So, Prince is getting ready to embark on a European tour that actually kicks off with dates in Canada this weekend. For the European tour, Prince did 3 interviews we are told. 2 of them at the same time. 1 was with the Guardian and Le Parisian both interviewing him at the same time.

The Guardian had quoted Prince...or mis-quoted....as it did not go into detail of what his answer or answers were. Since Prince does not allow recording devices, this does some times happen. We are running what the Le Parisian wrote as it is more detailed and has more length to Prince's answers to the questions he was asked;

We almost fainted when he heard on the phone: "It's for tomorrow. Get ready. "A few days before his unique concert at Stade de France on June 30, Prince is visiting Paris. And he wanted to talk. The incredible news - we have not slept all night - will be confirmed: "Be there at 19.00 hours.(7pm)

Not allowed to record anything. If he likes you, you have time. "Go to a selected restaurant near the Champs-Elysees. Feverish, we are led into an empty room upstairs. An hour passes. Suddenly, Prince appears. Alone, without bodyguards or entourage. Smiling, all in black, a silver chain around his neck, he tends a firm handshake, apologizes for being late, asks "How are you? "And" What's there fun to do tonight in Paris? "Sits on the bench, ordering a green tea," Go, discussions. "

You played at the Zenith, Bercy, the Parc des Princes. Stade de France ... is the missing one from your list of conquests?

Prince. The thing is, I have a group of incredible quality. It's like a basketball all star team: each one is a champion in their field. When we play together, there is such an overflow of energy it takes at least a stadium/stage to greet it.

What will the show look like on 30th June?

"There will be many surprises. What I can tell you is that by playing in New York and Los Angeles it resulted in a very controlled show. This stage is at the end."

We know that you rehearse a lot. How do you work with your group?
"I love being a tyrant (smile). But with love. I ask from them a very high level of excellence, but they are also perfectionists."

What do you remember of the 1980's?

"Michael (Editor's note: Jackson) and I appeared at a time when there was nothing. On MTV, there was nothing. People dressed like they were going to the supermarket. We were the exceptions."

Are you nostalgic for that time?

"Sometimes yes. Sometimes I see the shirts/clothes that I was wearing. But musically, no. I play more guitar, I sing better, I am a better arranger."

Are you working on a new album?
"I no longer records songs. I do not want to record as long as the crisis in the music industry will not be resolved. No one earns money. I'll go to the White House to discuss with the government the issues on copyright. It's the Wild West. Everything must be clean."

But you had been one of the first artists to use the Internet ...
"Yes, but at that time, we made money."

You very early on went to war against the record companies ...
"A record company boss told me, straight in the eye: "But, Prince, you do still believe that our goal is to make you earn money? "I was accused of distributing my album" Planet Earth "with an English newspaper, but it allowed me to reach 2 million people. I fought for control over my records. From there, no one dictated to me what I should do."

Is it true that you have hundreds of songs in your files?
"That's true. I listen to some of them with my band and they give me feedback on them."

What do you do between concerts/shows/gigs?
"I study. I learn. I like to talk to people. In all the countries I go to, I meet the people. For example I'm going back to/returning to Morocco. I really like the Muslim culture. I don't understand what people have against veiled women/women in bhurkhas. How can you stop people dressing how/the way they want to?"

The people you meet are they very intimidated by you?
"No, I am very easy to access. Here, for example, do you feel uncomfortable with me? No! Celebrity means nothing in reality, we are all the same."

When you are in Paris, what do you do?
"I go out at night. During the day I can not. The days when I could still walk the streets without being harassed by the paparazzi are long gone."

It seems/would appear you don't like your songs being covered?
"First of all it's lazy. Then/secondly its as if you've erased/ruined/wiped out the original version. This only happens only in music. Can you imagine if everybody did their own version of the Harry Potter film or book? Do you want to hear somebody else singing 'Kiss'? Not me."

You don't have any wrinkles (you haven't aged a bit), what's your secret?

"Time is a spiritual thing (you're as young as you feel). God doesn't count the passing years. He doesn't have any date of birth in the Bible. I don't celebrate my birthdays any more. If you stay active, if you learn new things (keep learning), if you travel, then you stay young."

2 interviews. Done at the same time. Yet, one has more fuller answers and more attention to detail. Very interesting. Was there an agenda? I rather Prince talk about music and performances all day long. It's like watching Michael Jordan. I care about his skills on the court. Could care less that he loves McDonalds and wears Hanes underwear. Calvin Kleins are softer Michael, just for the record.

So what do you all think happened here? I am glad there was some clarification and not just sound bites.-Dr.FB

why exactly are we supposed to take this version any more seriously than the one in the Guardian? and was it originally written in English or French? this thing has the feel of being run through a translator program.

fantasticjoy said:

To all few of you who believe everything you read

You mean like Prince? the guy reads a pithy Reader's Digest style quote on some topic, any topic, and then starts building an entire world view around it.

The second article does nothing more but confuse, plus the burka comment is just as bad or worse. Prince is okay with Muslim countries doing what they want to do, them dressing as they like, but has a problem with Americans having freedom of religion, doing what they want to do? He digs it over there, even though their religion is not the one he believes (as a Witness) is the RIGHT one?

I also see a pattern from Prince's "defenders" on this thread. You guys say people are closed minded and that people are attacking Prince for his opinion and I have not seen any such thing. I do think it is a bit hilarious though, that we should let the guy have his opinions and some of you want others to shut up and not give an opinion on what he has said.

Unfortunately, there is no asking Prince to clarify a statement he has made so this leaves his statements open to interpretation.

.....so PRINCE is not releasing another cd because of cretins???? how does that help by

depriving world of his music and gift and insight???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

that s not the way!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Prince realizes CDs are digital, right? Even back in the day before CDs, prince used digital instruments. i"m not sure he ever has ever released an album that was pure analog all the way from the source instruments down to the retail product.

And hasn't he been performing lately with digital horns instead of a horns section? Or did he just completely eliminate the horn parts from the songs all together.

I guess it's too much to expect some consistency whenever Prince wants to be controversially nutty.

So did his show in Le Stade de France sell out already?

This is a big stadium and the French are not exactly the kind of people to appreciate veiled women and such so I guess not, but perhabs it caught up so much publicity in France that it did?

Vendetta1 said:

The second article does nothing more but confuse, plus the burka comment is just as bad or worse. Prince is okay with Muslim countries doing what they want to do, them dressing as they like, but has a problem with Americans having freedom of religion, doing what they want to do? He digs it over there, even though their religion is not the one he believes (as a Witness) is the RIGHT one?

I kinda thought the second burqa comment was marginally better, but what struck me was that it directly contradicts the first! The first comment was about how there was no choice and that was a good thing. When it comes to the second, however - "I don't understand what people have against veiled women/women in bhurkhas. How can you stop people dressing how/the way they want to?" - his argument rests on the assumption that there's free choice! It seems to me that it's the tip of a more reasonable argument about 'tolerance' and not belittling the choices of another person simply because they're not the choices one would have made oneself, which is all well and good, but it's completely at odds with his original 'no choice and that's a good thing' argument.

(And that's not to mention that should he actually have a chat with some Moroccans, he'll find out he's factually incorrect. Women don't wear the Afghan-style chadri in Morocco, and the niqabs that a small but growing number do wear are not considered something expressive of an indigenous culture but, rather, an alien imposition that shows that the women wearing them are aligning themselves with religiously conservative movements whose centres of gravity have been outside of modern Moroccan society. But that's another story. )

As ever, our boy is a mess of contradictions; bless his little purple socks.

alandail said:

Prince realizes CDs are digital, right? Even back in the day before CDs, prince used digital instruments. i"m not sure he ever has ever released an album that was pure analog all the way from the source instruments down to the retail product.

And hasn't he been performing lately with digital horns instead of a horns section? Or did he just completely eliminate the horn parts from the songs all together.

I guess it's too much to expect some consistency whenever Prince wants to be controversially nutty.

Digital audio technology popped up in the late half of the 80's on a mass produced way. Prince already had made many albums, and used analog synths for the electronic sounds. He recorded on reel to reel well into the 90's.

BUT

His criticism of digital sound is bullshit. He uses digital production tools like Pro Tools quite a bit now, and digital formats can be of incredible fidelity in the studio... far above CD. But I bet the quote is out of context since we are not getting a transcription of what he actually said or what led to the statement.

When you compare what was written in The Guardian and what was written in Le Parisian, I am now blaming The Guardian for being in-correct:

imo, what has been printed in the french interview, in Le Parisian - isn't that "sensational",

Prince seems quite reasonable.

1. I can't see Prince is praising the muslim culture, the lifestyle - like the way it was portrayed in The Guardian.

2. Prince is not exactly saying "I have no more plans to record another album", is he?

I believe if Prince had another recording contract, where he is payed, he would release a new album maybe tomorrow. That's is mainly what he is saying, isn't it?

The Guardian... they have a huge problem the way they were quoting Prince, imo.

[Edited 6/25/11 9:30am]

[Edited 6/25/11 9:31am]

he could distribute vinyl LP's via in-flight magazines lol - i think he should do a deal with virgin airlines

PARIS -- France's new ban on Islamic face veils was met with a burst of defiance Monday, as several women appeared veiled in front of Paris' Notre Dame Cathedral and two were detained for taking part in an unauthorized protest.

France on Monday became the first country to ban the veils anywhere in public, from outdoor marketplaces to the sidewalks and boutiques of the Champs-Elysees. French President Nicolas Sarkozy set the wheels in motion for the ban nearly two years ago, saying the veils imprison women and contradict this secular nation's values of dignity and equality. The ban enjoyed wide public support when it was approved by parliament last year.

Though only a very small minority of France's at least 5 million Muslims wear the veil, many Muslims see the ban as a stigma against the country's No. 2 religion. About a dozen people, including three women wearing niqab veils with just a slit for the eyes, staged a protest in front of Notre Dame on Monday, saying the ban is an affront to their freedom of expression and religion.

http://www.huffingtonpost...47366.html

I applaud these women. Freedom for All.

i think women should boycott him and not buy anymore of his stuff..........seriously.

perhaps this is why Sheila E. won't work with him anymore, given his recent views.

and in one way or another,others have spoken out about the mental state of prince...see, when you put the pieces of the puzzle together it all makes sense.i was in Best Buy a couple of weekends ago

and in the vinyl section i saw 1999 and controversy...walked right past them.

with that said, he should pack his goddamn bags and move to Abu Dhabi since women having no choice is what he prefers.

[Edited 6/25/11 9:38am]

[Edited 6/25/11 9:39am]

Why isn't Prince speaking up on behalf of the right of women to wear camisoles? That's a subject that he's an authority on.

[Edited 6/25/11 9:42am]

TheFreakerFantastic said:

We all better hope to God he doesn't become a Muslim, he would burn his whole entire vault for heresy.

Jermaine Jackson is Muslim, and he hasn't burned anything.