as a long time prince fan, i have always been amazed at people's negative view of prince whenever his name crops up in conversations. you almost always get the usual "oh he's gay" as if most rock stars dont enjoy a bit of shirt-lifting now and again.
...
...or you get some other line about how can you possibly like him. i know its a lot to do with ignorance but you dont get the same level of hate when you talk about almost any other big star so what is it about prince?

people fear what they don't understand...

Prince evokes a strong reaction from people.Folks either love him or hate him.That's how it is when you're a bold,controversial artist who does things that people don't always understand.The same also applies to Madonna.

DavidEye said:

co-sign

blackboab said:

I know what you mean, its the whole sexuality thing. People are so uptight about sex and gender. Prince likes to ( well, used to like to ) embrace sexuality in all its forms and play with conventional ideas of gender. That kind of thing is a "no-no" for alot of people...a woman is a woman, a man is a man...the sheep are nervous... and thats that! To like Prince is to admit his sexual antics don't bother you...and to not be bothered means you must be a, like Prince, some kind of fag. This planet is choc-a-bloc full of morons.

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[This message was edited Mon Jan 5 3:06:01 PST 2004 by mrdespues]

the line from dire straits 1985 hit money for nothing fits most people's view of prince " the little faggot with the earing and the make-up "

blackboab said:

I thought it was "...earing and a mink coat" and to my knowledge, that remark wasn't about Prince but about someone from an english band. (and for the life of me, I can't remember the name of it)

FiveFootNine said:

no, it was "earring and the make-up" and blackboab was just using that line as a referrence to what many people of think of prince, not that the line actually was about Prince.

'why do people hate prince so much?'

"cuz he's gay" is th emost common answer

Yet look at Justin, lead-singer from the Darkness

Could anyone ACT any MORE gayer than he does ? He sings in the highest falsetto, wears the tighest ass-hugging pants he can find, shows his chest at every opportunity and is naked in the bath in every video clip they ever made.

Yet you don't hear it about him at all.

Strange.
[This message was edited Mon Jan 5 5:45:49 PST 2004 by FunkyStrange]

FunkyStrange said:

Prince is pretty, so he looked a bit girly as well. That Justin guy isn't particularly good looking or girly. That's my expert analysis.

FunkyStrange said:

Thats because 99% of the world's population have never heard of Justin, lead singer of the Darkness. If they ever have the same kind of commercial success Prince had, trust me, he'll cop it too.

'Cos he's crap in bed.

Because Cloudbuster likes him.

Because JD tells folk that P is gay.

jealousy from a music point of view and ignorance from a seual image point of view

FiveFootNine said:

exactly.

FiveFootNine said:

[This message was edited Mon Jan 5 7:50:24 PST 2004 by JDINTERACTIVE]

JDINTERACTIVE said:

I see what you mean. Recently, I hear more "he's a washed-up hasbeen" comments. I also hear alot of "old" and "needs some geritol" remarks. I am a huge fan of Prince and despite his flaws, few hold a candle to his talent, in my opinion. I respect his discpline and admire the hard work he put in to get where he is today. Truthfully, I have no idea how I would act in his shoes. I'd probably be very "eccentric" as well.

JDINTERACTIVE said:

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

Hey!! I didn't say that!!

mrdespues said:

Ahhh haaa...thank you!!

Prince suffers the Liszt effect, a brilliant artist who, because he challenged the conventional line of thinking and took bold risks with everything he did, gets either hated or loved passionately by ppl who either completely "get" his work or absolutely don't, but who overall still doesn't get as appreciated for his musical genius as he should.

Franz Liszt was the same way as a classical composer. He challenged the conventional way of composing a piano piece by using really experimental, risky techniques that scared closed-minded ppl to the point where they never really appreciated his genius.

It's the same with Prince. People don't appreciate his genius half as much as they should, because their closed minds only focus on his eccentricity.

1. Image.

2. He hasn't had a big commercial "hit" in a long time.

The latter makes the former more palatable to mainstream audiences who need to be force fed their music.

Don't believe me?

Prince today is basically back at his pre-1999 days when he had yet to achieve a breakthrough album...the days when he was "gay" and/or "weird." Funny how the 1999 then PR albums all of a sudden erased that gay weirdness for a lot of people. Admittedly, the PR movie humanized him to this segment of people too. But that was 20 years ago. A different generation.

º
[This message was edited Mon Jan 5 20:16:47 PST 2004 by Supernova]

Supernova said:

Damn, that's pretty much ended the discussion. Well put.

FiveFootNine said:

FiveFootNine said:

[This message was edited Tue Jan 6 8:43:22 PST 2004 by JDINTERACTIVE]

Personally, Yes ive encountered a lot of this. There actually was this fine guy, that I was interested in. He thought i was weird the whole year. But, here and there he would flirt with me, Mabye he was scared. Yes, i had prince written on my backpack, pictures on up in and out of my binder...I just didnt care.I am a fan, why not!?, People just cant understand it, They are scared of what they dont understand..To me thats a weak person, because if you cant take that, you cant take life. LIFE IS CONTROVERSY.

Anyway, at the end of the year..(senior yr) He signed my yearbook. He said something along the lines, That" You are real nice and funny girl, Im glad met u..(blah), The Prince things still weird, but thats ur style, and thats what i like about u." He left his number, But, i never called it. Afraid that it was a joke. Anyway, back then if u would compare pictures..(2 Years difference) Then, mabye now he might be interested?..Hmmm, whatever...I guess its his lose..Well, I guess, even though it was weird to him, he still respected that i wasnt afraid to be me, thats where it all comes down, If u are comfortable, with what u like. WHO CARES IF NO ONE ELSE IS COMFORTABLE WITH IT!!!

In the end, theres always someone who has ur same intrests and likes...So, I guess all i gotta do is wait..

People R always scared of the unknown or show hate 2 things and people who they don't understand.Closed minds or there 2 hung up on what others may think or say.

Guys some trip alot cuz Prince gets woman desipte, how they see him as a PrettyBoy in heels, how he may dress, perfect hair & makeup, they point that out as being gay etc... so they hate. They can't grasp a man who can write a song like "If I was your girlfriend" and take it in the proper way...2 them any male thats intouch with what a woman may feel is damned from his manhood!


Woman the ones I've come across that didn't dig him point out that he's so weird or strange...2 girlish or even gay. He's way 2 skinny or short...they think he wears more makeup they do.

Others, they feel he's the past old news now, un-cool these dayz...So I say 2 them there loss~

On that flipside I've turned many on 2 his great music and genius. Still many R clueless 2 his amazing genius~