Prince has spent more time than most musicians in educating his fanbase on this topic anyway. Found this...


My Name is Prince and I am Vegan

On track from 1996 boxset Emancipation (Joint II Joint) he had a lyric about having his cereal with only Soya milk "because cows' is for calves".

During that era he did an interview with The Vegetarian Times magazine from which he made the quote about "we need a slaughterhouse free day" (Also went on to have an internet only album called Welcome 2 The Slaughterhouse).

That article along with behind the scenes interview on vegetarian staff at Paisley Park: http://www.findarticles.c...i_19945123

On The Truth Album in 1998 (packaged with The Crystal Ball 3CD set) he made his vegan manifesto clearest through the lyrics of "Animal Kingdom":

Animal Kingdom - Prince
I saw a friend of mine 2day
In an ad sayin' what would do my body good
I told him he was wasting time I say
If God wanted milk in me
The breast I suck would have a line around the hood

No member of the animal kingdom nurses past maturity
No member of the animal kingdom ever did a thing 2 me
It's why I don't eat red meat or white fish
Don't give me no blue cheese
We're all members of the animal kingdom
Leave your brothers and sisters in the sea

Animal, animal kingdom {x2}

Who told us we should eat the swine?
U can bet your final money it damn sure wasn't no friend of mine
What about the clams on the shore?
Souls in progress, here come the fisherman - soul no more

No member of the animal kingdom nurses past maturity
(Nurses past, oh yeah)
No member of the animal kingdom ever did a thing 2 me
(Ever did a damn thing)
So I don't eat no red meat or white fish
Or funky, funky blue cheese
We're all members of the animal kingdom
Leave your brothers and sisters in the sea

Animal, animal kingdom {x3}

In 2000 he won an award for the anti-wool message within the Rave Un2 The Joy Fantastic linernotes. Regarding the award: http://www.hsus.org/about...wards.html

The really big moment, of course, was Prince's appearance. He was accepting the Dolly Green Special Achievement Award for his latest CD, Rave Un2 the Joy Fantastic, which contain liner notes that decry the suffering of sheep to produce wool clothing. Prince received a heartfelt standing ovation and, in all sincerity, said, "I've received many awards, but I'm truly humbled just to be here…I'm truly humbled receiving this…There are so many wonderful people in the room…Really this has been a moving experience just being in the room with all of you."

Didn't know he got an award for that

IrresistibleB1tch said:

Black coffee today

I have real issues with phytoestrogens, don't trust soya anymore until we know what those cheeky pseudo-hormones are up too!

I'd still like to know if pound for pound of protein which is a more economical foodstuff with regard to water.

If I get a free moment today i will see if I can make a few calculations.


[Edited 3/29/06 3:15am]

PREDOMINANT said:

IrresistibleB1tch said:

Really, there's no doubt on this. . . no controversy. To make a plant, you need the water for the plant. To make an animal, you need the water for the plant he eats, and the water for the animal. Did I miss something?

Predominant said:

see, SeattleInvasion was right!

IrresistibleB1tch said:

I just dropped in and this discussion is fascinating.

SpecialEd said:

Maybe we have a little bit of a misunderstanding here, either that , or you misread my previous posts, or you didn´t read all of them...please don´t get me werong, I don´t want to sound offensive but I guess I explained the many different factors for my decision to eat fish occasionally.


As far as I recall I never said that the vegetarian Shaolin monks ate fish...then they wouldn´t be vegetarians, would they ? I did a lot of research on tofu and came across a website ( a vegetarian website, by the way) where Shaolin monks were praising the benefits of a vegetarian diet, one of these benefits being a notably decreased sexdrive. Now, a lowered sexdrive might be a good thing when you aren´t allowed to have sex, but that is not my lifestyle, quite on the contrary, I´m a freak when it comes to sex, it´s a huge part of my personality.

Now, personally, I have never experienced any problems regarding my sexdrive during my vegetarian years even thoguh I ate tons of tofu, but then again, I don´t know the long term effects on men...and it´s not just the sexdrive I was worried about, it´s also some other effects of phytoestrogens (semihormones) on the male system.....studies on Japanese and Chinese men show a lot of health benefits of eating soy products but then again, there are certain health problems that are dominant in cultures with a high tofu consumption.

Maybe, just maybe, there are other nutritional ( scientifically undiscovered) benefits of eating fish occasionally, I don´t know.

Also, I´m getting the impression that you´re on a mission here, which is OK, but still.....I mean, I used to be a bit like that , too.

Waht I can say is that my muscles develop differently when I eat fish, that is something I can notice in a timeframe of less than two weeks.My mental capacity is also positively different. We could go on and on here, but I think I have stated most of my points in my other posts...especially the psychological effects and my ethical points of view.

The macrobiotic chef was not just some ordinary cook , he is an expert on nutrition and he´s also experimented over the years.

I really, strongly respect your choices and your dieting habits, and as I said, I´d rather eat very moderate amounts of fish from time to time , occasionally, until maybe I become a fulltime vegetarian again one day, or maybe not, but that´s still better then being a hardcore vegan for a decade and then switching back to being a meateater ( not that I ´d condemn that ).

It´s all about awareness, I guess, that´s the main thing..I would applaud a year or two of a worldwide fishing ban, I´m all for it and know I could live without it.


Please read my previous posts, and if you feel like it, we can continue this very stimulating discussion here.


My main point is that neither I nor the scientists know EVERYTHING about the perfect diet....

I don´t want to risk anything when it comes to health..for example , would you force a vegetarian lifestyle upon your children ? Just a question I´ve been pondering for a long time...I know there are kids who , by instinct, don´t eat dead animals...other kids on the other hand love meat...so , to each his own.

SeattleInvasion said:

Not really no,

What you say is true, however soya, while an excellent source of vegetable protein, contains significantly less protein than meat. So rather than water makes plant makes cow it is a little more complex as the cow itself can synthesise protein from non vegetable matter.

The question is more weight for weight of protein which takes more water to make.

I am just gonna have to get on and find some figures arn't I ?

KoolEaze said:

It's that very uncertainty I take issue with rather than miscommunication. Fish have been analysed for a long time by scientists as have all areas of animal based nutrition. Yet the fact (as we currently) know it to be is only the vitamin B12 is not found in plant based diets. This of course is easily available in supplements.

There doesn't seem to be much foundation to your points on fish is all, I would argue that you likely weren't getting omega oils in your vegetarian diet so eating fish boosted you. If you had already been getting your omegas the changeover would be negligible.

You have claimed fish boosts muscle production and sexdrive without any scientific evidence. You need to cite the individual vitamins and nutrients at work to justify the points to move beyond the hearsay stage. Whereas the negative claims against Tofu are unclear curently. Asian cultures seem to thrive on it though.

Dewrede said:

Yeah must have been sidelined in the news headlines. Turned up to the awards and received the award in person too of course.

Was quite the stand to give liner notes over to wool production, especially on a major label. Though knowing Prince I wouldn't be surprised if he's wearing wool again by now. tsk tsk

PREDOMINANT said:

Ah, I see what you mean. . . water per gram of protein.



I would bet it's still less water-intensive to get protein from legumes (and nuts, too). They are fairly protein-dense, and mammals need a WHOLE lotta water.

SeattleInvasion said:

plus, we need to keep in mind that few in the west suffer from lack of protein - if anything, we consume entirely too much. (i'll forego the obvious Dr. Atkins joke... but man, is it tempting! )

IrresistibleB1tch said:

Well, right, but I guess that's not really the issue in this case. Regardless of how many grams we need, there is some fact-of-the-matter as to how much water it takes to produce each gram. It takes way less water to produce a pound of soybeans than it does a pound of beef. I guess we're not arguing about that. The question is, are soybeans so much lower in protein that, per gram, they actually do require more water as a protein source? I seriously doubt it. But it's essentially independent of the question of how much protein we need.

SeattleInvasion said:

fair enough - it's an interesting thing to look into.

why not double-whammy the whole thing and consume less protein AND the more ecologically sensible kind.

IrresistibleB1tch said:

Well, that's the question. Which is the more ecologically sensible kind?

I feel quite confident about the answer to that, not only because I suspect the water-per-gram issue still comes out in favor of the plant source, but because there are other pretty severe ecological impacts.

SeattleInvasion said:

if i ever make it out your way, let's go out for a fabulous vegan meal!

IrresistibleB1tch said:

You betcha.

I have a question for the vegetarians and vegans. I have food allergies, which includes soy. Is there a way to be a vegan or vegetarian and NOT have soy as a staple of your diet? Not thinking of converting, just wondering.

u2prnce said:

Certainly, but it will eliminate a lot of veg*n convenience foods -- probably a majority contain some soy, though many are made from seitan ("wheat meat". . .yum ). It would certainly eleminate a lot of my favorites.

But there are plenty of other ways to get adequate protein. Keep in mind that most people get 2-3 times the amount of protein that they actually need, so you could cut your intake in half and likely still get plenty.

SeattleInvasion said:

the best books on vegetarian and vegan nutrition i've found are these:





give it a shot - you might be surprised at how your food allergies respond to veg/vegan food. good luck!

IrresistibleB1tch said:

can you get these at health food stores in the states? and/or new age bookstores?

i'll get one when i'm there. we like to cook vegan at home, when possible. so far what we have at home for that is the "world food cookbook" from the London restaurant...

Heiress said:

i believe they are available at amazon.com, too. orgnote me if you can't find it.

IrresistibleB1tch said:

yes ma'am, i found it.

u2prnce said:

i can't speak from a vegan perspective, but as a lifelong vegetarian, there are tons of meat-free dishes you can make that don't include soy...in fact, you probably already eat some of them!

a lot of the meals i make for myself are rice-based. i'll make stir-fry or i'll mix store-bought simmer sauces with mixed veggies and serve that over rice.

also, i've recently discovered the joy of frozen breaded eggplant slices - slap a few of those in a sandwich with a bit of barbecue sauce and you've got something that's even better than a soyburger.

and there's also good ol' pasta. i usually just get a nice meatless spaghetti sauce and doctor it up with lots of vegetables. this, with a side of steamed broccoli, is a really good veggie meal. i'm also a big fan of gnocci (potato pasta), which i like to prepare in a wok with a bit of olive oil until it's nice and crispy.

Anx said:

and don't forget...

beans, beans they're good for your heart

the more you eat
the more you get smart!

because of all the protein.

and dried fruit for iron.

i almost never eat soy. i use rice milk on cereal.

Anx said:

Crispy Gnocci

PREDOMINANT said:

oh HELL yes. i grill the bejeezus out of those suckers! well, as much as you can "grill" something in a wok, anyway.

it's good stuff. very hearty tasting. try it sometime.

Heiress said:

ya know, i'm pretty sparing with beans because i find i can't digest them very well. soy is fine. green beans and lima beans are fine. but kidney beans and pinto beans and black beans? got some problems there. you can't knock the nutritional content, though - this is very true.