I was watching Friday night's 'The One Show' on iplayer this afternoon (it was on BBC 2 this week on Friday by the way) and was coming live from Glastonbury. They were interviewing key organiser' Michael's daughter (who is co organiser) and when questioned by presenter Alex Jones about the recent rumours of Prince headlining Saturday she said "that Prince had been approached many times before and that 'to be honest, they can't ever see it happening'. Wonder what's the issue - money? Shame.

thebiscuit said:

There seems to be a lot of denial from the Glastonbury organizers about Prince 'never' playing the fest lately. Starting to think they might be trying to set us up for a surprise...

I hope so!

thebiscuit said:

There seems to be a lot of denial from the Glastonbury organizers about Prince 'never' playing the fest lately. Starting to think they might be trying to set us up for a surprise...

The suprise being...he's not playing

Sometimes no means no..even in the Prince world!

I think the main reason and we can link this in with broadcasting rights and "the torch police" is

as a live musician in the digital age he relies on people buying tickets to come to see him perform,his last asset if you will.

Therefore if you hand over the rights to your headline slot being broadcast live in HD around the world he would be concerned and rightly so imo. (...great if you are a new band looking for an audience, where as Prince sells out plenty concerts around the world already.)

...maybe if the organisers/tv companies agreed to NO live tv footage or show 2 or 3 songs out of 30 he would do it.

otherwise I don't see it happening either.

youngyosh said:

I think the main reason and we can link this in with broadcasting rights and "the torch police" is

as a live musician in the digital age he relies on people buying tickets to come to see him perform,his last asset if you will.

Therefore if you hand over the rights to your headline slot being broadcast live in HD around the world he would be concerned and rightly so imo. (...great if you are a new band looking for an audience, where as Prince sells out plenty concerts around the world already.)

...maybe if the organisers/tv companies agreed to NO live tv footage or show 2 or 3 songs out of 30 he would do it.

otherwise I don't see it happening either.

But that makes no sense when Metallica, The Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder, Paul McCartney or any 'legendary' act that still tours allowed their Glastonbury headline set to be broadcast.

I do agree with you that transmitting the performance on the BBC would be a problem for Prince but apart from control freakery I can't see a single logical reason for it as the evidence would suggest playing Glastonbury hasn't negatively affected anyone's ticket sales - or record sales for that matter.

All those above along with huge bands like Coldplay, Muse, The Killers etc went on to huge sell out tours across the globe after Glastonbury.

Oh well. Our loss...

djfine said:

youngyosh said:

I think the main reason and we can link this in with broadcasting rights and "the torch police" is

as a live musician in the digital age he relies on people buying tickets to come to see him perform,his last asset if you will.

Therefore if you hand over the rights to your headline slot being broadcast live in HD around the world he would be concerned and rightly so imo. (...great if you are a new band looking for an audience, where as Prince sells out plenty concerts around the world already.)

...maybe if the organisers/tv companies agreed to NO live tv footage or show 2 or 3 songs out of 30 he would do it.

otherwise I don't see it happening either.

But that makes no sense when Metallica, The Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder, Paul McCartney or any 'legendary' act that still tours allowed their Glastonbury headline set to be broadcast.

I do agree with you that transmitting the performance on the BBC would be a problem for Prince but apart from control freakery I can't see a single logical reason for it as the evidence would suggest playing Glastonbury hasn't negatively affected anyone's ticket sales - or record sales for that matter.

All those above along with huge bands like Coldplay, Muse, The Killers etc went on to huge sell out tours across the globe after Glastonbury.

Oh well. Our loss...

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This is Prince we are talking about so logic can be misplaced.

.........Metallica, The Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen.... et al are not hiring torch goons to enforce a strict non digital capture scenario.

If a TV broadcast is involved I don't see it happening, and I agree it would be great to see Prince on the main stage.

Mindflux said:

youngyosh said:

Yeah, alot of denial going on about him not playing, leads me to think something has been struck up between them,

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I dont like festivals, but it really is making me think about going next year just incase, I dont think i would camp though, I'd rater hire a Camper van or soemthing.

Broadcast rights are likely the issue IMO. He would basically be giving away a live DVD (in his mind) to the BBC who will broadcast it for free (other than licence fee)... Having said that wasn't there a recent interview where Prince complained about not being able to get on Jools Hollands show? Not an identical issue but similar in terms of TV.

The flipside being the audience he would reach. He has a pretty great setlist at the moment. Playing to not only the 10's of thousands on site, but also TV around the world and on demand.

If he wants another hit single or album Glasto would be the way to get it. In the UK at least and he could likely ride the success into Europe as well.

As much as I love'd the recent UK hit and run gigs - they were awesome - They didn't seem to be "for" anything. PlectrumElectrum was rumoured but it was shelved and frankly too much time has passed for the 10 or so concerts back in FEB to boost the albums sales.

He needs to get on TV. Glasto seems ideal - then again - he doesn't have an album to sell at the moment,

youngyosh said:

djfine said:

But that makes no sense when Metallica, The Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder, Paul McCartney or any 'legendary' act that still tours allowed their Glastonbury headline set to be broadcast.

I do agree with you that transmitting the performance on the BBC would be a problem for Prince but apart from control freakery I can't see a single logical reason for it as the evidence would suggest playing Glastonbury hasn't negatively affected anyone's ticket sales - or record sales for that matter.

All those above along with huge bands like Coldplay, Muse, The Killers etc went on to huge sell out tours across the globe after Glastonbury.

Oh well. Our loss...

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This is Prince we are talking about so logic can be misplaced.

.........Metallica, The Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen.... et al are not hiring torch goons to enforce a strict non digital capture scenario.

If a TV broadcast is involved I don't see it happening, and I agree it would be great to see Prince on the main stage.

Noodled24 said:

Broadcast rights are likely the issue IMO. He would basically be giving away a live DVD (in his mind) to the BBC who will broadcast it for free (other than licence fee)... Having said that wasn't there a recent interview where Prince complained about not being able to get on Jools Hollands show? Not an identical issue but similar in terms of TV.

The flipside being the audience he would reach. He has a pretty great setlist at the moment. Playing to not only the 10's of thousands on site, but also TV around the world and on demand.

If he wants another hit single or album Glasto would be the way to get it. In the UK at least and he could likely ride the success into Europe as well.

As much as I love'd the recent UK hit and run gigs - they were awesome - They didn't seem to be "for" anything. PlectrumElectrum was rumoured but it was shelved and frankly too much time has passed for the 10 or so concerts back in FEB to boost the albums sales.

He needs to get on TV. Glasto seems ideal - then again - he doesn't have an album to sell at the moment,

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That's probably a big factor too, Might make more sense getting the PR Reissue out along with his new album. I personally think next year could be the year he does it, perfect time,

Noodled24 said:

Just for the record, when the Rolling Stones played they only allowed the BBC to broadcast about 15mins of their set (the rubbish, slow, middle 15mins!)... I'm sure they could come to a similar arrangement for Prince.

Having said that, I'd be gutted if they did that as I'd likely be watching it on TV. As much as I'd love to go to Glasto I'm not taking a £200 risk on tickets before I knew who was playing...that's crazy!

DaveT said:

Just for the record, when the Rolling Stones played they only allowed the BBC to broadcast about 15mins of their set (the rubbish, slow, middle 15mins!)... I'm sure they could come to a similar arrangement for Prince.

Having said that, I'd be gutted if they did that as I'd likely be watching it on TV. As much as I'd love to go to Glasto I'm not taking a £200 risk on tickets before I knew who was playing...that's crazy!

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15 mins was what they originally agreed to, but they actualy broadcast 1 hour I think. I guess Prince could agree to do this, and as its not actually a live Broadcast they could let him choose his highlights/parts he's happy with

DaveT said:

fnksoul said:

Mindflux said:

It pretty much is a live broadcast - it only has a slight delay to ensure nothing "untoward" is shown. It is maybe 5 minutes behind the actual event. But, anyway, as I keep saying, Prince's issue is nothing to do with the broadcast rights - he has full control over that. It's likely the "you're using my name to sell the event" scenario that he seems irked about.

Not sure I get your reasoning there. Glasto has been running for YEARS. Without Princes name attached. It's not like its a new festival and they're trying to sell tickets off the back of him.(he hasn't had a hit in the UK since the mid 90s.

Plus he's performed other festivals in Europe and the US. So I'm not sure how he could feel Glasto would be using him to sell the event but the North Sea Jazz Festival wasn't?

In terms of the Broadcast - Glasto would have the rights by default. Prince could likely request it not be broadcast but he may need to then take a reduced fee, or buy the rights from the organisers. THAT is where I believe the issue is. He may be paid £1 million for his set (seems unlikely but whatevs). If he then has to fork out 300k for the TV rights...

[Edited 7/2/14 11:50am]

Noodled24 said:

Mindflux said:

It pretty much is a live broadcast - it only has a slight delay to ensure nothing "untoward" is shown. It is maybe 5 minutes behind the actual event. But, anyway, as I keep saying, Prince's issue is nothing to do with the broadcast rights - he has full control over that. It's likely the "you're using my name to sell the event" scenario that he seems irked about.

Not sure I get your reasoning there. Glasto has been running for YEARS. Without Princes name attached. It's not like its a new festival and they're trying to sell tickets off the back of him.(he hasn't had a hit in the UK since the mid 90s.

Plus he's performed other festivals in Europe and the US. So I'm not sure how he could feel Glasto would be using him to sell the event but the North Sea Jazz Festival wasn't?

In terms of the Broadcast - Glasto would have the rights by default. Prince could likely request it not be broadcast but he may need to then take a reduced fee, or buy the rights from the organisers. THAT is where I believe the issue is. He may be paid £1 million for his set (seems unlikely but whatevs). If he then has to fork out 300k for the TV rights...

[Edited 7/2/14 11:50am]

It's a pity that you don't seem to have read my previous posts, or be up on the current news regarding Prince at Glastonbury.

Firstly, I'm totally familiar with how long Glastonbury has been running and how it works - I have been 12 times since the early 90s and I have performed there myself 5 times (including the weekend just gone). I get pretty much the same contract as every other artist on site - it gives the artist EXCLUSIVE control over whether their show is broadcast or not. As it happened, my show was broadcast as an internet radio stream - something I was happy to have happen. However, you can request that only certain tracks are broadcast or not, or the whole of your set. It is entirely the artist's perogative and there is NO PENALTY for exercising that right.

Secondly, with regard to your perception of "my" reasoning - it's not my reasoning, it is Prince's. Michael Eavis (head honcho at Glastonbury) specifically said that he had been talking to Prince's people this year about him performing. He was delighted that he had got this far, as he has been trying to get him to play for years, but not with any success. This year, it was at least being considered. However, rumour got out, it appeared in the Guardian and then all over social-media and, according to Eavis, Prince got upset thinking that the festival was using his name to sell tickets. Clearly, Prince is entirely unaware that, as Eavis himself said, "The festival sells out within an hour in October with no acts having been published at all". He even went on to say that social-media rumours harm his efforts to get some acts, as Prince is not the only one to have thought this has happened (i.e. that Glastonbury have put a name out there to advertise the festival).

Eavis ended the interview by saying, "If Prince wants to do it, then he will, but it's up to him".

This has all been mentioned in previous posts - perhaps you would be so kind as to read the thread first before making your assumptions?!

I've never seen the festivals contracts. However I'd be surprised if every artist had such a say. In theory that could leave the festival with nothing to broadcast. According to the Glasto website the festival retains all rights in terms of broadcast and webcasts. I dont know what that means on a per artist basis. However the broadcast is a big deal. The BBC and other film crews/radio stations etc Need to be notified in advance who they can broadcast and what they can broadcast - Informing 20 film crews that Artist X says you can broadcast their first song, not the second or 3rd, but the 4th is ok... Is no easy task. Times that by 100 or more performers.

As you said. Tickets sold out in about an hour back in October. Rumours of Prince appearing were a day or so before the festival opened. The tickets were gone. He Prince's name wouldnt have sold anymore. Plus he's not so tapped that he isn't aware of the scale of the festival. Its world famous. As for the Rumours in the Guardian - The Guardian are an offical partner of the festival...

So...Having said all that. It seems plausable that Prince just doesn't like the information being leaked. Perhaps there was a planned guest appearance but when it leaked he had a tantrum and pulled out.

Still doesn't explain why after being asked every year for the past (6 or 7 years at least - likely longer) he's always turned it down. It would be such a huge opportunity for him to reach a younger generation, win back old fans and perhaps score the elusive hit song he's after.

Mindflux said:

fnksoul said:

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15 mins was what they originally agreed to, but they actualy broadcast 1 hour I think. I guess Prince could agree to do this, and as its not actually a live Broadcast they could let him choose his highlights/parts he's happy with

It pretty much is a live broadcast - it only has a slight delay to ensure nothing "untoward" is shown. It is maybe 5 minutes behind the actual event. But, anyway, as I keep saying, Prince's issue is nothing to do with the broadcast rights - he has full control over that. It's likely the "you're using my name to sell the event" scenario that he seems irked about.

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He could opt for it not to be Streamed live ont he website though, the BBC Coverage for example of Dolly Parton was shown a couple of hours later.

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There does seem to be alot of denial by the organisers though this time round more than ever that he wont play. I think its to try and calm the rumours for next year when he might, like Michael Eavis said, The event is sold out well before the acts are announced so regardless of if it is Prince of not tickets will sell like hot cakes as they always have done. So i think that's something they have made up because surely Prince/his management is aware that headliners are not announced until closer the time, well after its been on sale.

Noodled24 said:

I've never seen the festivals contracts. However I'd be surprised if every artist had such a say. In theory that could leave the festival with nothing to broadcast. According to the Glasto website the festival retains all rights in terms of broadcast and webcasts. I dont know what that means on a per artist basis. However the broadcast is a big deal. The BBC and other film crews/radio stations etc Need to be notified in advance who they can broadcast and what they can broadcast - Informing 20 film crews that Artist X says you can broadcast their first song, not the second or 3rd, but the 4th is ok... Is no easy task. Times that by 100 or more performers.

As you said. Tickets sold out in about an hour back in October. Rumours of Prince appearing were a day or so before the festival opened. The tickets were gone. He Prince's name wouldnt have sold anymore. Plus he's not so tapped that he isn't aware of the scale of the festival. Its world famous. As for the Rumours in the Guardian - The Guardian are an offical partner of the festival...

So...Having said all that. It seems plausable that Prince just doesn't like the information being leaked. Perhaps there was a planned guest appearance but when it leaked he had a tantrum and pulled out.

Still doesn't explain why after being asked every year for the past (6 or 7 years at least - likely longer) he's always turned it down. It would be such a huge opportunity for him to reach a younger generation, win back old fans and perhaps score the elusive hit song he's after.

I'm not sure how much more clear I can be with this. I work in the industry and have performed multiple times at the event we're discussing. You clearly don't work in the industry. Yet, you keep coming back with your assumptions as to how it works, what is possible etc. I've told you how it is, given you facts, so please stop trying to argue with my first-hand experience via your mere speculation! You say, "I'd be surprised if every artist has a say" - well, be surprised! I'm not a major artist by any means - I've played some of the smaller stages and one of the mid-sized ones (Glade Stage), I still get asked about what I want broadcast, in whatever format that is.

It is no problem for the BBC to control what is broadcast per artist - these things are sorted months in advance. We sign the contract for Glastonbury and provide all the required information (rider, tech specs etc) a full 6 MONTHS (December), before the event. So, actually, it's pretty easy for the broadcaster to know what they will be showing. And when it comes to an artist only wanting specific tracks to be broadcast (for example, if they are trying out an unreleased, upcoming track), then they tend to not show that artist live, edit the recording and show it a few hours later - it's really not difficult. That said, virtually every single artist has no problem with the show being broadcast - it is excellent exposure, so neither the BBC or Glastonbury has any worries about no broadcastable material!

I know Prince wouldn't have sold any more tickets. Clearly Prince doesn't know the ticket situation. Yes, he will have heard of Glastonbury, but do you really think he knows the ins and outs of the festival. He won't care. I've heard of the Burning Man festival in the US, it's one I'd like to play. Do you think I know when tickets are on sale, what their marketing strategy is......?! Of course not! I'll just try and speak to the usual people you speak to about booking a gig. And, naturally, Prince won't even do that. Someone else will do it for him, tell him they're speaking to Glasto about a possible gig - Prince says ok, but he wants it to be a surprise gig, Prince then gets wind of it all over media, throws a strop and says he won't do it now. None of this should be any surprise to any long-time followers of Prince - he's cancelled shows for less!

He's already played pretty much everything there is to play - yes, Glastonbury would be a feather in his cap, but it's a cap that is already well-feathered and I don't think he'll feel his touring career was a failure if he never played it!

That said, I'm pleased you finally find it plausible that he didn't play because the surprise was blown (despite it having been specualted that he was playing for about the last 10 years!) and it is pretty much what Michael Eavis has confirmed. And, no, it doesn't explain why he hasn't played yet (but another explanation for that might be to do with money - Glastonbury gives so much to charities and good causes, that artists do not get the usual fee they command. In fact, you might only get half what you regularly get - perhaps that is a factor?). The truth is that we don't know what his reasons are, but there is pretty much an open invitiation for him to play whenever he feels like it, so who knows when or if it may happen. I, for one, would absolutely love to see him play there - it is a gig like no other.

Ppenguin said:

Prince won't play Glastonbury because: A) he has this totally illogical and unfounded belief that they use his name to sell tickets...despite the fact it sells out in minutes each year despite nobody knowing who's playing and is attended by people who prob don't give a shit about hearing purple rain. b) I believe it was discussed once and he wanted the right to pull out at any minute. C) the risk of getting a bottle of piss between the eyes is too great.

Part A is mostly true, except for the part about the people attending. It is a very wide range of people who attend the event, but the common ground is they all like good music, no matter who it is. Year in, year out, the main stage field is rammed for the headline acts who are as diverse as the crowd. Prince would have no problems at Glasto at all.

Part B - I highly doubt that. Do you have any evidence for that. Also, there is nothing to stop him cancelling at any moment, anyway, so I would be surprised if he demanded a clause - it has never stopped him before.

Part C - again, highly unlikely. He's played festivals before, even in the UK and has never suffered this problem (well, not since 1980 and the infamous Rolling Stones support slot).

Chances are he will play Glastonbury and I fully expect we'll see him there next year.

The reason for festival like Glasto not wanting to get Prince is the sad fact that the guy just can't be trusted to show up. These days bands do their thing with extremely professinal way and they are willing to commit to dates 2 years advance. Bands like Metallica, Rammstein, Bon Jovi, U2, Iron Maiden, Prodigy, Coldplay, Muse etc. hardly ever cancel gigs and they can plan their calendar for years in advance. Of course glasto is sold out before any acts are published but once they are the press is about the headliners and someone like Prince who is likely to cancel is a risk for public image of the event. Bigger reason is that no one knows any Prince songs after 1993. No matter what people here might think that guy is nostalgia act more than anything. To play at glasto you have to be somehow current. Stones were exception of the rule but Prince isn't palying in the same ballpark with them.

mtkmmt said:

The reason for festival like Glasto not wanting to get Prince is the sad fact that the guy just can't be trusted to show up. These days bands do their thing with extremely professinal way and they are willing to commit to dates 2 years advance. Bands like Metallica, Rammstein, Bon Jovi, U2, Iron Maiden, Prodigy, Coldplay, Muse etc. hardly ever cancel gigs and they can plan their calendar for years in advance. Of course glasto is sold out before any acts are published but once they are the press is about the headliners and someone like Prince who is likely to cancel is a risk for public image of the event. Bigger reason is that no one knows any Prince songs after 1993. No matter what people here might think that guy is nostalgia act more than anything. To play at glasto you have to be somehow current. Stones were exception of the rule but Prince isn't palying in the same ballpark with them.

Where did you get this??

mtkmmt said:

The reason for festival like Glasto not wanting to get Prince is the sad fact that the guy just can't be trusted to show up. These days bands do their thing with extremely professinal way and they are willing to commit to dates 2 years advance. Bands like Metallica, Rammstein, Bon Jovi, U2, Iron Maiden, Prodigy, Coldplay, Muse etc. hardly ever cancel gigs and they can plan their calendar for years in advance. Of course glasto is sold out before any acts are published but once they are the press is about the headliners and someone like Prince who is likely to cancel is a risk for public image of the event. Bigger reason is that no one knows any Prince songs after 1993. No matter what people here might think that guy is nostalgia act more than anything. To play at glasto you have to be somehow current. Stones were exception of the rule but Prince isn't palying in the same ballpark with them.

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Not wanting to get him? They have been trying to get him for probabaly 5-10 years now.

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Dolly Parton isn't current?