I sent an email about a week ago asking a few questions and digging for some information...heres the outcome...don't hold your breath.


Upon asking if there would be any more downloads...

Answer
'Sorry, only CD's this year'


About what the 3 remaining cd's would be - was it going to be the ONA Live set or something that would not be availble to non members...

Answer
'We choose 2 not talk until things r finished. Some people may not like that. But everyone will get their CDs by the year's end'


Upon advising them that the service and content has not been great and that I and many others are thinking about not renewing their subscription.

Answer
'The less people that join, the better seats u will have at the next concert! People can choose 2 support an artist or not. But if u do support an artist directly like the NPGMC, then u should look 4ward 2 what the artist shares with u and not complain about what he should or should not be doing. If Prince needed that, he would have stayed with WB. The NPGMC is freedom, and Prince is free 2 release xactly what he wants, when he wants. And that is what we want 4 him as his strongest supporters, right?'


Well what to you make of that.

they gave you some nervy answers.

.
[This message was edited Wed Oct 2 3:22:14 PDT 2002 by suomynona]

suomynona said:

awww you're just bitter, m, that's all. get over it.

The answer to your last query about NPGMC service looks suspiciously like "F**K You, We will do what we want and you will like it or else you can F**K off. There are plenty more where you came from..."

Or am I the only one to interpret the answer this way.

shammyfeen said:

I'm sure you won't be the only one to interpret it this way

It's pretty clear IMHO. It isn't a cryptic message. You have a choice to support Prince or not. They are not going to hold a gun to your head next February and make you sign up for another year but what will the possibility of yet more new exclusive music make you do?

wow, looks like prince/NPGMC don't give a fuck what members want.

you go, prince. who NEEDS fans, anyway?

KeithyT said:

All I'm saying is that it comes across as not caring about the service that they provide to the Fams. If a Fam's opinion is dismissed in this off-handed manner, it doesnt give a good impression. Its not about telling prince what to do, its about making suggestions about how to improve the service provided to the fams (which has a major business aspect as well as a fan/artist interaction aspect after all) and having those suggestions AT LEAST being considered before being dismissed.

Saying that I have no complaints personally with the NPGMC (only recently having joined up-A prince fan since controversy and dirty mind though...), but do think that mail sends out the wrong message.

shammyfeen said:

True enough but Borribal didn't make it clear what if any suggestions he made. He just said he told them the club wasn't that great and he was considering not renewing for 2003. That's not very constructive either.

Peace

KeithyT

KeithyT said:

Fair point KeithyT - I didn't make it clear what suggestions were made. I was basically saying that a little more information from them would be a great benefit to the NPGMC, as so far in my experience - what with the tix fiasco and cryptic responses from them - I was getting a little frustrated with the whole thing. I have seen many posts on here stating the same kind of thing and felt that I deserved the right to let them know my feelings.

Fair enough.

.
[This message was edited Wed Oct 2 3:19:10 PDT 2002 by suomynona]

boo hoo, cry me a river

DonnieDarko said:

well, arent you giving the same non-constructive complaint that you are complaining others do to npgmc?


cant we all just debate? share our opinions in a civil and polite manor? is *that* really that hard to do?

hehehe. it's actually pretty f*ing funny, when you stop and think about it.

that is, they may not cuss at paisley park anymore but they're not above flippin' us the bird now and then

shammyfeen said:

I would say that that is pretty accurate.

The funny thing is that I wouldnt expect anything better. They are fuckheads in that place.

They're probably so bitchy because they get asked the same questions over & over again about the remaining CD's. But you know what? Too bad, NPGMC!! When people fork over $100, they'd like to know what they're getting for it & when they're getting it! I don't think that's too much to ask for.

I'm sorry to hear that there are so many negative comments with regards to the NPG Music Club. Let's see... for my $100 what did I get so far this year since joining in May? One free CD (so far) that is unavailable anywhere else plus the knowledge that there are 3 more that could arrive any day... well that sounds good. Front row tickets to the Vancouver ONA show... even better. And lets not forget the 1 hour question and answer period in which Prince talked about EVERYTHING under the sun with about 50 club members during the soundcheck before the show... that was unimaginable for me being a die-hard Prince fanatic for over twenty years. But the greatest thing for my $100??? Getting to spend almost two hours (until 4 o'clock in the morning) talking one on one with Prince at the afterconcert party... sorry, for anyone who complains about not getting their money's worth - having these opportunities as a possibility (not even the fact that they actually happened) makes every single cent worth it...

sunmoonandstars said:

well hot damn!!! i want to join *that* club cause i sure the hell didnt get them perks...

this is what i got:

1) a four hour wait in the sun for a concert and still got in the middle of the auditorium...*then*, since there werent enough seats for the npgmc members, a bunch of people got to *stand* in front of me during the whole damn concert...and i picked the seats because there werent other people (or seats) sitting in front of me...talk about

2) two questions during the rehearsal

3) a thirty minute cd that sounded like prince made it while waiting for the turd to hit the pool

4) NO AFTERSHOW for the *only* concert in the SF area...by all means one of the largest and most important markets in the whole damn world

5) and a vague promise that i could possibly receive for free or have a chance at buying it prior to its release, 4 disc live set

now granted, if i get the live discs, i will feel that the club was worth my dimes...however, at this point, *i*, like a whole bunch of other people feel screwed...and rightfully soo...

btw: this thread has nothing to do with the benefits we have recieved (or feel we havent recieved)...it has to do with the *quality* of customer service from the npgmc camp...

SkletonKee said:

3) a thirty minute cd that sounded like prince made it while waiting for the turd to hit the pool

[/quote]
HAHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH

Now thats funny, u might be right, eye thought eye heard the rolling of tissue from my left speaker:)

hahaha

oh hey now, ONA wasn't bad like that!

i enjoyed it. i really did

and the club doesn't suck, either. i'm sure prince will come through but, i couldn't say i think the club is being run professionally. that's ok though, in the end. whatever. if the NPGMC doesn't want to give us release dates or anything more substantial than the above it's their right to do so

the club is adequate

xAxX said:

The Club was adequate last year when you got direct access to QUALITY downloads with no middle-man (Prince) jerking you around. ONA (glad u enjoyed it) doesn't contain half the effort that was put into TRC.

Now (at $100) it just plain SUCKS ASS with a very odd sense of value that does not universally reach a fair majority of his music lovers. This is the year 2002 and todays
consumer has 2 choose between an inflated market blunder or just avoid all the hassle by buying a few blank disks 4 a few bucks.

And what "Trust" do NPG music lovers have toward any enterprise that he runs after the 1800NewFunk Crystal Ball fiasco? I would say that $100 is a gamble and alot of people who got burnt in the past are keeping the club on a very short leash.

Dude... you're starting 2 make some of us wonder with your camping on every critical word about the NPGMC. It starts 2 become a fruitless escapade when U spend EVERY DAY lurking on any critical remark about the service?? I don't know if theres a way 2 sugar coat the shitty customer service that they shock investors who have a level sense of value with??

Hey i'm one 2 defend the musical master.. but lets draw the line somewhere. People are just blowing off some comical steam and remember.. "its a very short leash". We've all done business with him before. Its like walking into a music casino.. sometimes U come out with a house full of musical surprises.. sometimes U come out empty handed. But its just a simple little cult-underground music 80s has-been fan club.. and the small minority that wishes 2 join 4 $100 deserves 2 be treated much better than they are now. And thats (sadly) what can burn him so badly, the public irony of an old cult star fighting with some of his impatient yet mistreated investors.

Here's the thing:

I've always said that with Prince you can never know what to expect. I always said that when you hear about a new album or concert, you never want to get too excited until you are holding the cd or the ticket in your hands and you are playing the cd or at the concert.

BUT...

That was before I was asked to PRE-PAY for my Prince material.

The NPGMC has my money. They have offered a service for my money. This is a TOTALLY different relationship than before.

The website offers things, but promises ONLY the CD 4 set. However, they advertise that you get things like front row seating, conversations with Prince, aftershows, afterparties, exclusive merchandise, and they even advertise that you get exclusive content.

What is NOT said is that in order to have access to the items advertised, you have to pay MORE money. That's okay! I understand that, BUT $150 a ticket for a concert? Plus, the concert I went to had NO AFTERSHOW, just a party in a CRAMPED CRAMPED bar that he stayed at for less than an hour sectioned off from everybody; a bar that wanted to charge me $20 cover even though I was a member. Also, almost ALL of the merchandise available in the members area can be bought at a concert, even the guitars! Not so exclusive...

Now the exclusive content. Last year, we had ONA and Rainbow Children as downloads. ONA was re-sold _THIS_ year and TRC was offered retail not long after it became a download. This year, we have the aforementioned and aforesold ONA CD, and a promise of a new 3CD set that will be shortly sold in retail stores.

Let's talk a second about the value of what we ARE getting this year. Only what was PROMISED. 4 CDs. Possibly 5 CDs. ONA is truly a fan album. I say that because it has no commercial value at all. This album would tank so bad in the public market. This is fine. The problem is that this album cost me $25 dollars this year, PLUS another $9 from last year as I paid for it LAST year (I count the last month of the downloads null as I had to buy the TRC CD in the stores in order to have a full copy in good quality sound). That's $34 for ONE CD. And the 3 CD set? $75 DOLLARS. I will guarantee that the 3 CD set will not cost $75 at K-Mart.

Finally, there were a lot of people who signed up for the club this year. That's a lot of exclusive tickets, eh? Well, remember the much vaunted Xenophobia Celebration? Do you remember that there were TONS of people who did not get a chance to purchase tickets to that Celebrtation? And the tour: remember in the beginning when people were getting seats 25 rows back when people off the street were getting row 7?

So...

DO NOT tout the CDs as 1) they are crazy overpriced, and 2) have not yet been delivered.

DO NOT tout the "perks" of the membership as 1) The content is not exclusive, 2) The ticket prices are WAY overpriced, 4) the concert perks are null as you are actually paying MAD LOOT for the tickets, 5) you can include the price of the soundcheck/afterparty/show into the ticket prices, AND lets not forget the fact that ANY NON-MEMBER can get access to these things (yes, even the soundchecks) and probably have better seats than you.

DO NOT tout your personal experiences with Prince as you are in the 1 - 5 percent of the club that actually got to be able to do this.

Well, actually, you can do what you want. Just please rmember this post when you think about what you got this year. There are things that did go right this year: a jour in Europe/Japan, the OUTSTANDING concerts, etc. But there are so many things that have gone FUBAR to say that this has been a success for the average Prince fan.

The only way this can improve is with constructive criticism of the club by ALL members. Working with the club to have explicit detail in what is guaranteed with the club, and discussion on ideas on how to aid in techlogical matters and logistical busniess matters. To say everything is great with the club is a disrespect to at least 80 percent of the club members who have had problems.

.

Dauphin.. this is what myself and alot of people were saying this year. What weight of value does the memebership fee bring to the investor at a whopping $100 when the rest of "the plan" sounds like a "shake down" ?

Constructive criticism? I'll be surprised if anyone really wants 2 speak up. Year 1 was well worth it but this years plan is like something from another planet.

Borribal said:

Brilliant stuff, I love it! You can't put a price on comedy like that. This is exactly what all my bitching at the start of the year was all about when I posted on the Org. Watch as I use my powers of deduction on your behalf:

The less people that join, the better seats u will have at the next concert!

Read: We don't need you and we don't want your custom.

But if u do support an artist directly like the NPGMC, then u should look 4ward 2 what the artist shares with u and not complain about what he should or should not be doing.

Read: We've got your money now, so tough shit. Don't bother complaining about what NPGMC does or doesn't provide, just be thankful for whatever pittance of a service we do throw your way. You like that don'tcha bitch?

The NPGMC is freedom,

Read: The NPGMC is freedom (for Prince to do whatever likes and occasionally release a CD since you guys are funding it - since he was already turned down by his bank manager).


The NPGMC is freedom, and Prince is free 2 release xactly what he wants, when he wants. And that is what we want 4 him as his strongest supporters, right?

Read: You're not a "customer" you are a "supporter" so you have no place expecting Prince to deliver on something you already paid for. If you do actually get something out of NPGMC this year, be surprised, pleased, and shut the hell up.

In summary
NPGMC is a way for Prince to record music safe in the knowledge that it has already been paid for - taking the risk out of the financial venture of releasing an album. He's assured of an audience, assured of being paid, all he has to do is make the music (or not). Basically you are all acting as Prince's bank manager, except that the bank manager gets something back out of the arrangement and you may or may not. If if you don't, don't even think about complaining or you won't be his "strongest supporters".

Bravo Ian!!! you summed up all my feelings exactly about the NPGMC!I wish more "sheep" would realize & understand this -then maybe we could all unite & end this BS & get what we are all due from them(him)!

The last 3 CDs are going to be a 3CD Set ?? (reading the latest answers)

Who in the world would pay (3-4) $75 for that? This is what he charges the root of his fan base? Wow in paying $100 for 4 CDs you would hope that such a high price would surround four process/shipments/suprises and not something slapped together at the end of the year.

I wonder if (Now Please Give Me Cash) is prepared for the fallout after everyone waited so long. I feel sorry for those who can't afford to pay all the extras, travel to the live shows or had a hard time financialy forking over 100 dollars in the first place.

Last year the club was pretty good. In the best case scenario it really took a nose dive this year.

Most people, when they aren't happy with a product and feel that their requests have not suitably been dealt with, cease to continue using that product.
[This message was edited Sun Oct 6 23:01:29 PDT 2002 by DolphinFriendlyStarfish]

I already got my membership back...the price for non npgmc members to the "aftershow" at the MARQUEE in London on Sunday morning was £30 each, BLUE laminates free admission, with my guest in attendance that comes to $100...ANYTHING else I get from the club this year is a bonus...
Now tell me who in this house knows 'bout the quake..

REALLY

...free at last ,free at last, free at last..