Kares said:

ladygirl99 said:

I am going to read the book though with open minded.

.
That's your choice. I can't be as open minded to trust someone who starts her string of lies already on the front cover of her book (a lie she's stupid enough to contradict inside the book with yet another lie).

.
"Scratch a lie, find a thief."

.

[Edited 4/24/19 8:52am]

I understand.....

I am just saying Prince was known to not always telling everything to everyone including the ones who were around his life for years.

udo said:

oceanblue said:

Why does it irk me that some are using him as a way to profit, now that he's dead?

.

Most of them worked for him and now he's gone they compensate.

No doubt whatsoever that he knew this would happen. Heck, it was attempted while he was still here.

violetcrush said:

ian said:

Just finished reading the book. It's pretty thin really, just a handful of dubious anecdotes wrapped up in a whole bunch of gossipy / happy-clappy nothing. I was surprised at how little it mentions Prince's changing image and hairstyles over the years - the one topic Kim is definitely THE authority on doesn't get much of a mention beyond those infamous Rave era braids.

Was surprised that it discussed such private stuff surrounding Prince and Mayte's son. Since Mayte has already given her story about that, that should be the end of it really. The whole thing felt a bit trashy really - talking about events that she wasn't present for witout realling making that clear, or bigging up her role in the Prince camp in ways that don't seem credible. Was somewhat interesting to hear a bit about his spiritual doubts (discussing lack of evidence etc) and the point at which he distanced himself from the JWs etc.

However one thing Kim deserves props for is, she's one of the very few people willing to state flatly that Prince was disrespectful towards women. Of course he was, but everyone is always so careful to dance around that fact. Yes, he worked with lots of awesome talented women and elevated them etc, but he was always a notorious shagger who unapologetically treated women like playthings, the guy had no concept of monogamy or trustful human relationships. Having said all that, like the MJ documentary it kinda makes you think of all the staff members over the years who turned a blind eye and enabled this troubling aspect of his character.

Thanks for the synopsis of the book. Much appreciated, and it coincides with how I expected it to be written. Interesting that there was not much detail on the changing hair styles and why he chose a new look. It would indicate that she did not contribute much to those decisions. * Regarding the monogamy issue with women, I would think his associates and friends probably felt that his personal relationships were not their business. Also, some may have chosen to keep their job over speaking up. I’m sure this factors into why most associates left after a few years. * Wendy is rumored to have lashed out at Prince about his relationship with Susannah. The story is that she told him he was a womanizing pig. I think that fight occurred not long before he fired them

The women he was with knew he wasn't monogamous - Jill, Susannah, etc. have spoken about this. It was their choice to be with him. If Prince treated them so poorly, why did these grown ass talented women hook up with and stay in relationship with him, some for years? They chose to be with him because they wanted to be. Many chose to leave at some point, and that contradicts Kim Berry's claim that Prince dismissed all his women. Vanity left before Purple Rain to pursue her own career path.

[Edited 4/24/19 20:18pm]

[Edited 4/24/19 20:19pm]

ian said:

violetcrush said:

Thanks for the synopsis of the book. Much appreciated, and it coincides with how I expected it to be written. Interesting that there was not much detail on the changing hair styles and why he chose a new look. It would indicate that she did not contribute much to those decisions. * Regarding the monogamy issue with women, I would think his associates and friends probably felt that his personal relationships were not their business. Also, some may have chosen to keep their job over speaking up. I’m sure this factors into why most associates left after a few years. * Wendy is rumored to have lashed out at Prince about his relationship with Susannah. The story is that she told him he was a womanizing pig. I think that fight occurred not long before he fired them

Amazing, I had no idea Wendy is such a force of nature, gotta love her.

Sure, true. But her sister chose this relationship, so not really Wendy's place to be telling Prince what to do. Rumour has it that many rock stars are not monogamous, so not totally surprising that Prince chose this lifestyle. If Wendy and her sister wanted someone different, then they had every right to make that choice. Why did Wendy break up with Lisa Coleman?

[Edited 4/24/19 16:43pm]

oceanblue said:

nayroo2002 said:

So, noone replying to this thread has ever gotten their hair cut and had conversations with their barber?

I've been to my hairdresser more times than I can count, and of course I've had conversations with her about many things, but I've never gotten deeply personal about my life, and revealed to her and others in the shop, intimate details about my life......why would I do that?

My hairdresser used to share all kinds of intimate details with me, so I ended up switching to someone else. My current hairdresser isn't too chatty thankfully, but our conversation is pleasant enough.

Susan Rogers is a pretty reliable source of information about Prince:

'He was always very short, he was a man who didn't waste words — I'm not talking about his stature — so he didn't even introduce himself to me," she said.' - Susan Rogers on meeting Prince for the first time

https://www.cbc.ca/radio/...-1.4445004

[Edited 4/24/19 20:38pm]

TheTruth123 said:

oceanblue said:

Do you "think a thing through" do you? What makes you think that as private and guarded as man that Prince was, that he would reveal his private life and business matters with his people, in front of his hair stylist, trusting her enough not to go to the media or blab to anyone else? Come on!!! Prince had his privacy game on lock, and was fiercly protective of it, so why would he disregard any of that and reveal his deep dark secrets to a hair stylist, and expose all of his doings in front of her? There are still many people out there that this man worked with for years, who were a part of his inner circle, that still abide by his privacy rules, and won't even talk about what went on in private between them, to this very day, so why should I think that a hair dresser will reveal something that will shock us all about him, that the world doesn't know?

[Edited 3/16/19 9:18am]

She said he “most likely witnessed all kinds of interactions between Prince and his people.” And your response contradicts yourself that she wouldn’t know anything but then she would. ????

Kim says in her book,

"Prince came to the salon to get his hair done just like everybody else."

Her salon, 'The First Lady Salon and Spa' is in Los Angeles, specifically,

"The salon sat on a huge shopping center lot at the corner of South La Brea Avenue and Rodeo Road in Los Angeles"

And apparently it was quite a spectacle, "the clients' excitement rose to another level when he showed up'... I'll bet.

So I guess Prince would fly in daily/weekly (?) from Minnesota to get his hair done?

Just finished reading the book. It was a good read in that I wanted to finish reading the book right away. I didn’t expect it to end abruptly though lol. Amazing how long she worked for Prince. Interesting insight into Prince’s life especially his spiritual life. My main gripe is the book jumping around into different periods of Prince’s life. It lacked cohesiveness.
[Edited 4/24/19 17:52pm]

purplefam99 said:

The beauty shop and the barber shop in the black community was historically A place of news, gossip and hangout. I’m not sure how prince ran it But I’m sure there had to be an air of “ who shot John” going on. So with in mind I’m betting if she was around in the gangster glam days that there Is a fair amount of things she would have to share. That era was ripe For barbershop antics. [Edited 3/16/19 11:47am] [Edited 3/16/19 11:48am]

Kim's presence apparently extended far beyond the barbershop. In her book she writes,

"In the face of firm opposition, Prince politely excused himself from the table, went to the men's bathroom, and used an eyeliner pencil to carefully pen the word SLAVE across his right cheek."

She claims that Prince went to the Beverly Hills hotel after the meeting to get his hair done. Now most people would have gotten their hair done before such an important meeting, but hey... it's Prince.

MoodyBlumes said:

TheTruth123 said:

oceanblue said: She said he “most likely witnessed all kinds of interactions between Prince and his people.” And your response contradicts yourself that she wouldn’t know anything but then she would. ????

Kim says in her book,

"Prince came to the salon to get his hair done just like everybody else."

Her salon, 'The First Lady Salon and Spa' is in Los Angeles, specifically,

"The salon sat on a huge shopping center lot at the corner of South La Brea Avenue and Rodeo Road in Los Angeles"

And apparently it was quite a spectacle, "the clients' excitement rose to another level when he showed up'... I'll bet.

So I guess Prince would fly in daily/weekly (?) from Minnesota to get his hair done?

I'm confused here. It's been well documented that Prince would close down salons anywhere he went in order to get his hair done - going back to the 80's. I would imagine he would also have had a salon set up in his rentals - especially the elaborate homes he rented in LA that included just about every amenity. I just can't imagine Prince walking into a public salon and getting his hair done next to random customers. It's counter to all of the other stories out there.

violetcrush said:

onlyforaminute said:

poppys said: I don't know her financial situation, I have no clue what it takes to publish a book. But from what I've read I'm seeing hurt feelings and gauging what seems to be going on in this little pocket i can just imagine the attitude she's bumped up against. Seems like most folks have never held a long term position more than 10 years, you may not get to know the deepest inner parts of the people you work around but you learn quite a bit about them regardless of your job title. This isn't Downton Abbey where job titles are relegated to upstairs, downstairs mentality. People do talk to other people they are comfortable around. Y'all be funny.

Yes and no on your comments above. True, it wasn't Downton Abbey, but it was "Princetown", where by most accounts it was "walking on egg shells" when around him, and staying to your business when not. There was a constant undertone threat of being fired for saying or doing the wrong thing. It was a "stay in your lane" type of atmosphere from what I've read and heard.

*

Nothing wrong with her writing a book about her time at PP, however, I think she would have been found much more credible had she focused on HER role in Prince's world and not others around her. For the women, such as Mayte, who have written a book - even that story is still ONLY her perspective on that relationship and how/why things happened. We don't get Prince's perspective, but at least she wasn't trying to tell someone else's story.

Did she live at Paisley Park? In her book, she talks about Prince going to her salon in LA to get his hair done. We find her appearing in private conversations with D'Angelo; she claims that immediately after his big meeting with Warners (where he writes Slave on his face), he heads on over to the Beverly Hills hotel to get his hair done by Kim. Now I know Prince was a bit different, but not sure why he would get his hair done after this important meeting? And wouldn't he speak to Mayte, or one of his trusted musicians afterward? Why head to the hairdresser?

MoodyBlumes said:

You skipped over a lot. Yes there were times she stayed at PP.

pinkcashmere23 said:

violetcrush said:

pinkcashmere23 said: That seems a bit sketchy to me. I just can’t imagine the women thinking that she had some deeper “in” with him that would enable her to give them that kind of advice. I just do not think he was revealing that much to her. He had been burned by employees in the past. [Edited 4/22/19 5:40am]

I doubt he confided much in her about his personal life either but from what she said,the women thought she could help them get closer to him. She said that he was the one who signed her paycheck not them so she would keep quiet. From her book,I got the idea he may have spoken with her concerning spiritual issues he was dealing with at the time and she said he would test songs out on her to get her opinion. He may have spoken a bit about the women in his life. Shelby J said she had learned a lot about Mayte from what he had told her so it seems he did talk some. The dancer Lala said the same and that he would show her videos of Mayte so maybe he was more open with some and let his guard down a little.

Take a look at the type of women Prince surrounded himself with and ask yourself if it rings true that these women would be asking Kim Berry what Prince was looking for. Kim Basinger, Sherilyn Fenn, Carmen Electra, Sheila E, Susannah Melvoin, Manuela Testolini, Jill Jones, Judith Hill, Bria Valente, Nona Gaye, Anna Fantastic, Vanity, Troy Beyer, Devin Devasquez...

It does seem reasonable that Prince would speak about his wife Mayte, he even spoke about her in interviews, and did interviews with her.

[Edited 4/24/19 21:04pm]

ChocolateBox3121 said:

TheTruth123 said:

violetcrush said: She said she worked with him on the Afro and he thought it wouldn’t need mich maintenance but it did and they had to moisturize and so forth. I think she was with him until a few years before his passing (please correct me someone if I’m wrong about that) so that would make it more like 1992-2014 perhaps. A little over 20 years.

Thanks I was getting ready to correct it! People are ALWAYS trying to discredit Kim. Why would she lie knowing how particular Prince's(r.i.p.) fans are?!

Kim claims 29 years, but Tonya was still doing his hair in 1993 and it has been said that investigation/court documents have Kim not working for Prince from 2012.

One investigation photo readily available online shows drugstore haircolor in his personal bag.

In her book, Kim talks about Prince coming to her salon in LA, just like any other client, and describes the scene as he walks in the front door. So I guess Prince was flying down to LA to get his hair done.

Kim appears to have had her license suspended in 2009, with years of probation following:

https://search.dca.ca.gov...f3ff496e5f

https://www.barbercosmo.c..._a_c.shtml

The First Lady Salon and Spa has also had some troubles:

https://www.barbercosmo.c..._t_v.shtml

So the real story is anyone's guess. Prince was performing with 3rdEyeGirl within the year of his death, so they could verify who was doing hair then.

MoodyBlumes said:

I call “bullshit” on her story of Prince walking into her salon to get his hair done while other customers were there. Him arriving when the salon was empty? Maybe.

ian said:

Just finished reading the book. It's pretty thin really, just a handful of dubious anecdotes wrapped up in a whole bunch of gossipy / happy-clappy nothing. I was surprised at how little it mentions Prince's changing image and hairstyles over the years - the one topic Kim is definitely THE authority on doesn't get much of a mention beyond those infamous Rave era braids.

Was surprised that it discussed such private stuff surrounding Prince and Mayte's son. Since Mayte has already given her story about that, that should be the end of it really. The whole thing felt a bit trashy really - talking about events that she wasn't present for witout realling making that clear, or bigging up her role in the Prince camp in ways that don't seem credible. Was somewhat interesting to hear a bit about his spiritual doubts (discussing lack of evidence etc) and the point at which he distanced himself from the JWs etc.

However one thing Kim deserves props for is, she's one of the very few people willing to state flatly that Prince was disrespectful towards women. Of course he was, but everyone is always so careful to dance around that fact. Yes, he worked with lots of awesome talented women and elevated them etc, but he was always a notorious shagger who unapologetically treated women like playthings, the guy had no concept of monogamy or trustful human relationships. Having said all that, like the MJ documentary it kinda makes you think of all the staff members over the years who turned a blind eye and enabled this troubling aspect of his character.

If you're interested in Prince's relationships with women, MANY have written about their time with Prince... Are you saying that these women had no choice but to hook up with and stay with him?

Comparing Prince's relationships with women to MJ's alleged illegal, sexual relationships with boys as young as 7 years old is pretty deranged.

[Edited 4/24/19 20:53pm]

dodger said:

rdhull said:

However, why everyone who stood in a room with him needs to write a book is beyond me.

Next up: "Green n Purple Grass: Life In The Yard Of Prince"- by Neal, the gardener.

Can’t wait for the window cleaners. Looking From The Ladder by Shammy Sam

Or by Shimmy Sham... can't wait to read the window cleaner's salacious tales.

I saw this on social media.



Where is this number one? When I go to Amazon book section this book is certainly not number one. According to Amazon’s website it’s current best seller rank is 17410. Is Kim just making this up? But why lie about something that can be easily verified?

https://www.amazon.com/gp...op?ie=UTF8
[Edited 4/24/19 19:53pm]

MoodyBlumes said:

Kim claims 29 years, but Tonya was still doing his hair in 1993 and it has been said that investigation/court documents have Kim not working for Prince from 2012.

One investigation photo readily available online shows drugstore haircolor in his personal bag.

In her book, Kim talks about Prince coming to her salon in LA, just like any other client, and describes the scene as he walks in the front door. So I guess Prince was flying down to LA to get his hair done.

Kim appears to have had her license suspended in 2009, with years of probation following:

https://search.dca.ca.gov...f3ff496e5f

https://www.barbercosmo.c..._a_c.shtml

The First Lady Salon and Spa has also had some troubles:

https://www.barbercosmo.c..._t_v.shtml

So the real story is anyone's guess. Prince was performing with 3rdEyeGirl within the year of his death, so they could verify who was doing hair then.

Wonder if she ever got her license back? Her losing her license would coinside with the investigation files that she hadn't worked for Prince for 6 years, that would put the date around 2010.

pinkcashmere23 said:

Deleted - l'ange bleu moderator - Please take off topic comment to org note

violetcrush said:

pinkcashmere23 said:

I'm interested in what she has to say. I wonder how her health is since the scare with her heart recently. She seems to be doing okay now.

Deleted - l'ange bleu moderator - Please take off topic comment to org note

Deleted - l'ange bleu moderator - Please simply report

PennyPurple said:

This photo was taken in Italy. Prince performed there in Nov 2010.



Members of NPG or 3EG would be able to confirm if Kim was around past 2010. But I doubt anyone will ask them. On her Instagram are photos from the BET tribute including one of her and Sheila, as well as at Celebration (one photo of her, Liv, Shelby, Donna and Ida).

RJOrion said:

yeah...what a terrible thing that a black woman who actually interacted physically with Prince on a regular basis, would write a book about Prince... of course any book about Prince should be written by middle aged white members of the media and like Duane Tudahl and Alex Hahn...smh...

I'm not sure what relevance her skin color has to her credibility. Berry presents herself in a pretty unbelievable way to fans who have been following Prince for many years. She attended private meetings between Prince and D'Angelo? Immediately after the most important meeting of Prince's time with Warners (when he wrote Slave on his face), he goes to a Beverly Hills hotel to meet up with Kim to get his hair done and debrief her (why not do his hair before the meeting)?

Women surrounding Prince consulting Kim Berry for dating tips? Kim Basinger or Judith Hill asking Kim how she might shag him? Prince flying down to Kim's LA salon to get his hair done, like any other one of Kim's clients (pretty expensive cut adding in flight costs).

She sells his socks and hair, claiming he'd be fine with it, yet Prince refused to give out his autograph (to much ridicule). This is the dude who took all his videos off of You Tube, but okay... I'll sell ya my socks.

Tamron Hall was a black woman friend of Prince too:

https://www.eonline.com/c...-us-chills

rogifan said:

I remember her talking about this picture in one of her earlier interviews. She said something to the effect of she couldn’t believe he was going to go out of the salon with all of the photogs there, and then he grabbed the camera and said “watch this” and opened the door.

violetcrush said:

MoodyBlumes said:

Kim says in her book,

"Prince came to the salon to get his hair done just like everybody else."

Her salon, 'The First Lady Salon and Spa' is in Los Angeles, specifically,

"The salon sat on a huge shopping center lot at the corner of South La Brea Avenue and Rodeo Road in Los Angeles"

And apparently it was quite a spectacle, "the clients' excitement rose to another level when he showed up'... I'll bet.

So I guess Prince would fly in daily/weekly (?) from Minnesota to get his hair done?

I'm confused here. It's been well documented that Prince would close down salons anywhere he went in order to get his hair done - going back to the 80's. I would imagine he would also have had a salon set up in his rentals - especially the elaborate homes he rented in LA that included just about every amenity. I just can't imagine Prince walking into a public salon and getting his hair done next to random customers. It's counter to all of the other stories out there.

This was Kim's public salon that he helped her set up (financed it), and Kim recounts that he was treated like any other client; that he walked through the front door. There is no fleshing out of the tale, and the reader doesn't get any sense of what is going on given everything that we know about him as a fan.

Confusing is a good descriptor...

Kim writes about Prince forming the Time in one paragraph, and in the paragraph following makes serious revelations about Prince's mother (having claimed from the beginning that this wouldn't be a tell all). Of course none of these secret revelations can be substantiated, and I guess for Kim that's 'the beauty'.

onlyforaminute said:

MoodyBlumes said:

Did she live at Paisley Park? In her book, she talks about Prince going to her salon in LA to get his hair done. We find her appearing in private conversations with D'Angelo; she claims that immediately after his big meeting with Warners (where he writes Slave on his face), he heads on over to the Beverly Hills hotel to get his hair done by Kim. Now I know Prince was a bit different, but not sure why he would get his hair done after this important meeting? And wouldn't he speak to Mayte, or one of his trusted musicians afterward? Why head to the hairdresser?

You skipped over a lot. Yes there were times she stayed at PP.

You skipped over my question... did Kim Berry live at Paisley Park? You have also skipped over the rest of what I have written which for any normal Prince fan or even regular person is... not believable.

[Edited 4/24/19 20:41pm]

[Edited 4/24/19 20:43pm]

MoodyBlumes said:

Ruth Arzate might be a good source to verify some of this information. She was his right hand from the early 2000’s through 2009-2010, right? She seems to tell it straight up (from listening to her interview with Questlove), and I would imagine she would know if Kim’s salon story is true.

violetcrush said:

MoodyBlumes said:

This was Kim's public salon that he helped her set up (financed it), and Kim recounts that he was treated like any other client; that he walked through the front door. There is no fleshing out of the tale, and the reader doesn't get any sense of what is going on given everything that we know about him as a fan.

Confusing is a good descriptor...

Kim writes about Prince forming the Time in one paragraph, and in the paragraph following makes serious revelations about Prince's mother (having claimed from the beginning that this wouldn't be a tell all). Of course none of these secret revelations can be substantiated, and I guess for Kim that's 'the beauty'.

Ruth Arzate might be a good source to verify some of this information. She was his right hand from the early 2000’s through 2009-2010, right? She seems to tell it straight up (from listening to her interview with Questlove), and I would imagine she would know if Kim’s salon story is true.

The salon story isn't really the issue for me... the book is.

PennyPurple said:

MoodyBlumes said:

Kim claims 29 years, but Tonya was still doing his hair in 1993 and it has been said that investigation/court documents have Kim not working for Prince from 2012.

One investigation photo readily available online shows drugstore haircolor in his personal bag.

In her book, Kim talks about Prince coming to her salon in LA, just like any other client, and describes the scene as he walks in the front door. So I guess Prince was flying down to LA to get his hair done.

Kim appears to have had her license suspended in 2009, with years of probation following:

https://search.dca.ca.gov...f3ff496e5f

https://www.barbercosmo.c..._a_c.shtml

The First Lady Salon and Spa has also had some troubles:

https://www.barbercosmo.c..._t_v.shtml

So the real story is anyone's guess. Prince was performing with 3rdEyeGirl within the year of his death, so they could verify who was doing hair then.

Wonder if she ever got her license back? Her losing her license would coinside with the investigation files that she hadn't worked for Prince for 6 years, that would put the date around 2010.

I don't actually care about her license as I would never have her do my hair having read this book. Fans of Prince bought the book because they love Prince (at least some do). Actually, this would be interesting to explore... did the losing of her license cause her to lose her employment with Prince. Good question.

[Edited 4/24/19 21:12pm]

rogifan said:

I saw this on social media. Where is this number one? When I go to Amazon book section this book is certainly not number one. According to Amazon’s website it’s current best seller rank is 17410. Is Kim just making this up? But why lie about something that can be easily verified? https://www.amazon.com/gp...op?ie=UTF8 [Edited 4/24/19 19:53pm]

This seems to be Kim's modus operandi. And hey why not, if people will gobble it up and give her their cash.

rogifan said:

PennyPurple said:

Wonder if she ever got her license back? Her losing her license would coinside with the investigation files that she hadn't worked for Prince for 6 years, that would put the date around 2010.

This photo was taken in Italy. Prince performed there in Nov 2010. Members of NPG or 3EG would be able to confirm if Kim was around past 2010. But I doubt anyone will ask them. On her Instagram are photos from the BET tribute including one of her and Sheila, as well as at Celebration (one photo of her, Liv, Shelby, Donna and Ida).

Kim is listed in the Welcome 2 Australia and Welcome 2 Chicago tour books so she was around then. She's got photos that were taken backstage as well.