I used to know Andy years back before NPG. I was a volunteer staff member at a Hollywood theatre that was turned into one of the most popular poetry open mics on Tuesday nights and Andy used to get on the mic a lot. Cut to a couple years after touring with Prince, she hit me up wanting to bring Prince to the poetry open mic to show him where she used to perform a lot. I set helped set it up along with the open mic founders. No one one knew he was coming but 5-6 of us.

Night came and she texted saying theyre in the back lot. Went to go greet him. He hopped out smelling like tomorrow (cause i have no idea what tomorrow smells like. Had a purple velour jumpsuit with a cane. He was wearing a scent I cantd describe). It was just Prince and Andy....very lowkey. I reached out and shook his hand and said thanks for coming to our home and introduced him to the staff in the know. He was incredibly polite. One of them was ecstatic but still managed to keep his cool and told Prince "Man i just wanna thank you...your music was the soundtrack to my life!"...and Prince responded in the coolest way possible.

"I know....mine too"

I led him inside and upstairs to a secluded dark area in the theatre where he could look down but now could know he was there. We had closed the aisle curtain after audience sat down so no one could see him walking in. He sat there and listed to poetry for most of the night. He left early and through the back which he came in so no could see him walking out.

But ya...that was the night I met him. What a story to tell my grandkids.

AZStreet said:

I used to know Andy years back before NPG. I was a volunteer staff member at a Hollywood theatre that was turned into one of the most popular poetry open mics on Tuesday nights and Andy used to get on the mic a lot. Cut to a couple years after touring with Prince, she hit me up wanting to bring Prince to the poetry open mic to show him where she used to perform a lot. I set helped set it up along with the open mic founders. No one one knew he was coming but 5-6 of us.

Night came and she texted saying theyre in the back lot. Went to go greet him. He hopped out smelling like tomorrow (cause i have no idea what tomorrow smells like. Had a purple velour jumpsuit with a cane. He was wearing a scent I cantd describe). It was just Prince and Andy....very lowkey. I reached out and shook his hand and said thanks for coming to our home and introduced him to the staff in the know. He was incredibly polite. One of them was ecstatic but still managed to keep his cool and told Prince "Man i just wanna thank you...your music was the soundtrack to my life!"...and Prince responded in the coolest way possible.

"I know....mine too"

I led him inside and upstairs to a secluded dark area in the theatre where he could look down but now could know he was there. We had closed the aisle curtain after audience sat down so no one could see him walking in. He sat there and listed to poetry for most of the night. He left early and through the back which he came in so no could see him walking out.

But ya...that was the night I met him. What a story to tell my grandkids.

What year please? Very nice sharing.

Very kind of you to share that. Thank you

peaceandlove said:

AZStreet said:

I used to know Andy years back before NPG. I was a volunteer staff member at a Hollywood theatre that was turned into one of the most popular poetry open mics on Tuesday nights and Andy used to get on the mic a lot. Cut to a couple years after touring with Prince, she hit me up wanting to bring Prince to the poetry open mic to show him where she used to perform a lot. I set helped set it up along with the open mic founders. No one one knew he was coming but 5-6 of us.

Night came and she texted saying theyre in the back lot. Went to go greet him. He hopped out smelling like tomorrow (cause i have no idea what tomorrow smells like. Had a purple velour jumpsuit with a cane. He was wearing a scent I cantd describe). It was just Prince and Andy....very lowkey. I reached out and shook his hand and said thanks for coming to our home and introduced him to the staff in the know. He was incredibly polite. One of them was ecstatic but still managed to keep his cool and told Prince "Man i just wanna thank you...your music was the soundtrack to my life!"...and Prince responded in the coolest way possible.

"I know....mine too"

I led him inside and upstairs to a secluded dark area in the theatre where he could look down but now could know he was there. We had closed the aisle curtain after audience sat down so no one could see him walking in. He sat there and listed to poetry for most of the night. He left early and through the back which he came in so no could see him walking out.

But ya...that was the night I met him. What a story to tell my grandkids.

What year please? Very nice sharing.

June 4 2013. I am not forgetting that date for as long as I live. I wanna say he just finished up the Live Out Loud tour with 3RDEYE.

mELdOURADOsELVAGEM said:

Did it smell like incense and candles?

I am not exaggerating when I say I could not describe the smell . That's why I said he smelled like tomorrow cause Idk what tomorrow is. It wasnt bad...but it wast good either?

He also walked like a Carribean storeowner..legs infront of each other, but his upper body leaning backwards and to the side while flicking his cane with every strut

And once he left, the host was getting ready to close the night out, he said something along the lines of "man you just never know who's gonna walk through the doors. We started this open mic in a living room and we've had many people come through....janet jackson, Jill scott, Ed Sheeran (the open mic was the first place in the US Ed ever performed because he literally came straight from the airport trying to get his name out cause no one knew him at all...i also say i was the first person in the US to buy a CD directly from him cause i bought it immediately after he got off...wish I asked him to sign it darn)

But ya the host was saying all that and how humbling to start an open mic in a living room to hosting Prince and was like "yea man Prince just left a few min ago" and the audience was like wtf is he talking about and you can hear a lot of "smh stfu stop lying" and audience did not believe him LOLOL..."Im very serious...he was sitting up there (pointing to the last row up top.....it's a small theater that seats 90 but we pack it with over 200 every Tuesday)...and the people up in the last row didnt know that Prince was sitting behind and above them not more than 3 ft away and you can tell on their faces they were SOOOO MAD they didnt know but also were freaking out in a fan way OMG HE WAS BEHIND US!

Shoutout to Andy if you're reading this. You made a effin DREAMMMMMMM come true

[Edited 11/7/19 9:09am]

[Edited 11/7/19 11:44am]

AZStreet said:

mELdOURADOsELVAGEM said:

Did it smell like incense and candles?

I am not exaggerating when I say I could not describe the smell . That's why I said he smelled like tomorrow cause Idk what tomorrow is. It wasnt bad...but it wast good either?

He also walked like a Carribean storeowner..legs infront of each other, but his upper body leaning backwards and to the side while flicking his cane with every strut

And once he left, the host was getting ready to close the night out, he said something along the lines of "man you just never know who's gonna walk through the doors. We started his open in a living room and we've had many people come through....janet jackson, Jill scott, Ed Sheeran (the open mic was the first place in the US Ed ever performed because he literally came straight from the airport trying to get his name out cause no one knew him at all...i also say i was the first person in the US to buy a CD directly from him cause i bought it immediately after he got off...wish I asked him to sign it darn)

But ya the host was saying all that and how humbling to start an open mic in a living room to hosting Prince and was like "yea man Prince just left a few min ago" and the audience was like wtf is he talking about and you can hear a lot of "smh stfu stop lying" and audience did not believe him LOLOL..."Im very serious...he was sitting up there (pointing to the last row up top.....it's a small theater that seats 90 but we pack it with over 200 every Tuesday)...and the people up in the last row didnt know that Prince was sitting behind and above them not more than 3 ft away and you can tell on their faces they were SOOOO MAD they didnt know but also were freaking out in a fan way OMG HE WAS BEHIND US!

Shoutout to Andy if you're reading this. You made a effin DREAMMMMMMM come true

[Edited 11/7/19 9:09am]

That's an interesting story; felt like that when I heard Prince went to an aftershow when he performed locally in 2014 and very few knew about it...and we walked right past the place when he was there. Or the time a friend and I went to see the Frida Kahlo movie years ago...only to read in the paper that Mick Jagger was at the same show with his daughter...

purplethunder3121 said:

AZStreet said:

I am not exaggerating when I say I could not describe the smell . That's why I said he smelled like tomorrow cause Idk what tomorrow is. It wasnt bad...but it wast good either?

He also walked like a Carribean storeowner..legs infront of each other, but his upper body leaning backwards and to the side while flicking his cane with every strut

And once he left, the host was getting ready to close the night out, he said something along the lines of "man you just never know who's gonna walk through the doors. We started his open in a living room and we've had many people come through....janet jackson, Jill scott, Ed Sheeran (the open mic was the first place in the US Ed ever performed because he literally came straight from the airport trying to get his name out cause no one knew him at all...i also say i was the first person in the US to buy a CD directly from him cause i bought it immediately after he got off...wish I asked him to sign it darn)

But ya the host was saying all that and how humbling to start an open mic in a living room to hosting Prince and was like "yea man Prince just left a few min ago" and the audience was like wtf is he talking about and you can hear a lot of "smh stfu stop lying" and audience did not believe him LOLOL..."Im very serious...he was sitting up there (pointing to the last row up top.....it's a small theater that seats 90 but we pack it with over 200 every Tuesday)...and the people up in the last row didnt know that Prince was sitting behind and above them not more than 3 ft away and you can tell on their faces they were SOOOO MAD they didnt know but also were freaking out in a fan way OMG HE WAS BEHIND US!

Shoutout to Andy if you're reading this. You made a effin DREAMMMMMMM come true

[Edited 11/7/19 9:09am]

That's an interesting story; felt like that when I heard Prince went to an aftershow when he performed locally in 2014 and very few knew about it...and we walked right past the place when he was there. Or the time a friend and I went to see the Frida Kahlo movie years ago...only to read in the paper that Mick Jagger was at the same show with his daughter...

I have some friends who were there that night that are still kinda mad at me for not telling them he was there in the days leading up to it. Ya I wasnt about to eff this up at all....

Makes me wonder if he ever told Ingrid to come check our venue out if she was in town *wishful thinking*

AZStreet said:

peaceandlove said:

What year please? Very nice sharing.

June 4 2013. I am not forgetting that date for as long as I live. I wanna say he just finished up the Live Out Loud tour with 3RDEYE.

Thank you. 💜

AZStreet said:

Great story, thanks for sharing.

Kinda helps to illuminate Andy's talent for songwriting.

I got the impression they both enjoyed songwriting together.

Cool to hear they both dug poetry.

PeggyO said:

Great story, thanks for sharing.

Kinda helps to illuminate Andy's talent for songwriting.

I got the impression they both enjoyed songwriting together.

Cool to hear they both dug poetry.

I remember that once they sat down I offered him water or herbal tea (theater has a kitchen). Friends laughed when I said that because nobody would think to approach him while he is enjoying a show. But he said no thank you but wasveyr polite about it.

AZStreet said:

PeggyO said:

Great story, thanks for sharing.

Kinda helps to illuminate Andy's talent for songwriting.

I got the impression they both enjoyed songwriting together.

Cool to hear they both dug poetry.

I remember that once they sat down I offered him water or herbal tea (theater has a kitchen). Friends laughed when I said that because nobody would think to approach him while he is enjoying a show. But he said no thank you but wasveyr polite about it.

I am surprised you did not share this experience earlier!

[Edited 11/8/19 15:48pm]

Thank you for sharing your story.

PeggyO said:

AZStreet said:

I remember that once they sat down I offered him water or herbal tea (theater has a kitchen). Friends laughed when I said that because nobody would think to approach him while he is enjoying a show. But he said no thank you but wasveyr polite about it.

I am surprised you did not share this experience earlier!

[Edited 11/8/19 15:48pm]

One of many consistent things about P....he was always polite. GOALS!

peaceandlove said:

PeggyO said:

I am surprised you did not share this experience earlier!

[Edited 11/8/19 15:48pm]

One of many consistent things about P....he was always polite. GOALS!

Just kidding...was he polite to The Time or some of his other musicians? The dichotomy of Prince.

PeggyO said:

peaceandlove said:

One of many consistent things about P....he was always polite. GOALS!

Just kidding...was he polite to The Time or some of his other musicians? The dichotomy of Prince.

No question P was controlling and always protecting his image and brand first.
However, I'm a believer he had extremely polite manners .

AZStreet said:

I have some friends who were there that night that are still kinda mad at me for not telling them he was there

I saw Prince a couple of times when he came into the back of an audience. He always had an out. With his doe deer eyes, I always saw him like that, if startled he'd go. Fair enough, who wants to be mobbed by people losing their control?

peaceandlove said:

PeggyO said:

Just kidding...was he polite to The Time or some of his other musicians? The dichotomy of Prince.

No question P was controlling and always protecting his image and brand first.
However, I'm a believer he had extremely polite manners .

Right...but also because this is where Andy used to perform a lot when she was trying to get her name out there...and she wanted to show him spots she used to frequent. So I'm sure he was appreciative of that.

AZStreet said:

peaceandlove said:

No question P was controlling and always protecting his image and brand first.
However, I'm a believer he had extremely polite manners .

Right...but also because this is where Andy used to perform a lot when she was trying to get her name out there...and she wanted to show him spots she used to frequent. So I'm sure he was appreciative of that.

What's the theatre/venue called in Hollywood please?

peaceandlove said:

AZStreet said:

Right...but also because this is where Andy used to perform a lot when she was trying to get her name out there...and she wanted to show him spots she used to frequent. So I'm sure he was appreciative of that.

What's the theatre/venue called in Hollywood please?

Weekly open mic is called Da Poetry Lounge. Located inside the Greenway Court Theatre (Fairfax/Melrose). Every Tuesday at 9pm. If you planning on going get there at least an hour early. Lines are always long.

TheTruth123 said:

What a great story! Was Prince the type to put his arm around someone on a date or was he the “no public displays of intimacy” type? What a great thing to he up close to him like that.

Dont think it was a date.

I knew how much privacy meant to him, so when I lead him upstairs with Andy I had two chairs setup instead of stools...because if he sat on a stool his head would pop up from the wooden bar barriers that separates the sound booth upstairs where I sat him...from the row of seats infront....and the people directly infront of him could possibly make him out. Even thought it wasnt ideal cause they had obstructions they could still see the stage through the largely spaced bars. Like I said, a few feet is what separated him from the audience. By giving him chairs nobody could see him.

After that I closed the curtains that led up stairs and the only people up there were Prince, Andy and sound person who was 20 feet away...and upstairs was very dark. I just let them be (except when I came back up asking if he wanted water or hebal tea)

AZStreet said:

I'm fairly certain that I've been to poetry readings at the same place. My friend Donny Jackson did some work there and I loved going. Very cool that Prince attended one of these. I love that at Prince's core, he was always an artist.

madhouseman said:

I'm fairly certain that I've been to poetry readings at the same place. My friend Donny Jackson did some work there and I loved going. Very cool that Prince attended one of these. I love that at Prince's core, he was always an artist.

I've known Donny for years. He is also one of the staff members. He was also there the night P came. Small world!

AZStreet said:

madhouseman said:

I'm fairly certain that I've been to poetry readings at the same place. My friend Donny Jackson did some work there and I loved going. Very cool that Prince attended one of these. I love that at Prince's core, he was always an artist.

I've known Donny for years. He is also one of the staff members. He was also there the night P came. Small world!

Donny is the best! Known him for years as well. Great guy!

AZStreet said:

TheTruth123 said:

What a great story! Was Prince the type to put his arm around someone on a date or was he the “no public displays of intimacy” type? What a great thing to he up close to him like that.

Dont think it was a date.

I knew how much privacy meant to him, so when I lead him upstairs with Andy I had two chairs setup instead of stools...because if he sat on a stool his head would pop up from the wooden bar barriers that separates the sound booth upstairs where I sat him...from the row of seats infront....and the people directly infront of him could possibly make him out. Even thought it wasnt ideal cause they had obstructions they could still see the stage through the largely spaced bars. Like I said, a few feet is what separated him from the audience. By giving him chairs nobody could see him.

After that I closed the curtains that led up stairs and the only people up there were Prince, Andy and sound person who was 20 feet away...and upstairs was very dark. I just let them be (except when I came back up asking if he wanted water or hebal tea)

Is there a particular reason you "don't think it was a date" when he and Andy attended the poetry reading?