luv4u said:

Anx said:

Oooh behaaave...



(For some reason, he reminds me of Prince right now...)

vainandy said:

Well, the 50 million $ he made out of the Musicology tour and album in 2004 should be enough to pay the rent for that L.A. 3121 place for 3 months or so (including removal of the beauty salon chairs when the tenancy ends).

Goddamn, you know what's killing me with this thread? I'd say maybe 25% of the members here - TOPS - had the audacity to suggest that maybe appearing on AI was a bit too commercial and a little beneath an artist of Prince's stature, and motherfuckers are running around acting like we hate everything the guy does.

I never, ever ONCE labled it as a "sellout" - I don't even believe in the term - but forgive me if I cringe when I see my musical hero even mentioned in the same breath as someone like Kenny fucking Rogers or Clay Aiken. Makes me wanna puke. The SNL show was great and it was awesome to see Prince add to the tradition of a show that's offered us The Rolling Stones, Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Elvis Costello, Tom Waits, The Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Paul Simon, Clapton...that list goes on and on. Even something like VH1 storytellers or MTV unplugged offers us MUSIC....you know "real music by real musicians" and such.

A few people here claim that he "schooled those youngsters" on how it's done...Which part? The half naked bimbos, the pancake make up or the fucked up hair? Yes, he's "allowed" to do what he wants and some of us are "allowed" to not dig it. I never twitched over the symbol name, the assless pants, Larry Graham, "number one at the bank", or even New Power Soul...and some folks around here championing the AI appearance are/were all up in his shit about a lot of that stuff.

So before y'all advise those of us that maybe found it just a teensy bit cheesy and rediculous that he involved himself in this circus, check yourselves and go back to measuring a man's art by its POPULARITY.

Will 3121 mean more to you if it goes platinum?

herb4 said:

Relax, relax. I just think it's funny as hell that we have about 100 threads on here complaining that Prince doesn't promote 3121 and has disappeared (over at housequake they even had a long discussion about the possibility of Prince having trouble with JW elders due to the album). Now he has done promotion on the show with the possibly highest ratings in the States, and many folks on here make it a drama. "He can change his name to an unpronouncable symbol, but if he appears on AI, he's done for me."
[Edited 5/25/06 15:05pm]

Last time I checked Bono wants me to buy an iPod,

Sting wants me to drive a Jaguar,

Madonna loves Pepsi and BMW,

and Prince literally showed his ass to the world on MTV all to sell a few records.

I'm sorry, but Prince getting his music to the masses (on his terms) on the dreaded AI just doesn't phase me.

.
[Edited 5/25/06 15:06pm]

EmancipationLover said:

I've only read one or two comments like that. Most of them are merely saying "that sucked", myself included. Those hundred threads you spoke of are from people who are championing his popularity as opposed to his music. A great majority fans here list "The Rainbow Children" and "NEWS" as some of his greatest triumphs; records that received absolutely ZERO promotion.

I'm plenty relaxed. It's the defensive and "Idol" worshipping fans who seem a bit sensitive about this thing. I've NEVER given a shit one way or the other how popular Prince is, and until last night, I really didn't think he did either.

I buy ALL of his records, and will continue to.

Universaluv said:

Exactly!

And guess what? The Beatles are going to Vegas. I just heard it on Access Hollywood.

Universaluv said:

You know what....

that's a GREAT point. Maybe that's why this is sad for me. I could always point to Prince as somehow above it all (except for Batman, but everyone's allowed ONE cash-in right?)

Universaluv said:

Yes, and Rainbow Children & NEWS aside, since when is Prince not a mainstream pop artist?

Dewrede said:

Pretty much all that needs to be said in regards to this issue. Aside from that, it's not even a big deal.

herb4 said:

Just for the record, TRC is one of my favourites. I don't care too much about his sales either, but if he wants popularity and is doing things to get it, I'm cool with it (he's a popstar in the end). We all know it will change in one or two years anyway.

herb4 said:

The only thing Prince is selling is his own music, unlike Sting, Bono, Madonna George Michael, and on and on...
[Edited 5/25/06 15:16pm]

herb4 said:

Don't make me break out the Little Red Corvette Chevrolet billboards..

herb4 said:

Cash-ins (or attempts to cash-ins) by Prince:

1999
Purple Rain
Batman
D&P
Emancipation
Rave
Musicology
last night...

Makes more than one on my list.

herb4 said:

well, there's also the fact that he claimed to be a fan of batman, which could have been a lot of bunk, but he seemed to be having fun at the time...

Anx said:

he said it was the first song he learned on piano

NDRU said:

yup...i think he even said that years later on the oprah interview.

Anx said:

Well, banging Kim Basinger while your selling 5 million records of previously recorded material becasue it's got a Bat logo on it....hard to fault a guy for that. But Batman is and always will be a million times cooler than Kelly Clarkston, Clay Aiken or Simon (shudders) Cowell.

ANd how is AI any different than what he does with his "proteges"

PurpleCharm said:[quote]

Universaluv said:

Is that them or their record companies? Last time I checked, I never saw any Prince songs on "Now That's What I Call Music, Vol 55" or "K-Tells "Best of the 80's" on a late night infomercial.

And for the record, I'm pretty sure the ass flash COST him record sales. I know for a fact the Lovesexy cover did.
[Edited 5/25/06 15:40pm]

superspaceboy said:

Well, um.... some of them were/are talented.

Ok maybe not the best singers,
or songwriters...

or dancers...

but you know.. ok Vanity was hot as hell, that counts for something right?

herb4 said:

So he was bad at selling out, therefore it doesn't really count? Excuse me I gotta go watch that Chevy Commercial featuring our fearless leader.

..
[Edited 5/25/06 15:42pm]

herb4 said:

But what better way to sho you're cooler & better than to appear on the same stage?

Being on the same stage as Kenny Rogers doesn't make Kenny as cool as Prince or make Prince as bad as Kenny.

Prince has shared the stage with some crappy people over the years at MTV music awards, American Music Awards, Grammys, and even the song Take Me With U.

herb4 said:

Well that's Bono's big ass head in the ipod ads, Sting riding around in the back of that Jag, and Madonna in the back of the BMW. By the time all of them did this they were established icons who didn't have to do these things cause of record company pressure. But it was an easy way for them to get their music out to the masses.

.
[Edited 5/25/06 16:05pm]

meanwhile, tom waits will sue your ass if you even try to SOUND like him in a commercial.

Anx said:

NDRU said:

Several of you make valid points, and I'm pretty much tapped out with the argument. I don't even really think it's a big deal, I just wish he hadn't done it. He didn't need to. If he needs cash, how about a Crystal Ball 2 or a 3 CD live aftershow set available for download at $20 or $30 a throw? Or a Musicology DVD with bonus videos and or interviews? Who amongst us wouldn't line up for that? Isn't that what he worked so hard for? Emancipation? And now he's reduced to a TV show that will be number one on VH1's "I Love the 00's" 10 years from now...?

Why THIS crap? So he jumped from #100 to #25 or whatever with 3121, right? Is it a better record now? Do you guys like it more? Is anyone going to tell me there's more money (or integrity) in THAT vs. doing what I just described above? All of these years of wanting to be "free" and he's pimping on a glorified, glossed up version of "The Gong Show"?

That's about all I have to say about the subject. Good to know there are still some orgers around here who appreciate intelligent debate and differences of taste and opinion.

Peace.

I haven't read all of the posts, so I'm sure my thoughts have already been echoed, but...

I don't believe appearing on the most popular show on TV just to promote an album is "selling out"...it's simply smart business. Releasing an album of music he was not proud of simply for sales...that would be selling out. (No veiled digs at any of his music here...I don't believe any of his albums have been a sell-out. Some have been more "commercial" than others, but none a sell-out.) Doing whatever you can to get an album you're proud of to the masses...again, smart business.

I personally have no interest in AI...I never watched it before last night, and I don't intend to in the future. BUT I was glad he was on. I love seeing Prince perform--on TV, in person, whatever. This was another opportunity for me to see him, plain and simple. [If her performs on a (insert own "lame" show--I'll use Full House) reunion, I'll watch it gladly.)

I've always had mixed feeling about his albums being "successul"...my feeling was: the faster an album fades, the sooner we get new music. (Obviously he was releasing an album a year back in the day, whether the previous album had legs or not...but you get the idea.) I have no clue whether the long-term success of this album will have any effect on when he releases new music, so I just hope I get to see him perform as much as possible. Do the talk show circuit! Perform small-venue concerts! Arena concerts! SNL 10 more times! Do it all...I'll be there.

heck, if prince would go stand on my street corner all day i'd give him a dollar just for looking pretty.