Now I am no marketing genius but there has just got to be a way of raising Prince's profile in the UK on the back of the (to be hoped for) ONA tour.

How about this for a plan..?

Low key unpublicised gig for NPGMC members & Press only which gets rave reviews and stimulates interest in Prince.

This show to be recorded by BBC Radio2 for broadcast on National Radio at a time when the ONA tour is being publicised.

Coincide with a Jools Holland "Later..." Special totally devoted to Prince - could also have appearances by Alicia Keys, Norah Jones etc to broaden interest in the program.

During ONA tour make sure that Prince gives interviews to influential media - NME, Liquid News etc. Give interviews on Simon Mayo's album chart show on Radio2 and the Johnnie Walker show. Ensure that the ONA Live CD is selected as Radio 2s album of the week.

Release a track from ONA or TRC to Radio. May stand a chance of getting some airplay if profile is raised. Maybe even commercially release also. Hey if Status Quo can have a Top20 hit after all these years then it's for sure that Prince can too.

I just KNOW that there is interest in Prince here in the UK. Come on you other UK orgers what else could be done to get this happening?

Aahh Matt that all sounds wonderful

BBC Online used to have a Later With Jools Holland section where you could suggest who should be on a future show. I suggested a show devoted to Prince a number of times.

Radio 2 would be a fantastic choice for album features and live recording.

The only thing is I don't think Prince is that bothered about how high his profile is. We are though

The best thing Prince could do for the UK would be to get controvercial again. Show the country his madness in topical ways so that he starts to make the news again. Nothing better than free publicity. Even if its bad. You see all these bands and singers doing it these days. If they dont have anything to promote at the time, they besome kind of badasses to keep their names in the musical press... Prince needs his controversy back whereby he can admit and deny nothing. Its a calculated thing which was good for him once... But now no one cares about his newest controversial ideas... Even the name change back fired...

Getting radio air play, ie making the A-list requires heaps of cash! The companies who pay the most cash (the major record labels) get first selections. Hence the crap we get.

Mind you, radio two do seem to have a little more independance due to the fact that the listening base is of an older age generally. But the record labels still have that niche pretty tied up too.

But interviews, interviews, interviews... thats the way. Q, NME, MOJO, etc etc... the whole shebang. Get TV spots like you said, but also go down market. Prince still has the power to pull a "First time world exlusive" spot on TOTP where he will insist on doing it live and blowing the competition out of the water.

Really suck up to Q magazine. Give them advanced copies of ONA. Let them review it. Give them a video for a track for them to play on their TV request channel.

And release the ONA live into the stores. Put ads in the mags and rags and mention it every other sentence he mutters in print or on tape.

Do a talk show or two!

Get channel four to play all the music docs they have shown over the past years. They have some great stuff!!! (Keep beautiful Strange in the box though, thats hardly promotion to the untested).

Heres a more unlikely event. Get WB to release yet another "best of" album, promote it like hell as they do and then ride on the back of it with the ONA tour...

If only... I don't remember hearing Prince ()on the radio since TMBGITW. I came to the same conclusion as KeithyT. Surely if he wanted to market something for a commercial success he could. The problem is he would have to buy into the industry-based commercialisation that we all know he loves to hate. He just doesn't want to be known as that "modern day Mozart" anymore - maybe he doesn't like publicity? Hardly! So I just don't get it.

Soapstone said:

The last airplay I heard of Prince (new singles, not old look backs in time) was Holy River! And that kinda bombed...

Jo Whiley at radio one was the only one who seemed to have Prince on the list at the time. Every other DJ on the station, and every other station ignored it...

I was listening to a tape I recorded from KISS 100FM in London a few years ago...One of the DJs there was a BIG Prince fan. (Matt White) - he did two shows that were a couple of hours each playing all Prince and Related artists (including rare remixes and unreleased songs).

I haven't really listened to that station much recently, but I know he's still on there. He could be a real asset to promote a UK Tour.

I like your ideas Matt, you should send them to npgmc - it is high time we saw Prince on something like Jools Holland.

I remember when I told people (non-Prince fans) that I was going to see Prince, Chaka Khan etc. at Brixton Academy last time, most people never even knew it was happening! But loads of people thought it sounded like a really cool gig. With more promotion he could've done this a few nights instead of just one. Let everyone feel the funk!!

*Peace*

Om

Jon said:

I remember Jo Whiley going on about how much she loved prince at the Cafe De Paris Gig, filmed for channel four. Maybe Prince should just persuade DJ's who like him to include new stuff on the play lists.

maybe Prince just needs 2 announce the frigging concert dates!!!

He should most certainly arrive with a bang!!!
Remember when the Lovesexy circus arrived in the UK?

I recall a conference where fans could attend where Cat gave a fan one of those mirrored heart bracelets,Prince in McDonalds and signing at Tower Records in London.

Ohhh magical days they were.Come back soon,Im tingling in anticipation.

Much love Pochacco

All great ideas - now to convonce Prince that this is whats needed although the "news" (?) about a Radio2 special might suggest that he is ahead of us on this one? We can only hope.