I will end this debate once and for all:

MICHAEL:
Voice: 8/10
Dancing: 10/10
Musicianship: 6/10
Commercial success: 10/10
Innovative: 6/10
Longevity: 2/10
OVERALL: 42/60

PRINCE:
Voice: 8/10
Dancing: 8/10
Musicianship: 10/10
Commercial success: 7/10
Innovative: 8/10
Longevity: 7/10
OVERALL: 48/60

Enough said

I much prefer Mike's music these days.

I much prefer Mike's music these days.

I love both and can't say how happy I was when Michael got off, i don't want to see michael behind bars, I just don't. As artists, they are both superb. Anyone who cannot appreciate what mike brought to the table as a very young man who could write and produce excellent songs and pioneer videos and his dancing just doesn't like HIM. Truth is, Michael has always been a gifted songwriter who never took the time to really learn an instrument. Doesn't matter, he understood songwriting well enough not to and had the leverage to get the best musicians and producers to bring his ideas to full fruition. Prince on the other hand has not always been the darling of black america that some people seem to think he was. He was always a crossover act starting with Dirty Mind, he really fought hard for acceptance but I do believe that he was a crossover artist before the video age took off and that Mtv would have seen fit to place him on mtv with or without Michael. Remember his 1999 vids were all over MTV at around the same time as Thriller songs. it's impossible not to compare them and they both see lots of themselves in each other and have always had a semi-friendly rivalry and deep down respect for the other. As to the question who is the best artist? Well, you have to give the edge to Prince while not forgetting that Michael is a mighty force in his own right.

I've posted this before when this comes up, but once again, here I go:


Prince and Michael Jackson are my 2 favorite musicians/artists/performers. As a huge fan of both, let me give you 10 reasons that I like Prince better.

1. Prince has more music. Prince simply has a ton more music than MJ for his fans to listen to. Some will argue that MJ has less "crappy music" and that he has a better filter however, besides being a totally subjective statement, this is simply not true. Pound for pound, MJ has made just as much "average" music as Prince has. As a fan of both, I am happy to have stacks of Prince Albums and sad to have roughly 6 legit MJ albums since 1979. Waiting 5+ years between MJ albums sucks and lately it hasn't been worth the wait. If I don't like Prince's latest album, within a year or so I'll have a new one.

2. It is arguable who is a better live performer. Critics and fans alike both herald Prince and MJ as two of the best showman ever. Take your pick. That being said, Prince Concerts are more "live" than MJ. Prince's shows are not as rehearsed and are more spontaneous-the energy is different. Plus, Prince's live show is not the same as it has been since 1988. The fact is that, they are both great and you cannot definitively say one is head and shoulders above the other in this regard. MJ cannot work an audience like Prince. Prince's shows are more audience involving than MJ. MJ's shows are like going to a movie. It's a performance that could happen the same no matter the audience. Because of the nature of his concerts, Prince always takes the crowd into account and his concerts change based on the crowd. When did MJ last let audience members (who weren't planted groupies) up onstage to dance? Prince has an actual band that he leads, guides, and plays with. MJ just has hired musicians put together for a tour. Sheryl Crow used to play with him and was quoted as saying that MJ didn't know her name. I assure you, Prince knows his band.

3. It is easier to defend Prince's actions. Hey Prince changed his name to an unpronounceable symbol-super weird right? However, it is rock star weird. MJ used to just be rock star weird, now he is scary and creepy weird. MJ's personal life has overshadowed his art, and forced his music to take a back seat to his circus and court appearances.

4. Prince evolves. Don't get me wrong, as a fan of MJ I realize he has grown as an artist. However, every one of his albums is chasing after "Thriller", both in style, and in sales figures. Prince is not constantly trying to top, redo, outdo, or copy "Purple Rain". MJ got himself in a rut.

5. Prince has more variety to his music. Sure, MJ's pop sweeps over different genres, but not as aggressively as Prince does it. When was the last time MJ did a solo acoustic guitar album? A solo piano album? An instrumental album? A blues rock album? A jazz/funk album? Not only does Prince do different types of music from album to album. Often, he'll do it from song to song on one album. Hardly anyone crosses genres as effectively as Prince. MJ definitely does not.

6. Prince is more true to himself musically. Lately, MJ has gotten into the habit of hiring a load of "hot" producers to give him the latest sound, but it makes MJ's music seem contrived, forced, and not authentic. Even, when Prince is biting new trends he still sounds like Prince. He sounds authentic. You might not like Prince's rapping, but "pussy control" is an authentic club anthem whether you like it or not. MJ singing things like "2000 Watts" seems artificial and forced-it's hard to believe MJ feels what he is singing.

7. Prince is more accessible to his fans. I know this sounds weird, but Prince often opens up his recording studios for his fans to tour- as MJ does with Neverland. However, the difference is the fact that Prince will often do intimate late night shows at his place with a few hundred fans. These gigs used to cost maybe $7. Often they were free. Prince casually walks amongst the crowd at these shows and just hangs out. I bet you'd be hard pressed to name another "reclusive" superstar of Prince's magnitude that allows his hardcore fans to get so close.

8. Prince's lyrical themes are more varied and more mature. How many monster and ghost songs can MJ do? How many of us still relate to that? Prince's music is often accused of being all sexual, but the fact is that his relationship based lyrics are more complex than MJ, more sincere, and more believable. Love, romance, sex, and God are questions and themes that all humans ask and deal with. Prince explores these themes with authenticity and an understanding that MJ has rarely, if ever, been able to capture. Prince also can do the fantastical, kid's stuff-look at the "batman" album. That album was fairly complex and mature for a superhero album.

9. Onstage- Prince sings. Prince dances. Prince plays guitar. Prince plays piano/keyboard. Prince plays drums. Prince plays bass guitar.

Onstage-MJ dances, MJ sings. We MJ fans often argue that he does these better than anyone else. That is opinion.

Fact is- Prince does more onstage than MJ. He does all of these really really well. Better singer and dancer than MJ? Some think so. However, without a doubt Prince is more varied onstage than MJ.

10. Prince has hot female backup dancers. MJ's back up dancers seem like Madonna's leftovers.
[Edited 1/31/07 14:37pm]

I will end this debate once and for all:

skywalker said:

that was thee best breakdown of the two artist.


amazing

Cloudbuster said:

We're through!

And Michael being a pervert or freak or pedaphile!please!

them parents KNEW about michael so they know what they was doing when they sent there kids to michael's house.

mmm hmm
[Edited 1/28/07 15:58pm]

I will end this debate once and for all:

MICHAEL:
Longevity: 2/10


PRINCE:

Longevity: 7/10

toejam said:

:condfuse: How can Prince win on Longevity when Mike's career is ten years longer?

lilgish said:

Mike's career ended about 11 years ago.

skywalker said:

to you maybe it ended but when he did put out material it actually SOLD which is more than I can say for prince's music in the late 90's and early 00's