Here's the lyrics to Prince's song "FAMILY NAME"

"Welcome. U have just accessed the Akashic Records Genetic Information
Division. This program is required 4 those wishing 2 obtain a marriage
blessing from The Kingdom. When u wish 2 begin this program, place ur right
hand on the scanner and tightly clench up ur buttcheeks as u might feel a
slight electrical shock. Please select the race history u desire. U have
selected African-American.

This is your history:
First of all, the term black and white is a fallacy. It simply is another
way of saying this or that. Let's examine the term this or that in its
ultimate form which is: this means the truth or that which is resistant 2
it. When a minority realizes its similarities on a higher level- not just
black- but PEOPLE OF COLOR, and higher still INDIGENOUS, and even higher
still, FROM THE TRIBE OF., and yet higher- the RAINBOW CHILDREN. When
this understanding comes, the so-called minority becomes a majority in the
wink of an eye. This action will cause a Reaction or Resistance.

The source of this Resistance must b banished as it is in direct conflict with the initial action. It cannot be assimilated, 4 its very nature is resistance.
In other words, ONE CANNOT SERVE 2 MASTERS. U r either this or that
which is not this.

End of part one. 2 continue, select the program Family Name and type in the
current government name u wish history on. (London, England sometime in the early 1600s) We have the God-given right 2 run out of our colonies anyone who does not bow down 2 our law. Hear, hear?


Come on, come on keep it moving here. What's your name boy?
Abu Cah, Well it ain't now; it's Tom Lynch.
Mirror, mirror what u see? Have I still got those dark clouds over me?
Or am I really feeling what I feel?The last days of the Devil's Deal
Mirror, what u see?
Devil, devil what u know?/U been here since 1914, but now u got 2 go
U been hidin' behind corporate eyes
U wanna war, but u can't fight/Devil, u got 2 go
U might say, what u mad about?/But u still got ur Family Name

Pleased 2 meet u, Mr. Rosenbloom/I'll b John Blackwell just the same
What's ur Family Name?
Teacher, teacher what u say?/Did we really come over in a boat?
Did it really go down that way?/Or did I arrive b4 and ruin Thanksgiving Day?
Teacher, what u say?
Preacher, preacher is it true?/That Jesus wants me 2 give my money 2 the likes of u?
Ride around in ur Lexus Coupe/Drive us 2 the cleaners in a pinstripe suit
Preacher, that ain't truth! U might say, what u mad about?/But u still got ur Family Name

Pleased 2 meet u, Mr. Pearlman/U can call me Clay. can I play?
People, people what's ur name?/Maybe we should start all over
Let everybody get in the game/Put up a one-gloved fist
Make a sound, Violet Brown
U might say what u mad about?/But u still got ur Family name

Pleased 2 meet u Mr. Goldstruck.
We found this tape in the Akashic records. This is Thomas Jefferson:
My fellow Americans, if there is a just God, we're gonna pay 4 this!
Black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics will
b able 2 join hands in the words of the old Negro spiritual:
free at last, free at last, thank God almighty we are free at last!"
[Edited 3/12/07 10:51am]

2elijah said:

None the wiser but thanks

So, this song starts what many consider the Anti-Semitism on this album - interpreted one way he is saying that given the choice between death and slavery, slaves would've chosen death. He is also stating the current "watered" down bloodline of African-Americans that have mated with Caucasians.

There is a reference earlier on the album on the song Mellow, that compares Slavery to the WWII Jewish Holocaust:

Holocaust aside, many lived and died
But when all truth is told/Would u rather b dead or b sold?
Sold 2 the one who can now mate the displaced bloodline with the white
jailbait.
Thinkin' like the keys on Prince's piano will be just fine

So, this song starts what many consider the Anti-Semitism on this album - interpreted one way he is saying that given the choice between death and slavery, slaves would've chosen death. He is also stating the current "watered" down bloodline of African-Americans that have mated with Caucasians.

Now onto Family Name - where he states that not only were slaves given new names, but that African-American names are often negative sounding (Black, Brown, Clay, Mudd), while Jewish names are usually positive sounding (Silver, Green, Gold i.e. Goldstruck, Rosenblum i.e. Rose-in-bloom, Pearlman).

He's basically saying that keeping one's Family Name is a privelege and an honor, one that Blacks in America were not allowed. He also spoke of this many years ago during his - when he asked where the name Nelson came from. He said something to the effect of "I ain't Nell's son, I never met Nell" - trying to convey that his real African name is unknown and long-lost.

Think about it: most Europeans, Arabs, and Orientals have their family names dating back hundreds of years . . . most African-Americans have white names of their former slave owners. Obviously you don't think that Smith, Jones, Johnson, Nelson, Graham, etc. were names floating around in Africa in the 1700s!

Hope this helps - Orgnote me if you have any questions you don't want to post.

Se7en said:

That is the best explanation I have heard yet...kudos to you Se7en, very well explained. I'll listen to the album again this week. Thanks.

Se7en said:

I agree with the rest of your analysis, but I think he is saying here that slavery is a type of death, and therefore slavery was a type of holocaust every bit as much as the WWII holocaust. With the next line I get the impression he is saying the slave women were often raped by their slave owners which is what 'displaced' the bloodline, but I am not totally sure.

It's just too bad that he couldn't make his point (which I think is a totally valid one) without trivializing the centuries of persecution endured by another group.

Great responses 2elijah and metalorange, and thanks 2 u se7en u guys gave great feed back 2 this thread. I totally love this cd and sorry 4 those that are offended by some lyrics in this song. The cd is defiantly a master piece in my opinion and will always be one of my all time favorites. Love the musicianship, arrangement and vocals through out...

It's just too bad that he couldn't make his point (which I think is a totally valid one) without trivializing the centuries of persecution endured by another group.

The cd is defiantly a master piece in my opinion and will always be one of my all time favorites. Love the musicianship, arrangement and vocals through out...

Genesia said:

I don't think he's trivialising the persecution of another group, merely comparing the two, the persecution of Jews versus the persecution of Africans via slavery, to show how much the issue of slavery has in fact been trivialised.

I can kind of see where he's coming from. The Jewish community has had property and money returned for what happened during the holocaust, and many memorials. By comparison, you might argue that slavery has been much pushed under the carpet. I remember seeing a documentary about whether there should be some recompensation for the ancestors of slaves from the companies and rich families that grew rich off plantations, etc. and are still around. It was meant to prove a point about how that part of history has been neatly underlined and written off without even much of an apology.

To correct myself - the Holocaust quote was actually in Muse 2 The Pharoah , not Mellow.

The Rainbow Children IS a very thought-provoking album . . . I always thought the song "Avalanche" belonged on TRC, having similar themes of racism and politics.

metalorange said:

But a lot Jews don't have their family names, either! Many of them changed them purposefully, so as not to invite the kind of persecution they faced in their homeland. Hell, a lot of Americans, in general, don't have their original family names. My last name is not our family's original name -- like a lot of our ancestors, our German name was misunderstood at Ellis Island (or wherever people came in) and no one had time for corrections.

True, my family did not come in bondage. And I do not mean to lessen the collective shame that is slavery in any way. My only point is that the family name may not be the best metaphor for losing it all. Because a lot of us -- of all races and ethnicities -- lost our original family names in one way or another.

Genesia said:

LOL! You're doing the same thing you accuse Prince of doing, by downplaying the African slave experience by bringing up how other people lost their names. First of all Prince was reflecting on an aspect of the slave trade. When you take people, rip them apart from their families, put them together with people from different tribes, culture, dialect, beliefs, to the point where they could not even communicate with each other, on top of that you take away their identity by forcing them to use the name of their master.

I have no doubt that Jewish families experienced the same and I'm sure many had to change their names which was horrible, but for the most part many families still kept their names. Once the slaves got here the ties were cut dead.

It's just another aspect to think about regarding a horrible time in our history. I'm quite sure that there are aspects of the Jewish holacaust that was unique to their experience the same.

wonder505 said:

What part of "I do not mean to lessen the collective shame that is slavery in any way" do you not understand?

Genesia said:

I understand "let me cover my butt" when I read it.
[Edited 3/13/07 17:16pm]

wonder505 said:

And not unlike a butt...you're full of shit.