I've tried to figure out what Prince's political opinions are for awhile. I've heard some say he's pretty conservative with tracks like, "Ronnie Talk to Russia", "America", and the song "Call My Name" says, "they can bug my phone, put people 'round my home, they'll only find you and me making love inside" ...a popular conservative argument for government survaillance is the fact that if you have nothing to hide, why not let them do it? Many early reviews i've read of his music have the reviewers complaining that he adopted Reaganesque viewpoints. Anyone know anything on the subject?

I really don't see how Prince could be a conservative when it comes to many of his views.
Then on the other hand, he could be very conservative.

As usual, the coin has 2 sides.....

I don't think a person who would write a song like "Partyup" would be conservative.

MCBPrime said:

I've tried this too. Dear mr man seems quite the opposite though... I guess he just doesn't want to profile himself politically. Or he doesn't know much about it (ronnie talk to russia ), or he just don't care (Erotic city).

Didn't he say "ain't no use in voting, same soul with a different name!" I think that's the answer.

Wait a second, I just remember that question put to Prince during that Tavis Smiley interview back in 2004. Prince basically said stuff like politics are all just semantics. He then said that "an equal share is desired by all. We all just wanna take care of ourselves and our families and do it to the best of our abilities"...or something like that. He then said that he's more concerned with where folks are at spiritually and wishes that people should adhere more to "the truth" (whatever that means).


Hope that helps.

wlcm2thdwn said:

Same song with a different name, actually.

I'm not sure if he has one. I know he cares about what happens in the world, but in one interview he said, "I tend to pledge my allegiance to God."

He wants the world to change for the better, but doesn't seem to have much faith in politicians.

*What's wrong ..with the world 2day?
Things just got 2 get better
Show me what the leaders say
Maybe we should write a letter*

come to think of it, I wonder if he wrote "Dear Mr. Man" in response to all of these people asking him the "Bush vs. Kerry" question... or it was just a coincidence that he wrote the song and that debate was going on.

NWF said:

It doesn't, really. An "equal share" is a socialist concept. If he said, "equal chance," it'd be conservative -- or even libertarian. "We all just wanna take care of ourselves and our families and do it to the best of our abilities," could also be construed as conservative or libertarian (i.e. -- leave folks alone to live as they see fit).

Genesia said:

I think you're stretching there. As I see it, those quotes show he went out of his way to avoid affiliating himself with any party, or at least was trying to.

Efan said:

Ummmmm...that's exactly what I was saying. You can't draw any conclusions about his politics because he's all over the map.

Genesia said:

Come to think of it, does he ever give a straight answer for anything?

Genesia said:

Okay. I thought you were drawing conclusions on those quotes, and I just meant that "We all just wanna take care of ourselves and our families" could be taken as a conservative, libertarian, or liberal quote in American politics today.

Efan said:

It also wasn't a verbatim quote -- which makes a huge difference.

Didn't he also say things like...

"Ain't Nothin' fare about welfare" - conservative?
"Ain't nothing affirmative about your action, till the people get paid." - is this opposed to affirmative action? conservative? Anyone know what J.W.s believe on issues like abortion?

MCBPrime said:

He's politically neutral.

You know, I really love Prince for this. I would respect his opinion if he chose to come out with it up front, but I get so fed up with people shoving their opinions in our faces. I'm looking at you Green Day and U2.

MCBPrime said:

You'd have to start a thread in P&R for the answer those questions!

MCBPrime said:

Hello? you're missing a line here- it begins with "What's the matter with the world 2day?
Land of the free? Somebody lied"

a liberal sentence after my own heart.....not a thing conservative about it.

paisley16 said:

That's true, but it's still unclear. I like the idea that he's kind of neutral. The whole "Same song with a different name" thing really backs that up.

MCBPrime said:

I don't mean to be argumentative, but on this point I think he's pretty clear. "land of the free, somebody lied?"
I agree he can be neutral at other times however.

He also appears to be getting on the "planet earth", global warming issue- which is more liberal than conservative- if you had to choose.
Still waiting to see if he plays Live Earth.

paisley16 said:

It's a shame that issue is political at all, don't you think?

MCBPrime said:

it sure is.

NWF said:

I always thought Morris Day wrote that one?

NWF said:

You have obviously never partied with conservatives. I have -- many, many, many times. And trust me -- they a bunch o' freaks.

In fact, they're more fun to party with than most of the liberals I know -- because they don't take themselves so seriously.

Jehovah's Witnesses are discouraged, but not prohibited under all circumstances, from voting in elections. They believe voting or elections in themselves are harmless, for example, although they would not vote to elect a political leader, they would not object to voting on a non-political issue such as what color balloons to buy for a party. They do not stand for any political office.

I think he's moderate; Or more importantly, peaceful. I know he drops references in songs stating that he's not a man of war.