One of the most interesting threads in a long time. Thanks for the read guys!

dreamshaman32 said:

Man, dig,..it ain't no schooling needed here. I've been knowing ALL that u pointed out. I've recorded guitar solos for Andre and Morris. I've known Andre since 95. Andre himself has told me shit about P's ass. I'm not going to bust on with shit Cymone has said cuz I don't need to to make my point. And the end of the day, this thread is going to end up like all the other Rick/Prince threads. It's all subjective. I've ended up on bothe artists sides, depending on what the topic was. On this topic, my point lays with Rick. For the things I've already posted.

dreamshaman32 said:

Godd post and I can dig what you're saying. I've said similar shit on here in the past. BUT to Rick's credit, P DID bite off of Rick's image, show, the whole 9. And that is some bitch shit in my book. And that's P like a motherfucker to do it on the same tour as Rick. P knew that shit would look like Rick was biting off of P when it was the other way around. There was many elements about P, especially when it came to dealing with others, that left a lot to be desired. I can see why P ended up get a bodyguard, cuz I can see P getting jumped by some folks backstage. I've said on here before that P had come off like he was color struck. Came off like he was better than brothers. He couldn't front this shit off with Andre cuz Andre's family took care of P's ass when he literally could have ended up on the street. The shit he ended up doing to Andre is shameful. He has to and will answer for that. He didn't pull that shit with Dez cuz he needed Dez to help him give him confidence with his rock thing. BUT he did pull that shit with Mark. If P was soooo innovative, he wouldn't have stole from Rick like he did. Period. Was Rick a better musician than P? Hell nah. Better songwritter overall? No. But so the fuck what? Man up and come with your own shit. Stop trying to up stage others by having your bodyguard carry your sissy acting ass around the theatre. P couldn't fuck with Michael in his prime with all the guitars in the world and he knew it. P thought cuz he was light and he saw how folks responded to him being light, that he could act the way he did. That's what time THAT shit was. He's lucky that he didn't get fucked up by a few cats from Rick's band. As a band, P's band wouldn't have stood a chance against Rick's band, if they would have threw down. P would have stabbed some cats in the side with his knife and ran away. U can belive that shit. Andre probably would have fared best. Dez wasn't fighting a spider on the wall so...he would have tried to "talk" about it and shit. And Teena would have kicked every girl's ass P had ever fucked with. Jill was probably the toughest girl P had ever worked with. That's why he had problems with her.

"The Confessions Of Rick James, Memoirs Of A Super Freak,"

Rick lost all his credibility about Prince biting his stlye after he did the video for "Glow". End of story!!!!

After watching that video, it's clear that Rick is trying desperately to copy Prince. I never saw the Rick James tour, so I can't say if Prince bit Rick or not. But how stupid does this make Rick James look?
B!tching about how Prince stole his style, and then he retaliates by trying to copy Prince. That's some 5th grade ish right there.

I agree with the poster about Rick just being a jealous MF. Prince honed his craft and stayed a very focused and disciplined musician, while Rick fu@ked off his talent smoking crack and kidnapping whores.

Rick lost all his credibility about Prince biting his stlye after he did the video for "Glow". End of story!!!!

After watching that video, it's clear that Rick is trying desperately to copy Prince. I never saw the Rick James tour, so I can't say if Prince bit Rick or not. But how stupid does this make Rick James look?
B!tching about how Prince stole his style, and then he retaliates by trying to copy Prince. That's some 5th grade ish right there.

I agree with the poster about Rick just being a jealous MF. Prince honed his craft and stayed a very focused and disciplined musician, while Rick fu@ked off his talent smoking crack and kidnapping whores.

Great thread. I just wanted 2 add that Prince did not have the color issues that u may think. Prince was well aware of the history of "black" music. He was not trying 2 be piegon holed in that way.

Trust this, he KNEW exactly how 2 play the game.
[Edited 6/26/07 8:46am]

Great thread. I just wanted 2 add that Prince did not have the color issues that u may think. Prince was well aware of the history of "black" music. He was not trying 2 be piegon holed in that way.

Trust this, he KNEW exactly how 2 play the game.
[Edited 6/26/07 8:46am]

Graycap23 said:

When I say "color issues" I mean in terms of his preference in women. However, Prince was intelligent to know what he needed to do to secure cross-over success and to solidify his place in musical history. P's music is universal. Within its tapestry it holds different musical styles and influences. Why not share that with the world? That's not color issues, that's just good ole marketing!

blackguitaristz said:

Rick James, is that you writing this post from the grave? LOL Seriously, I think Rick's bitterness toward Prince is demonstrative of his own deep-seated jealousy and inability to confront his own issues with race. Yes I believe Prince has issues with color, which is reflected in the type of women he dates. However, Rick was the same way and is just hating because P's looks and cross-over appeal allowed him to do this on a greater level than Rick. It was Rick who mostly dated and married white women. At least the majority of Prince's women were mixed or mixed looking. Rick was with Teena Marie and admitted, in this same book, that he only fooled around with Maxi (the white member) of the Mary Jane Girls. The song, "Cold Blooded" was written about Linda Blair OF ALL PEOPLE, whom Rick had a big crush on at the time and dated her a short while if my memory serves me correctly. The chick that RJ went to jail for enslaving was white as well. His wife is white. Also, RJ calls P uppity for not wanting to socialize with him? His focus was music not drinking and drugging all the freakin time. That's being a real brother? Rick was just mad that he couldn't dish more dirt on P in this book like he did Teena Marie. She kicked it with RJ romantically and musically and how did he repay her? He outed her as being bisexual and talked about how he was the first to give HER an orgasm in the book! Now who's egotistical?

I make no excuses for Prince being an asshole back then. He like most young musicians had to mature and learn how to handle success and how to treat people. I never would have wanted to meet P back then. It's called growing up. I'm sure a lot of us were jerks when we were younger. RJ was the epitomy of an egotistical jerk back then and up until his death, "I'M RICK JAMES BITCH!" He was pissed because no one cared about him and he thought in his mind that he deserved the attention that P got. NOT!!! P put in the work. Rick didn't! In terms of P biting Rick, ALL MUSICIANS BITE SOMEONE ELSE AND CALL IT INSPIRATION!!! They just put their own stamp on whatever they bite, which Prince has. There is no one that is like him. Rick bit Parliament, Sly & the Family Stone and a list of others. He wasn't purely original.

Plain and simple, Rick was better with the funk but P was BETTER with EVERYTHING else; lyrics, singing, instrumentation, gorgeous looks, intelligence, musical styles, clothes etc. After the 80s, RJ was basically a fat, washed up cracked-out funkster with no musical home to call his own. He had served time in jail for his super freak ways and was living in the past and blaming Prince for his lack of presence on the musical landscape. I like Rick James' music but it's ALL IN THE PAST. If you look at his Web site, most of the imagery is from the PAST!He didn't possess the talent to enjoy the longevity that Prince has had. Outside of MJ, no other artist has had an impact on music like P. The music he's created not only for himself but for others exceeds ANYTHING that Rick could imagine in his wildest dreams. The artists that he's inspired and worked with, the projects that he has brought to fruition - films, interactive Web sites, perfumes, tours etc. Rick was just bitter because he COULD NEVER BE PRINCE!
[Edited 6/26/07 8:07am]
[Edited 6/26/07 8:19am]

True that Rick dated mostly white women. Him and Linda Blair were atcually engaged to be married but Linda was trying to get off of drugs when Rick had no intentions of doing so. So, that killed off the engagement.

airbak said:

blackguitaristz thanks for the response. I thought I remembered that they dated but didn't know that things were that serious. Thanks for the info. This is exactly what I'm talking about with Rick though. He dated white women and hung around a lot of whites too i.e. Rod Stewart, Jim Morrison etc. but Prince is somehow an "uppity white boy?" Prince's band was comprised of mostly black guys and his school sweatheart was Susan who was black and then he was dating Vanity - who I believe he stole from RJ if that story is even true.

PS do you play guitar or is this just your name?
[Edited 6/26/07 9:34am]

Graycap23 said:

When I say "color issues" I mean in terms of his preference in women. However, Prince was intelligent to know what he needed to do to secure cross-over success and to solidify his place in musical history. P's music is universal. Within its tapestry it holds different musical styles and influences. Why not share that with the world? That's not color issues, that's just good ole marketing!

Rick lost all his credibility about Prince biting his stlye after he did the video for "Glow". End of story!!!!

After watching that video, it's clear that Rick is trying desperately to copy Prince. I never saw the Rick James tour, so I can't say if Prince bit Rick or not. But how stupid does this make Rick James look?
B!tching about how Prince stole his style, and then he retaliates by trying to copy Prince. That's some 5th grade ish right there.

I agree with the poster about Rick just being a jealous MF. Prince honed his craft and stayed a very focused and disciplined musician, while Rick fu@ked off his talent smoking crack and kidnapping whores.

airbak said:

I dig.....when it comes 2 women, u like what u like.

Your welcome. Yes, I do play lead guitar, bass, keys and drums.

I'm not tryna start nothing, but I'm still stumped as to how some people say that he bit off of MJ.

tonyat said:

I'm right there with ya. When Prince came out the gate, he was emulating Stevie (teen prodigy, one-man band, studio wizard, use of synths). The same for his second album, except the guitar is starting to come to the fore a bit (which is not an MJ trait; certainly not in 1979). He lets his freak flag fly on "Dirty Mind" and that album sounds absolutely nothing like Michael. From that project forward, he's the Prince we know and love. So when, exactly, did this "biting" occur?

tonyat said:

I'm right there with ya. When Prince came out the gate, he was emulating Stevie (teen prodigy, one-man band, studio wizard, use of synths). The same for his second album, except the guitar is starting to come to the fore a bit (which is not an MJ trait; certainly not in 1979). He lets his freak flag fly on "Dirty Mind" and that album sounds absolutely nothing like Michael. From that project forward, he's the Prince we know and love. So when, exactly, did this "biting" occur?

Didn't he write "I Wanna Be Your Lover" for Patrice Rushen who he had a crush on?
What part of her can be mistaken for white?
What part of Vanity could one mistake for White?
Where the fuck are these issues of color in Prince's life coming from?
Take a look at where he's from(Minnesota), his multi-racial band and use it as a measuring stick of his attitudes towards race.
Listen to the lyrics of "Uptown".

I honestly don't think Prince gives a fuck about the race of a woman nearly as much as(but not only) her sexual talents.