It was great for Prince to be all experimental, changing his sound with every album and all in the 80s. It worked then because he set the trends and was ahead of them. He was cool because the 80s was a hard core nerd bazaar

He can't do that now because he's out of touch. And no, he's not hip.

The result is now he's a chameleon with no home. He keeps trying to fit the latest fashion to be cool (Baby Mama anyone? ) & I think comes off as someone without a genuine musical voice or identity. That's crazy. He of all people should have a credible voice. But he denounces his past, changes his lyrics. Refuses to play staples then only plays them. I mean, who is this guy, this schizoid? and which one of him is real and which one of him is the one that keeps me a fan?

I'll tell you what attracted me. His indie side and his lyrical philosophies and metaphors. Indie doesn't have to play cool. Indie just is. Had he stayed true to that, he could carve a place for himself anywhere and any era. But he betrayed that.

But he can't just be indie when it's convenient and opportunistic. Because it doesn't read genuine. I mean this is the guy who on New Years Eve 1999 wore a bunch of braids and ribbons in his hair trying to sound hard core, cool, and down. Give me a break. What a pretender. What kind of artist at this age doesn't know who he is?

Would the real Prince please stand up? He's trying to appeal to the pop crowd, i.e. the kiddie crowd and that's not even an appropriate evolution for an artist of his merit and talent.

He's become a caricature. And I hate that. He comes off as desperate and trying to hard for a hit. It's unbelievable.

So in closing, there is no place at the inn for Prince because:
1. Musicially schizophrenic and disingenious.
2. Pretender who betrayed his indie status and counterculture persona.
3. Caricature in bright suits.
4. Desperate (dancing twins, the latest jargon as cool as that computer guy at the office, namechecking artists in a lower caste on his records for all eternity. . Metaphors that reveal not insight but stupidity "like the wall in Berlin").
5. He has nothing to say. His music used to be about ideas. Now, everything is recycled and the thoughts are lazy as hell.

Prince is as relavent musically as we each feel. If u live/love the music he makes then he has a place in music. I don't expect Prince to have a big hit. The music industry is dominated by the teenagers. Prince only moves further and further away from that demographic just like the rest of us. Prince had his day in the sun now it all gravy. I think too many off us are overly influenced by the media and culture to determine the worth of something. As far as I'm concerned its just between me, prince and the music. All the other stuff (media, charts, other fans) is just white noise in reality.

Listening to the kids in my class, I hear that they want "hot beats", most of all. They tell me that Timbaland is the best producer, and just about every little song that comes along has some sort of dance attached to it (Soulja Boy nominated for a Grammy?! )
Prince is not working with any of the latest producers. He is not creating any dance crazes ( ?!).

The Emo kids want pain and suffering for no good reason. The majority of them are not feeling Prince's message of God and Love.

One of my students simply stated, "Why do old people like Prince? My mother likes him!"

Prince is at a point in his life where there may be a few who will embrace his new music (who weren't already fans), but I think mainstream music has moved on without him. His core fanbase is still here- some are complaining, but we stay by his side hoping the next thing will be "it".

Just my

I loved Planet Earth!

Much better than 3121 (tho that one had some good moments too)

People here are jaded and hard to please.

June7 said:

aw come on

AW COME ON!!!!!

June7 said:

I totally agree with u June7. Is it true that the artist has 2 promote and pay 2 have there music played on radio? If thats the case I see why his latest music isn't on radio. I know if Prince new music was played and on rotation daily he would have a hit

Please correct me if I'm wrong.

Is Planet Earth the Prince album that divides us?

Our hyper-ambitious desire to enjoy Prince and all that he reveals to us through that paisley knot-hole... is it a purple poison?

Meanwhile, I shall put Newpower Soul on at work tomorrow and remember the good old days... when we could agree that it sucked.

June7 said:

I totally agree with u June7. Is it true that the artist has 2 promote and pay 2 have there music played on radio? If thats the case I see why his latest music isn't on radio. I know if Prince new music was played and on rotation daily he would have a hit

Please correct me if I'm wrong.

I'unno.

The only competition is him in the past.....

Mainstream music has gone downhill so much since the 90s that I'm glad Prince has no place in it.

Prince is as relavent musically as we each feel. If u live/love the music he makes then he has a place in music. I don't expect Prince to have a big hit. The music industry is dominated by the teenagers. Prince only moves further and further away from that demographic just like the rest of us. Prince had his day in the sun now it all gravy. I think too many off us are overly influenced by the media and culture to determine the worth of something. As far as I'm concerned its just between me, prince and the music. All the other stuff (media, charts, other fans) is just white noise in reality.

Mainstream music has gone downhill so much since the 90s that I'm glad Prince has no place in it. And that is a fact. Music is gimmickry now. You'd be hard pressed to find true artists in the charts. Having a good voice and singing other people's songs does not make you a musician.

Good, real artists cannot chart anymore because of the abyssmal state of music right now. I hope this decline does not continue, or I'll become a bitter old man who only listens to pre-2000's music.

...trace it back 2 schools that don't have a music program 4 kids 2 learn a instrument. whether due 2 budget cuts or whatever...

everyone has made valid points throughout that it's hard 2 say anything new or thought provoking other than pointing out the obvious, it's not prince but the entire industry and the pawns caught in the game. technology plays a powerful role in the music made 2day where as back in the days, u needed ACTUAL musicians 2 make the sounds, now u just hit one key on a keyboard and it sounds like a 50 piece orchestra. trace it back 2 schools that don't have a music program 4 kids 2 learn a instrument. whether due 2 budget cuts or whatever. music shops that provide instruments r dwindling and even if u go in there, u would b hard pressed 2 find people playing.

media plays the other crucial element like mtv, vh1 and bet. where r the videos? now in prime time u c nothing but reality based bullshit. so music takes a back seat 2 everything now. take a listen 2 music 2day and u scratch ur head trying 2 figure out if there is a base line or a groove. there aren't any cause everyone is more infactuated with a beat that sounds like the last song.

then there is prince, one of the last ones 2 actually put 2gether songs that have the elements of true songwritting and instrumentation. but also u have 2 consider his age. he's not going 2 appeal 2 the kids of 2day due 2 the lack of xposure of musicians like him. if ur fed crap all day on the airwaves and television, ur gonna eventually like that crap and think it's the greatest thing ever created. but think it ain't illegal yet!! how can we as the elder statesmen/women of a generation pass that knowledge downward? when in New york there r radio stations that play nothing but hip hop and a station that plays soft jazz gets replaced due 2 "ratings" is pathetic.

planet earth aside i belive the lyric that sums up the music industry is in musicology "don't u miss the feeling music gave u back in the day?"

i say by everyone that has spoken about this thread..the answer is YES

What about artists like Tool, NIN, Radiohead, Immortal Technique, etc.?

You might not like them, but they've continued to flourish on a less mainstream level.