If Purple rain (movie and album) had never been made how do you think it would have effected Prince's career?

negatively

Hmmm... he probably wouldn't have had the immense mainstream recognition he gained from PR.

He wouldn't had won that Oscar.

Prince wouldn't have done Graffiti Bridge and UTCM .

He'd just be another R&B artist selling 3 million for each album.

Oh wait...that already happened after Purple Rain anyway.

On the flipside, maybe other albums might have had the larger success/impact they deserved.
And no "he'll never achieve another PR" reviews.

wonder if he'd be less conceited

ernestsewell said:

"Another R&B artist"? Hmm ok...

I think Prince would have still made a movie. He was into that kinda thing; he was writing/filming stuff back then. Even if it wasn't a success like PR, I think he would still be an amazing artist. His musical creativity and genius is what made me a fan, before I heard the album or watched the movie.

johnart said:

Oooh good point!

I have this theory that he would have done most of what he's done with or without Purple Rain and all it's success, but he might not have had the confidence to push it as hard without a sure hit under his belt. Then again, he may have explored the softer psychedelic side of his muse a bit more, or he may have moved to the jazzier music he makes now a lot sooner.

Maybe main stream but not to hardcore. There was alot goin on with Prince before Purple Rain

rgsince81 said:

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[Edited 8/10/09 21:15pm]

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[Edited 12/23/09 8:49am]

Without Purple Rain I might have never known who he was...
I don't know if that would have been an enormous drawback in his career, but it surely would have been A MAJOR drawback in my own life. Prince was a life-changing experience...

He would have been the same exact artist he was - Prince didnt milk Purple Rain he actually ran away from it to prove it is his journey not some music image consultent.

The only difference would have been he wouldnt have had a $10 million recording studio. He would have been at Uptown (ie: his 24 track mackie studio)

But the music would have been the same. maybe he wouldnt have done Around the World in a Day - because that album was to weed out the hurd.

Sans Purple Rain, Prince would have enjoyed the same level of popularity that he did during "Controversy"
* Very high critical acclaim with a solid but not HUGE fan base.

Oooh i like this thread. Very good question. Has it been asked before? Hmmm I don't care.


Anywayz,

I think Prince would have the kind of career Stevie W or maybe Elton John has with many high points and few lows (creatively that is). Critical acclaim, a few million here and there, sold out concerts of a somewhat smaller venue. Prince's music has crossover appeal so one could argue that a Purple Rain or something similar would be inevitable. Clearly the timing was right for his movie but if only the ablum had existed, he would still have seen a great amount of success and probably still have won that Oscar or at least been nominated.

As much of an impact as PR had on prince's career it certainly was not enough to sustain him, hence the poor reception for UTCM and GB. His strength is in his music not his films.

johnart said:

But every album that followed was seriously impacted by Purple Rain

Even if Prince didn't have Purple Rain, he would still become no matter what a megastar around the world. Why? He always had a supernova aura.

Without Purple Rain
there are a few possibilities

Either he would have continued with the sounds of 1999 a bit longer

He would have been a steady 'underground' rock star

Vanity would have been around longer
Morris Day & the Time around longer

the success of PR the movie the album the tour had a big affect on the decisions Prince made, Ice Cream Castles the Glamorous Life, ATWIAD Romance 1600 the Family Mazarati Parade Sheila E the Dream Factory the Camille Project SOTT the Black Album Lovesexy
all the song from the PR sessions:17 Days God Erotic City Lust U Always Traffic Jam Computer Blue Purple Rain etc etc most likely would not have happened or not happened in the fashion they did


I don't see how though that Purple Rain would not have happened, everything lead up to that era

I think Prince 'ran' from the fame of PR, I don't think he was able to fully appreciate it, what it did for him and the vision he had and the people around him and what was really happening. I think there should have been a person or 2 who was a mediator between what was happening in the Camp and what was happening with fans and followers. He may have been able to slow down a bit and fine tune 'Uptown' solidify it, strengthen the bands and groups

BaileyWalker said:

Wow, 4 a minute I thought I wrote this

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[Edited 12/23/09 8:49am]

There's no denying Purple Rain was huge, but I think Prince would have blown up with or without Purple Rain.


MJ's post-thriller fallout was starting to take place, but the music industry jolt that Jackson provided was still there--people were still excited about music and ready to spend money on it. They simply needed something new and 'fresh' to come around.

Also, folks were getting a bit weary of squeaky clean pop stars and Prince brought a certain edge and danger to it. I would imagine that Around The World in a Day would not have sold well after 1999, but I doubt Prince would have released an album like that after 1999.

He would have released something similar in vein to Purple Rain and promoted the hell out of it, I'm sure. And given the afore mentioned music climate, thirsty for new acts , Prince was likely going to experience a good level of success. He would have released a great pop album, done an incredible job performing at the Grammys and AMAs and generated enough buzz through controversial lyrics, etc. etc. to have obtained a hit record for sure.

Purple Rain was the imminent quick rise of Prince, and his rise in my opinion was indeed imminent. I think a more pivotal fork in the road for Prince's career was Diamonds & Pearls and the name change that followed.

I think he'd have remained free in the sense of being able to do what he wanted. Once he hit it big with Purple Rain everyone was on his back to see what was next and chomping at the bit to dissect it immediately. I think the pressure placed on him wouldn't have been as great. 1999 got a lot of radio airplay and the videos saw rotation on MTV but it didn't pigeonhole him with senseless "1999 comparisons" with everything album that came after it.

Produced by The DownLoad Society


Muture Audiences only.

who is Mikki James.

"Purple Rain," made a difference in the music world. I'm just happy it exists.

Tame said:

I'm with U, I think it had a big impact on music and culture
not only PR but ATWIAD produced sounds that many artist pulled into their own styles
the finger cymbols were a very classy addition

i really don't think Prince would have made it as big without something big like PR and in my opinion he only had a short period of time to do it, anything post 89/90's just didn't have what the 70's and 80's had to make mega stars like Prince Bruce Madonna & Michael Jackson

DesireeNevermind said:

I was a fan way before Purple Rain. His talent was clear, PR gave him an opportunity to display it to a mass audience. When you have this much talent, it would have been PR or something else, but he was going to be a star either way!

L0tusFl0w3r said:[quote]

DesireeNevermind said:

It could have sustained him much longer, it was actually that almost true to life PR film that gave people an image of UPTOWN

I believe the poor reception of UTCM & GB had to do with production and trying to be a bit too deep.

UTCM could have been a bigger film, everyone was crazy about it 2 come. The excitement around it was really high

1.Lack of band and 'people from Prince camp' like in PR made a difference
2. Firing the director and trying to replace a pro

I think those are the 2 biggest mistakes concerning UTCM

Graffiti Bridge just should not have been made especially as a (PR 2) it just didn't make sense even for hardcore fans. A lot of hard core fans like UTCM, a lot don't like GB

Prince career isn´t just a movie and album ... without PR ... we wouldn´t have had the opportunity to know great a artist