ahhhh what an idiot..
if this has already been posted, mods feel free to delete

In the 80's, Rick James asked Prince to open up the "Fire Up Tour." James states in his book, "The Confessions Of Rick James, Memoirs Of A Super Freak," that he had yet to meet Prince. The only thing he had heard about him was that he was shy. James had hoped this was false because if he was shy, he had no business being out on the road with him.

James said he walked through the backstage entrance, Prince was sitting on his group's drums playing some bullshit beat. James sat down and began playing some serious stuff. He said Prince looked over at him and got his little ass up and walked away.

James adds, "Prince was just starting out and the first time I saw Prince and his band open for me, I felt sorry for him. Here's this little dude wearing high heels, standing there in a trench coat. Then at the end of the set, he'd take off his trench coat and he'd be wearing little girl's bloomers. The guys in the audience booed him to death."

The following weeks of the tour weren't very different from the opening date. Whenever I was on stage I'd see Prince on the side of the stage just staring and watching everything I did, like a kid in school.

One day I walked into the auditorium, getting ready to go on and I heard the crowd chanting loudly. I went to check it out. Here's Prince doing my chants. Not only was he stalking the stage like me, he was doing my trademark funk sign, flipping the microphone and everything. The boy had stolen my whole show. I was pissed and so was my band. This went on night after night, every show I'd see more of my routine. It got to the point I couldn't do the stuff I had always done because Prince was doing it before I came on. It started to look like I was copying him.

Everyone knew what was happening, his management, my management. The atmosphere backstage was not improved by the fact that Prince's band members were not on good terms with my band and my guys wanted to kick their asses. Prince's musicians would stick their noses in the air and not even acknowledge the Stone City Band, even if they were all standing together, waiting for the elevator. Prince's group was a bunch of egotistical assholes who never even played on a record. The kid did it all, they were just hired players.


One day, things blew up and management called a meeting. I told Prince's manager, that if Prince did any more of my show he was off the tour. Finally, we all met in Prince's room, Prince, me and our bands. Prince's band was afraid, very afraid. Prince sat on the bed and hardly said a word. He acted like a little bitch while his band and mine patched up our differences.

Soon after this episode. There was a birthday party for me. Prince came, he was sitting at a table with some people not drinking. I walked up to him, grabbed him by the back of the hair and poured cognac down his throat. He spit it out like a little bitch and I laughed and walked away. I loved fucking with him like that.

I always felt our competition was healthy, although I was jealous when he started getting big, more than jealous, I was pissed, because here was this little short ego'd out fucker who I had a feeling didn't like people of his own race and wanted to be white and taller. While on the road, I never saw Prince hang out with black men or black women. In fact, his demeanor was like that of a short uppity white boy.

A few years later when James was performing at the Universal Amphitheater. The second night of the show, Rod Stewart and his wife Alana came to the show. James decided to have them sit in front row seats that belonged to Prince.

From the stage, I could see Prince's attempt to throw Rod and Alana out of the seats. Alana told Prince to kiss her ass. Then, during a performance with the Mary Jane Girls, James saw Prince being carried around the venue in his bodyguard's arms just to get attention.

After the show, when Prince saw Rick and Rod backstage, he jumped over the stairs and fled. Allegedly, Rod told Rick, "I hate that little prick." Rick was pissed and called Prince all kinds of little bitches. Rick said, "Had Prince not jumped over the stairs and ran, I swear I would have kicked his ass."

James heard later that Prince went to see Michael Jackson's concert and tried to disrupt it. When Michael allegedly found out that Prince was in the house, he came out badder than ever and Prince left the show before it was over.

Rick adds, "I always thought of Prince as a great player and a very innovative person but as far as himself as a person, he could use a good ghetto ass kicking."

The last thread has locked itself.

http://prince.org/msg/7/309788

I would doubt they ended up bitter rivals...I can see any musician's intimidation over Prince's skyrocketing career, especially at that time...

Rick James, God Bless him...Has to give in to the realization that so much of characteristic and Song expression has trickled down through the ages.

James Brown's inspiration is one example of apparent influence in many a performer's career.

As is Rick influential to some...Prince influential...Michael Jackson...and so on...This family affair of similarities will always be there out of respect beneath rival competition.

Mars23 said:

I doubt that this current thread will be better than this one ^^^ but one can always strive.

Prince vs Rick again

Bitter much?

Where's Charlie Murphy when u need him...

squirrelgrease said:

LOL idk which one was funnier,the rick james or the prince episode. Speaking of the Chappel show if u have the dvds theres a special feature when they interview Rick james and rick talks more shit about Prince. I read later that rick liked the musicology CD idk if thats true or not.

dance4me3121 said:

Yeah, I read that Rick said he dug the Musicology album too. He said something to the effect that P was keeping the funk alive. But yeah, I saw the Chappel special feature where Rick was clowning. It came across to me more like Rick was just fucking around with Prince and it wasn't as hard edged as it was in the 80's.

umm in my opinion I couldn't agree more with rick james

JesusFreak said:

[Edited 9/4/09 10:14am]