I remember reading in Word Up magazine that some DJ's on some US radio station said that he died or something like that, but the news spread and fans were calling in to ask where to send flowers and cards, but it turned out to be a joke and they apologized.

What was that all about? And how did you feel when it happened?

Prince, himself, went around saying, "Prince is dead" in 1995.

I thought it was stupid.

I thought it was a bunch of bullshit and didn't believe it.

Fast forward to 2010 and I'm really not so sure about that anymore.

It was 1993...

chocolate1 said:

It was 1993...

Ah, 35...so young.

I remember seeing an album in my Columbia House catalogue that also said Prince 1958-1993 but I knew he wasn't dead

and I remember music stations not writing his name down as Prince, it was a big WTF to me

Plus I would doodle the mj HIStory logo and prince symbol(and fail) in my notebooks that time, and remember someone calling him the symbol of shit

[Edited 8/4/10 9:47am]

It was 1993 - 2000 that "Prince" was dead.

I knew he wasn't dead. I never got the fever for thinking he had truly passed away. The news would have been filled with it had that happened. I knew about the name change early on, and when I started seeing "Prince is dead" or whatever - I knew exactly what he was doing.

The only thing that died in Prince was his ability to take responsibility for his own failures, and to see reality clearly. Those things never really did resurrect like his moniker did.

ernestsewell said:

It was 1993 - 2000 that "Prince" was dead.

I knew he wasn't dead. I never got the fever for thinking he had truly passed away. The news would have been filled with it had that happened. I knew about the name change early on, and when I started seeing "Prince is dead" or whatever - I knew exactly what he was doing.

The only thing that died in Prince was his ability to take responsibility for his own failures, and to see reality clearly. Those things never really did resurrect like his moniker did.

Dead on it.

Laughed and then watched Coronation Street

This whole sorry escapade is probably the low point in Prince's career, and it's a shame it happened. He had momentum commercially with 2 successful albums back to back, and he was hitting into an incredibly prolific period with plenty of strong material with great commercial potential. The Gold Experience should have been a massive album, but by the time it was released Prince had so damaged his career that it faded with barely a wave.

alphastreet said:

I remember bits and pieces of all this crap too, and I hated how he looked with Slave written on his face

alphastreet said:

I remember reading in Word Up magazine that some DJ's on some US radio station said that he died or something like that

Around the time the Come album was released in Aug 1994

I got a call from a friend... she said the radio on.. they said Prince is dead!

My first thought was... Why havent i heard this on TV?

my second thought.... I told my friend...

I bet i know what it is.. Maybe because on his new album it says 1958 -1993

As if hes dead... you know the name change....

So.... I turn on the local radio station.. what do i hear

"Ladies and gentlemen Prince is dead!"

(in my head i was if this is true.. how did he die.. what do u mean he is dead?)

I knew it was a hoax

ernestsewell said:

The only thing that died in Prince was his ability to take responsibility for his own failures, and to see reality clearly.

Care to give some evidence of Prince ever having done these things?

skywalker said:

ernestsewell said:

The only thing that died in Prince was his ability to take responsibility for his own failures, and to see reality clearly.

Care to give some evidence of Prince ever having done these things?

Beat me to it.

But I don't expect geniuses to see reality clearly. I think that in combination with their creative thinking and innovative work is what makes them brilliant

alphastreet said:

I remember reading in Word Up magazine that some DJ's on some US radio station said that he died or something like that, but the news spread and fans were calling in to ask where to send flowers and cards, but it turned out to be a joke and they apologized.

What was that all about? And how did you feel when it happened?

i felt something like this:

Genesia said:

Prince, himself, went around saying, "Prince is dead" in 1995.

I thought it was stupid.

Agreed, and the slave on his cheek followed. It was all 2 much

alphastreet said:

I remember bits and pieces of all this crap too, and I hated how he looked with Slave written on his face

It was '93 and it was too fucking much.

I couldn't figure the motherfucker out. I knew he was battling label problems but I thought that was too much.

I thought it'd be "better" once he did "return" to his name in 2000 but alas it wasn't.

Did sweet fuck all.

Coz. Emmmm lemme see.

HE DIDN"T DIE

skywalker said:

ernestsewell said:

The only thing that died in Prince was his ability to take responsibility for his own failures, and to see reality clearly.

Care to give some evidence of Prince ever having done these things?

Let's start with the fact that Prince signed contracts and extensions of said contracts for 15 years - and, suddenly, when he no longer liked the terms of a contract he had signed willingly, it was all Warner Brothers' fault.

The guy made untold millions of dollars in that time and was given free rein (and a ton of cash) for a lot of side projects that never put a dime in WB's pocket. And, yet - he's a slave.

Let's all shed a tear for poor Prince-y.

Genesia said:

skywalker said:

Care to give some evidence of Prince ever having done these things?

Let's start with the fact that Prince signed contracts and extensions of said contracts for 15 years - and, suddenly, when he no longer liked the terms of a contract he had signed willingly, it was all Warner Brothers' fault.

The guy made untold millions of dollars in that time and was given free rein (and a ton of cash) for a lot of side projects that never put a dime in WB's pocket. And, yet - he's a slave.

Let's all shed a tear for poor Prince-y.

there is a long list of musicians that have signed contracts only to later see them as a form of bondage as time went on. Prince simply matured as a human being and no longer wanted to treated as someones "possession" or "child" or dare I say "slave". Maybe he should have handled it differently but he was probably desperate to regain control of his own destiny. None of us know all that went on between Prince and the "suits". So be cautious with the judgment.

[Edited 8/4/10 12:09pm]

^ But that's why it's always important to have friends around who are close enough to know when shit doesn't look good. I'm sure Prince did and ignored it anyway and he paid the price for it. Oh well.

tricky99 said:

Genesia said:

Let's start with the fact that Prince signed contracts and extensions of said contracts for 15 years - and, suddenly, when he no longer liked the terms of a contract he had signed willingly, it was all Warner Brothers' fault.

The guy made untold millions of dollars in that time and was given free rein (and a ton of cash) for a lot of side projects that never put a dime in WB's pocket. And, yet - he's a slave.

Let's all shed a tear for poor Prince-y.

there is a long list of musicians that have signed contracts only to later see them as a form of bondage as time went on. Prince simply matured as a human being and no longer wanted to treated as someones "possession" or "child" or dare I say "slave". Maybe he should have handled it differently but he was probably desperate to regain control of his own destiny. None of us know all that went on between Prince and the "suits". So be cautious with the judgment.

The fact that he signed the contracts is all I need to know. He never alleged that Warner Brothers acted in violation of what he, himself, signed (at least, not to my knowledge) - only that he no longer found the terms to his liking. And yet, he would take no responsibility for a lack of foresight.

Timmy84 said:

^ But that's why it's always important to have friends around who are close enough to know when shit doesn't look good. I'm sure Prince did and ignored it anyway and he paid the price for it. Oh well.

But that's what makes Prince who he is. He marches to the beat of his own drum. And for that he has been hailed and denigrated. Each of us have a journey and there are always potholes. I assume your road has been bumpy too.

Genesia said:

tricky99 said:

there is a long list of musicians that have signed contracts only to later see them as a form of bondage as time went on. Prince simply matured as a human being and no longer wanted to treated as someones "possession" or "child" or dare I say "slave". Maybe he should have handled it differently but he was probably desperate to regain control of his own destiny. None of us know all that went on between Prince and the "suits". So be cautious with the judgment.

The fact that he signed the contracts is all I need to know. He never alleged that Warner Brothers acted in violation of what he, himself, signed (at least, not to my knowledge) - only that he no longer found the terms to his liking. And yet, he would take no responsibility for a lack of foresight.

That's really not true because within many songs he has talked about coming to the realization about the industry. We all grow and learn. It happens in the music industry all the time.

I just thought he'd gone nuts. The media at the time didn't do a good job of explaining WHY he was trying to get out of his contract. Or if you ask me they didn't think he had a good enuff reason for being so bitchy about the contract that HE signed. But I'd come to expect that kind of erratic eccentricity from these creative types. I'd totally excused his behavior since in my mind he could DO what he wanted.

[Edited 8/4/10 12:27pm]

tricky99 said:

Genesia said:

The fact that he signed the contracts is all I need to know. He never alleged that Warner Brothers acted in violation of what he, himself, signed (at least, not to my knowledge) - only that he no longer found the terms to his liking. And yet, he would take no responsibility for a lack of foresight.

That's really not true because within many songs he has talked about coming to the realization about the industry. We all grow and learn. It happens in the music industry all the time.

Then he should have just taken his lumps, instead of being a punkass bitch about it.

tricky99 said:

Timmy84 said:

^ But that's why it's always important to have friends around who are close enough to know when shit doesn't look good. I'm sure Prince did and ignored it anyway and he paid the price for it. Oh well.

But that's what makes Prince who he is. He marches to the beat of his own drum. And for that he has been hailed and denigrated. Each of us have a journey and there are always potholes. I assume your road has been bumpy too.

I guess...