(I mention MJ here, not sure if it needs to be moved to another forum? Excuse me if it does...I mention him for reference, not necessarily to create discussion on soley him..

I wasn't going to do this post, but I'm very curious as to what others might think about Prince and his attitude.

I recently had a discussion with my Girl about Prince, and while she praises him for his talents, and genius, she always finds the need to mention, his attitude in that she feels it makes others ignore his talents.

The Descriptions of being: Cocky, Self-Absorbed, Over Protective, Disrespectful, Selfish, and overall arrogant always finds its way in his description. These negative traits he possesses/possesed (Depends on how YOU look at it) always seem to overthrow her perception of Prince.

While Prince can be all of these things, and more to fans and others; I don't necessarily think they're major contributors as to why many people won't pay attention to his talents.

She mentioned Michael Jackson (Another Favorite Artist of ours) How Michael obviously was more of a respectful individual, who always showed humility, and appreciation to everyone, and how that is what made him so great apart from his great music. Which is true.

While that is true, my argument is that Prince has been this way ever since he arrived on the scene. (NOT that licenses disrespec to others, on his behalf) But Prince appears to have always been more sheltered, and to himself than Michael. He has never been "Accessible" like MJ has. He's done interviews, but they have always focused primarily on the music and sometimes of course he would include love, etc.

However, it's clear Prince lives in his world sometimes, and he much rather stay there.. Prince indeed has shown through his behavior on occasions, that he is not really involved in the affairs of anything, unless it includes his music and God. IMO

What I want to know, is; do you think his attitude has made people not pay much attention to what he has done over years? Is his arrogance, and confident stride too much for the masses?

I personally feel ignoring his personality is the best option, since Prince is not one to sign autographs or want pictures, etc..What's the point in trying to create that bond when he doesn't want that? I admire Prince for being the way he is, and many things are not in my favor that he does, as for those things I keep them away from me, and not let them overthrow what made me respect him in the first place. THE MUSIC.

I always like to break it down to many other denominators, because this can reach many results if we look at it from the many angels that exist in the nature of his creativity.

SO feel free to break down your reasons....

I'm just curious as to why people really can't stand his attitude, and why that makes one feel that person in not worth thier time?

At the end of the day; Artists, actors, etc...are just cartoon characters, as much as we are bonded through their music and art, we are not their personal friends and they are nothing more than a projected image of escapism. To me anyways...lol

Thanks In Advance!

EyeJester7 said:

(She mentioned Michael Jackson (Another Favorite Artist of ours) How Michael obviously was more of a respectful individual, who always showed humility, and appreciation to everyone,

The biggest myth of them all.

MJ was Accessible? Never noticed that.

And Prince, I think it's not the attitude that puts people off, but the way he looks and dresses.

But you're right, it's all an imagine. Personality never really made me listen the somebody's music.

I was a big Prince fan, but what he does in private never really interested me that much. I'm a fan of his music.

And you know, the most creative people are mostly big assholes

And I'm still a fan of Prince. His music was a part of my soundtrack. In this case, I don't care that he appears to be an arrogant asshole. Hell so was Marvin (at times)!

No, I don't think it's because of that.

I think it's because people think is just too weird, his clothes, his music , etc.

We don't know Prince personally, I don't want to judge him. Nobody that I don't personally know.

Of course a lot of people do that, but I don't think it's because of his attitude tbh.

His flamboyant dress sense and his way of presenting himself has turned some folks off. Believe me if it was just his attitude, people would flock to him even more. That didn't stop Bob Dylan or John Lennon and they were quite blunt about themselves.

EyeJester7 said:

What I want to know, is; do you think his attitude has made people not pay much attention to what he has done over years? Is his arrogance, and confident stride too much for the masses?

The only people who care about his attitude etc are those involved with Prince fan sites and in the past, A.M.P. The rest of the general public that make up 95% of his audience could give a damn, dont care, dont know, or dont show about whats goin on in the purple hood.

robertlove said:

MJ was Accessible? Never noticed that.

And Prince, I think it's not the attitude that puts people off, but the way he looks and dresses.

But you're right, it's all an imagine. Personality never really made me listen the somebody's music.

I was a big Prince fan, but what he does in private never really interested me that much. I'm a fan of his music.

And you know, the most creative people are mostly big assholes

Thanks for the comment!

When I say he was accessible, I mean he allowed fans to Never-land, and always signed autographs whenever people would ask. Of course not all the time, but you know he never minded people coming to him. Eye can see how it was about how he dresses as well..Maybe still over the top for people, but NOW people should understand it well.

YES! Indeed, Like Beethoven and many of the greats! Haha. I am use to it now! Haha

rdhull said:

EyeJester7 said:

What I want to know, is; do you think his attitude has made people not pay much attention to what he has done over years? Is his arrogance, and confident stride too much for the masses?

The only people who care about his attitude etc are those involved with Prince fan sites and in the past, A.M.P. The rest of the general public that make up 95% of his audience could give a damn, dont care, dont know, or dont show about whats goin on in the purple hood.

TRUE! TRUE! I like that, you pretty much summarized how I see it too. I really don't think people are that concerned on what goes on in his stash.

Timmy84 said:

His flamboyant dress sense and his way of presenting himself has turned some folks off. Believe me if it was just his attitude, people would flock to him even more. That didn't stop Bob Dylan or John Lennon and they were quite blunt about themselves.

I like this comparison, I often forget about people like Bob Dylan, and Lennon, they were very much involved in their own thing, and people still loved it. Now, that it's Prince, my girl seem to be INTOLERANT of it. Haha But she sure is tolerate of Lennon, and Dylan. lol Presentation likely has a lot to with it, but seeing as Prince is not as flamboyant anymore, I wonder what it could be now? Here and there he might pop out with something extravagant, but..Maybe people still can't get over the heels. lol

Timmy84 said:

And I'm still a fan of Prince. His music was a part of my soundtrack. In this case, I don't care that he appears to be an arrogant asshole. Hell so was Marvin (at times)!

You're right! Who cares! I tend to seperate the music from the personal life. People are just who they are, as I said it doesn't license thier disrespectful activity, but if someone is that distracted by his attitude, that sounds like a personal problem. Haha

xLiberiangirl said:

No, I don't think it's because of that.

I think it's because people think is just too weird, his clothes, his music , etc.

We don't know Prince personally, I don't want to judge him. Nobody that I don't personally know.

Of course a lot of people do that, but I don't think it's because of his attitude tbh.

People ain't ready for Prince, but when the sad day comes when he passes, it will be a NEW cult of following all over again. Haha. It takes a challenge to listen to him, and when you pass the test, you just don't know what to expect next, and I think that's awesome! I like you feel the same. Thanks for the comment!

-

I'm not sure if people who are not real fans of Prince know that he actually still exists. If his names comes up certain people immediately think about the Purple Rain era.

The people who were not fans of his when he was considered relevant/extremely popular were probably turned off by his flamboyance as already stated. I know some guys were. God forbid someone know they actually liked Prince!!!

My eldest brother was one of the few who didn't care. He was a fan and proud of it! Funny thing is he's a tall dude - 6'2!!!! ....That's funny to me for some reason.

He's the one that introduced me to Prince's music.

-

Honestly the negative reports are mostly hearsay from his former bandmates, if you really think about it. And most of them are usually just upset because they feel entitled to a bigger share of whatever they want from him. He seems to keep to himself, to the point that even Hollywood doesn't know much about him which is probably why it's so easy for his bandmates to talk smack about him...they know he won't respond in the media.

My opinion of him is that he's a normal dude who gets pissed when people 1) fawn over him/expect him to be the second coming of the Lord and 2) expect special treatment from him. I've also noticed that geniuses generally get upset at people when they aren't able to do things as easily as they do. What you see is most likely what you get.

nursev said:

Hahaahaha...That's exactly the look he probably has while reading this? Like does it matter? Haha

RoseDuchess12 said:

Honestly the negative reports are mostly hearsay from his former bandmates, if you really think about it. And most of them are usually just upset because they feel entitled to a bigger share of whatever they want from him. He seems to keep to himself, to the point that even Hollywood doesn't know much about him which is probably why it's so easy for his bandmates to talk smack about him...they know he won't respond in the media.

My opinion of him is that he's a normal dude who gets pissed when people 1) fawn over him/expect him to be the second coming of the Lord and 2) expect special treatment from him. I've also noticed that geniuses generally get upset at people when they aren't able to do things as easily as they do. What you see is most likely what you get.

Thanks for the feedback. Eye can see how many are upset simply for many of the reasons you pointed out. I never looked at it like that, but I understand that, We shouldn't expect anyone to be more than what they already deliver. For God sakes, no one should think anyone is God or anything of that nature. That's scary! Haha At the end of the day, they are still human beings.

Shaolin325 said:

-

I'm not sure if people who are not real fans of Prince know that he actually still exists. If his names comes up certain people immediately think about the Purple Rain era.

The people who were not fans of his when he was considered relevant/extremely popular were probably turned off by his flamboyance as already stated. I know some guys were. God forbid someone know they actually liked Prince!!!

My eldest brother was one of the few who didn't care. He was a fan and proud of it! Funny thing is he's a tall dude - 6'2!!!! ....That's funny to me for some reason.

He's the one that introduced me to Prince's music.

-

I say like you, my girl & I always says the same thing. They always resort to Purple Rain, and that is the only BIG thought that remains. It's cool, that your brother didn't care and was proud of it. Being as tall as he was, that had nothing to do with the strength of his heart and that's really cool!

interesting question

btw, nurse, that photo is PERFECT, love it

I don't know, that's a good question...

I'm led to believe, for the most part, that true geniuses aren't appreciated until they'd passed into the great beyond or whatever.

I could be wrong, though.

with Van Gough, it was certainly the case, but I think Mozart was greatly appreciated while he was alive. I only bring up Mozart because I made a direct comparison between him and Prince when I saw [parts of] Purple Rain the first time.

I'm not going to deny that Prince is a genius of a musician. He was one of the innovative and creative individuals to make it big in the industry.

I think his lack of commercial success regarding his entire career had a great deal to do with lack of album promotion.

The die-hards definitely knew what was going on, but only so many people can make an artist that successful.

Taking MJ into account... obviously I'm too little too late to really appreciate him the way the majority of the world has over the course of his life... I'd only just started to see how much of a genius he was, how talented he was and just why he's been dubbed "the greatest entertainer of all time."

I consider the success of my favorite musicians/artists through the following criteria:

Word of mouth: you could have a conservation about them and everyone else gives them the same acclaim that you do. like the older artists that have been around for a while, people can look back fondly on them, saying they had a great time at this concert or this album meant a great deal to them.

Prince only has a small part of that success because most of the time, he never comes up and when he does, half the people don't quite get him and the other half understands his talents. That's just my personal experience.

Airplay on the radio: not that MJ had much success with this. he and Prince have in common the fact that only their 80's tracks get play on mainstream radio, if at all.

In this day and age, despite iTunes and illegal downloading via Internet, I still believe radio to be the number one thing when it comes to deciding which artists to check into. Between who gets a lot of airtime, has a couple good singles circulating. Usually I will wait a couple singles until I decide on a new artist, but with everyone else, if I'm crazy enough about them, I'll buy their next album without the need of the radio.

I can't be sure how much a role it played, but I think the fact Prince only has a couple of songs on the radio, if at all, kinda works against him becoming world-reowned for his talents except in those small circles formed by his fans/fams/supporters/admirers

The greatest fault in Prince's lack of success as to what it could be potentially... I think is the lack of promotion of music through singles, he doesn't tour very often and even then, there are no gurantees if he'll go through with it or not... most in part because he separated from his record label because they were preventing him from oversaturating the market with his music, when he was capable of churning out roughly an album a day

People can go on and on about the lack of vision of his music since the record label dispute and the fact he never did put out as much music as he intended to. That's not my issue at point here because for the most part, I don't mind so much that there's nothing as spectuclar as what he came out with in the 80's. that's kinda unavoidable and I'd accepted that

I'm under the impression that Prince often plays the part of the reclusive genius musician who only surfaces to promote a new project and there's been a huge gap of time since the last time. Those types of artists don't really get a lot of heresay about them to stimulate record sales (let alone you're able to find any records other than Purple Rain and TRC), so aside from being known as the mysterious musical genius, it doesn't really get you anywhere.

And yeah, as positive as I try to be about Prince, I've had a hard time of that lately wanting to listen to him because there is so little going on... and I guess in a short amount of time, I burned out by peaking too fast too soon in my enjoyment of his work. I do think he has a certain arrogance about him that has me saying to myself "being a musical genius can only get you so far" and "that doesn't excuse you from being a person who lacks humility"

I can just see the replies now. when I frequented this site, I used to promote what I thought was great about Prince and just ignore the negatives so much for that

at last my blog has gotten new life and is being put to good use amidst this slump I'd been in for a little over a year

They say most geniuses are enigmatic, i think Prince is isolated and arkward, due 2 his personality. He doesnt do it delibrately its just who he is.

Now He has embraced jehovah, he has done everytin he can 2 be faithful and good blooded. He has sacrificed his carrer greatly, both finanicialy & commercialy, and that was when he refused 2 perform any sexual type songs.

But he did it all for God. Hes always donated 2 charitys, and especially black ones in all his carrer. People said it wouldnt last his religion, but it did. He is serious and honest.

Good luck 4 2012.

Sam 8)

sambluedolphin said:

They say most geniuses are enigmatic, i think Prince is isolated and arkward, due 2 his personality. He doesnt do it delibrately its just who he is.

Now He has embraced jehovah, he has done everytin he can 2 be faithful and good blooded. He has sacrificed his carrer greatly, both finanicialy & commercialy, and that was when he refused 2 perform any sexual type songs.

But he did it all for God. Hes always donated 2 charitys, and especially black ones in all his carrer. People said it wouldnt last his religion, but it did. He is serious and honest.

Good luck 4 2012.

Sam 8)

I like this perspective of it. Thank you!
I think he's trying to meet a standard that would make people feel warm about themselves with him. He's always embraced God as early as the 80's, however now he belongs to an organization that has allowed him to become more organized. Which can be good and bad, but it's clear sometimes he stills struggles with control. Mainly control of his image. I only say that because when he is not given as much control, he seems to get out of it a bit. You hear many stories from everybody always different from someone else, but I DEFINITELY think he has relaxed a great deal from how it used to be. BUT it's not like he did not have genius to back it up, while he may have a ego, and says this and that..THE GUYS IS A GENIUS..lol

DreamyPopRoyalty said:

interesting question

btw, nurse, that photo is PERFECT, love it

I don't know, that's a good question...

I'm led to believe, for the most part, that true geniuses aren't appreciated until they'd passed into the great beyond or whatever.

I could be wrong, though.

with Van Gough, it was certainly the case, but I think Mozart was greatly appreciated while he was alive. I only bring up Mozart because I made a direct comparison between him and Prince when I saw [parts of] Purple Rain the first time.

I'm not going to deny that Prince is a genius of a musician. He was one of the innovative and creative individuals to make it big in the industry.

I think his lack of commercial success regarding his entire career had a great deal to do with lack of album promotion.

The die-hards definitely knew what was going on, but only so many people can make an artist that successful.

Taking MJ into account... obviously I'm too little too late to really appreciate him the way the majority of the world has over the course of his life... I'd only just started to see how much of a genius he was, how talented he was and just why he's been dubbed "the greatest entertainer of all time."

I consider the success of my favorite musicians/artists through the following criteria:

Word of mouth: you could have a conservation about them and everyone else gives them the same acclaim that you do. like the older artists that have been around for a while, people can look back fondly on them, saying they had a great time at this concert or this album meant a great deal to them.

Prince only has a small part of that success because most of the time, he never comes up and when he does, half the people don't quite get him and the other half understands his talents. That's just my personal experience.

Airplay on the radio: not that MJ had much success with this. he and Prince have in common the fact that only their 80's tracks get play on mainstream radio, if at all.

In this day and age, despite iTunes and illegal downloading via Internet, I still believe radio to be the number one thing when it comes to deciding which artists to check into. Between who gets a lot of airtime, has a couple good singles circulating. Usually I will wait a couple singles until I decide on a new artist, but with everyone else, if I'm crazy enough about them, I'll buy their next album without the need of the radio.

I can't be sure how much a role it played, but I think the fact Prince only has a couple of songs on the radio, if at all, kinda works against him becoming world-reowned for his talents except in those small circles formed by his fans/fams/supporters/admirers

The greatest fault in Prince's lack of success as to what it could be potentially... I think is the lack of promotion of music through singles, he doesn't tour very often and even then, there are no gurantees if he'll go through with it or not... most in part because he separated from his record label because they were preventing him from oversaturating the market with his music, when he was capable of churning out roughly an album a day

People can go on and on about the lack of vision of his music since the record label dispute and the fact he never did put out as much music as he intended to. That's not my issue at point here because for the most part, I don't mind so much that there's nothing as spectuclar as what he came out with in the 80's. that's kinda unavoidable and I'd accepted that

I'm under the impression that Prince often plays the part of the reclusive genius musician who only surfaces to promote a new project and there's been a huge gap of time since the last time. Those types of artists don't really get a lot of heresay about them to stimulate record sales (let alone you're able to find any records other than Purple Rain and TRC), so aside from being known as the mysterious musical genius, it doesn't really get you anywhere.

And yeah, as positive as I try to be about Prince, I've had a hard time of that lately wanting to listen to him because there is so little going on... and I guess in a short amount of time, I burned out by peaking too fast too soon in my enjoyment of his work. I do think he has a certain arrogance about him that has me saying to myself "being a musical genius can only get you so far" and "that doesn't excuse you from being a person who lacks humility"

I can just see the replies now. when I frequented this site, I used to promote what I thought was great about Prince and just ignore the negatives so much for that

at last my blog has gotten new life and is being put to good use amidst this slump I'd been in for a little over a year

Thanks for your reply, I imagine Prince and all he does is different from someone like yourself who has a rich history for you. I believe the same as you in that the reasons why he is not as successful is the pace he traveled, as well as radio play, so many factors with Prince.

Humility is still in order, regardless of the situation. If you don't mind where is your blog? I like following different blogs, especially if they speak to my curiosity. Your post is very informative and I wouldn't mind hearing more.

EyeJester7 said:

sambluedolphin said:

They say most geniuses are enigmatic, i think Prince is isolated and arkward, due 2 his personality. He doesnt do it delibrately its just who he is.

Now He has embraced jehovah, he has done everytin he can 2 be faithful and good blooded. He has sacrificed his carrer greatly, both finanicialy & commercialy, and that was when he refused 2 perform any sexual type songs.

But he did it all for God. Hes always donated 2 charitys, and especially black ones in all his carrer. People said it wouldnt last his religion, but it did. He is serious and honest.

Good luck 4 2012.

Sam 8)

I like this perspective of it. Thank you!
I think he's trying to meet a standard that would make people feel warm about themselves with him. He's always embraced God as early as the 80's, however now he belongs to an organization that has allowed him to become more organized. Which can be good and bad, but it's clear sometimes he stills struggles with control. Mainly control of his image. I only say that because when he is not given as much control, he seems to get out of it a bit. You hear many stories from everybody always different from someone else, but I DEFINITELY think he has relaxed a great deal from how it used to be. BUT it's not like he did not have genius to back it up, while he may have a ego, and says this and that..THE GUYS IS A GENIUS..lol

Thanks i agree. People are more connected with him as ever. Ur exactly right, in 80s at his peak he embraced God more than anythin else, people miss this and confuse it and only concentrate on the sexual part. ur right again, when i saw saw him this year in Ireland, he for the first time looked liked he was enjoying himself, he was smiling all the time, connecting and embracing the crowd, he came on stage takin pictures with a camera, poking fun at the crowd, who also had cameras. Prince seems 2 have a more relaxed attitude.

Sam 8)

Me myself personally, I couldn't give two squirts of piss about Prince's attitude. The ONLY thing that matters to me is the performances and, more importantly, the music.

Just, unfortunately, for most people, the attitude DOES reflect a lot.

EyeJester7 said:

DreamyPopRoyalty said:

And yeah, as positive as I try to be about Prince, I've had a hard time of that lately wanting to listen to him because there is so little going on... and I guess in a short amount of time, I burned out by peaking too fast too soon in my enjoyment of his work. I do think he has a certain arrogance about him that has me saying to myself "being a musical genius can only get you so far" and "that doesn't excuse you from being a person who lacks humility"

I can just see the replies now. when I frequented this site, I used to promote what I thought was great about Prince and just ignore the negatives so much for that

at last my blog has gotten new life and is being put to good use amidst this slump I'd been in for a little over a year

Thanks for your reply, I imagine Prince and all he does is different from someone like yourself who has a rich history for you. I believe the same as you in that the reasons why he is not as successful is the pace he traveled, as well as radio play, so many factors with Prince.

Humility is still in order, regardless of the situation. If you don't mind where is your blog? I like following different blogs, especially if they speak to my curiosity. Your post is very informative and I wouldn't mind hearing more.

I'm sure somewhere on my u/n profile, I have the address, but I'll post it again. I don't think I'd done any major Prince posts in a while, it's been at least a month or two. I started it 4 years ago (will be 5 in March or April, I forget) when I first came here and found I wanted to post more than people were willing to read/reply to or whatever.

Anyway, here's the address and hopefully you find something in it that's worth returning to every now and then

http://www.xanga.com/DreamyPopRoyalty

EyeJester7 said:

I recently had a discussion with my Girl about Prince, and while she praises him for his talents, and genius, she always finds the need to mention, his attitude in that she feels it makes others ignore his talents.

The Descriptions of being: Cocky, Self-Absorbed, Over Protective, Disrespectful, Selfish, and overall arrogant always finds its way in his description. These negative traits he possesses/possesed (Depends on how YOU look at it) always seem to overthrow her perception of Prince.

While Prince can be all of these things, and more to fans and others; I don't necessarily think they're major contributors as to why many people won't pay attention to his talents.

She mentioned Michael Jackson (Another Favorite Artist of ours) How Michael obviously was more of a respectful individual, who always showed humility, and appreciation to everyone, and how that is what made him so great apart from his great music. Which is true.

While that is true, my argument is that Prince has been this way ever since he arrived on the scene. (NOT that licenses disrespec to others, on his behalf) But Prince appears to have always been more sheltered, and to himself than Michael. He has never been "Accessible" like MJ has. He's done interviews, but they have always focused primarily on the music and sometimes of course he would include love, etc.

However, it's clear Prince lives in his world sometimes, and he much rather stay there.. Prince indeed has shown through his behavior on occasions, that he is not really involved in the affairs of anything, unless it includes his music and God. IMO

What I want to know, is; do you think his attitude has made people not pay much attention to what he has done over years? Is his arrogance, and confident stride too much for the masses?

I personally feel ignoring his personality is the best option, since Prince is not one to sign autographs or want pictures, etc..What's the point in trying to create that bond when he doesn't want that? I admire Prince for being the way he is, and many things are not in my favor that he does, as for those things I keep them away from me, and not let them overthrow what made me respect him in the first place. THE MUSIC.

Good post EyeJester7.

I don't know EyeJester, as far as how he is on a personal level, well, I don't know how a fan can draw that conclusion about any artist's personality off-stage, unless they really know that artist on a very, personal level. As far as his stage presence from his early days, in the beginning of his career, he projected a shy, yet bold and mysterious persona, leaving many fans either bewildered/in awe or mesmerized by his performance(s). He mentally seduced his fans with his music and stage performances, and still does, leaving many of his fans in awe, especially many first-timers, wanting to return to a see him perform again.

He seems to reach out to other, known and unknown artists by inspiring and assisting them with their music, not to mention, giving them their own moment to shine, during many of his shows. He plays covers of other known artists' from back in the day, who either no longer perform or tour, etc., That doesn't sound like someone cocky, selfish, has a bad attitude, self-absorbed as a musician/artist, at least not how he displays himself as a musician/artist to other musicians/artists.

In comparison to MJ, I feel MJ was more sheltered, because of the way he was raised, and how those around him were very, over-protective of him, aside from his siblings. MJ often wore masks out in public, and seemed to be more worried about how he appeared to the public/fans (i.e., the change of his physical appearance) while Prince had more of a bold, rebel-like- not-a-follower type of persona, and didn't seem to have a problem presenting himself as he wanted to be, regardless of any criticism, questionablity from the public/fans,and I think besides Prince's music, his mesmerizing, stage persona is what kept many of his fans interests.

As the years passed, it seems Prince opened-up moreso than back in the day to fans though, He has made many attempts to reach out and have small talk with some of his fans, even if it's just to say hello, joke around or tease them, have many fans on stage dancing, while he's performing, ask them how they like a show, etc.

All this of course based on many experiences told by many fans. So I can't really say, he seems to be one with a 'cocky attitude' or 'self-absorbed/selfish'. He's been known to donate to many charities, including educational institutions, and that doesn't sound like something a selfish person would do or even care about. I would also believe any musician/artist, being over-protective with their image/music is their right, because for most their music is their livelihood, and I'm sure most musicians/artists want to get paid for their work.

Also, often times, when a celebrity is the type who doesn't keep himself in the limelight or very accessible, doesn't do a lot of interviews/photo-ops, can often be mistaken for having a cocky attitude. Just my two cents.

[Edited 1/2/12 14:32pm]

2elijah said:

EyeJester7 said:

I recently had a discussion with my Girl about Prince, and while she praises him for his talents, and genius, she always finds the need to mention, his attitude in that she feels it makes others ignore his talents.

The Descriptions of being: Cocky, Self-Absorbed, Over Protective, Disrespectful, Selfish, and overall arrogant always finds its way in his description. These negative traits he possesses/possesed (Depends on how YOU look at it) always seem to overthrow her perception of Prince.

While Prince can be all of these things, and more to fans and others; I don't necessarily think they're major contributors as to why many people won't pay attention to his talents.

She mentioned Michael Jackson (Another Favorite Artist of ours) How Michael obviously was more of a respectful individual, who always showed humility, and appreciation to everyone, and how that is what made him so great apart from his great music. Which is true.

While that is true, my argument is that Prince has been this way ever since he arrived on the scene. (NOT that licenses disrespec to others, on his behalf) But Prince appears to have always been more sheltered, and to himself than Michael. He has never been "Accessible" like MJ has. He's done interviews, but they have always focused primarily on the music and sometimes of course he would include love, etc.

However, it's clear Prince lives in his world sometimes, and he much rather stay there.. Prince indeed has shown through his behavior on occasions, that he is not really involved in the affairs of anything, unless it includes his music and God. IMO

What I want to know, is; do you think his attitude has made people not pay much attention to what he has done over years? Is his arrogance, and confident stride too much for the masses?

I personally feel ignoring his personality is the best option, since Prince is not one to sign autographs or want pictures, etc..What's the point in trying to create that bond when he doesn't want that? I admire Prince for being the way he is, and many things are not in my favor that he does, as for those things I keep them away from me, and not let them overthrow what made me respect him in the first place. THE MUSIC.

Good post EyeJester7.

I don't know EyeJester, as far as how he is on a personal level, well, I don't know how a fan can draw that conclusion about any artist's personality off-stage, unless they really know that artist on a very, personal level. As far as his stage presence from his early days, in the beginning of his career, he projected a shy, yet bold and mysterious persona, leaving many fans either bewildered/in awe or mesmerized by his performance(s). He mentally seduced his fans with his music and stage performances, and still does, leaving many of his fans in awe, especially many first-timers, wanting to return to a see him perform again.

He seems to reach out to other, known and unknown artists by inspiring and assisting them with their music, not to mention, giving them their own moment to shine, during many of his shows. He plays covers of other known artists' from back in the day, who either no longer perform or tour, etc., That doesn't sound like someone cocky, selfish, has a bad attitude, self-absorbed as a musician/artist, at least not how he displays himself as a musician/artist to other musicians/artists.

In comparison to MJ, I feel MJ was more sheltered, because of the way he was raised, and how those around him were very, over-protective of him, aside from his siblings. MJ often wore masks out in public, and seemed to be more worried about how he appeared to the public/fans (i.e., the change of his physical appearance) while Prince had more of a bold, rebel-like- not-a-follower type of persona, and didn't seem to have a problem presenting himself as he wanted to be, regardless of any criticism, questionablity from the public/fans,and I think besides Prince's music, his mesmerizing, stage persona is what kept many of his fans interests.

As the years passed, it seems Prince opened-up moreso than back in the day to fans though, He has made many attempts to reach out and have small talk with some of his fans, even if it's just to say hello, joke around or tease them, have many fans on stage dancing, while he's performing, ask them how they like a show, etc.

All this of course based on many experiences told by many fans. So I can't really say, he seems to be one with a 'cocky attitude' or 'self-absorbed/selfish'. He's been known to donate to many charities, including educational institutions, and that doesn't sound like something a selfish person would do or even care about. I would also believe any musician/artist, being over-protective with their image/music is their right, because for most their music is their livelihood, and I'm sure most musicians/artists want to get paid for their work.

Also, often times, when a celebrity is the type who doesn't keep himself in the limelight or very accessible, doesn't do a lot of interviews/photo-ops, can often be mistaken for having a cocky attitude. Just my two cents.

[Edited 1/2/12 14:32pm]

This is a perfect POST! I enjoyed your findings, I agree with you! I like the break down, how in another light, MJ was the more shy one in public. I never remember Prince wearing anything on him, unless it was the TORA TORA Phase, or simply him acting in his persona. Haha.

I have yet to see Prince live, but I think I will be one of those awesome moments, where I can experience what many have. Ironically, my girlfriend saw him live, and she still praises it as one of the best performances she ever experienced. She even claims him to be the grestest performance with a energy unparalleled to anything else.

So its clear he is not as people make him to be. I really don't think Prince is that into himself. He has a HIStory, but it seems to be told by the wrong person. Everyone who talks about him now recently always speaks to his gift as a person, so I believe like you. Thanks for the summary! You added more than two cents. A WHOLE LOT OF SENSE! I will keep those things in my mind in mention next time this is brought up! Much love!

rdhull said:

EyeJester7 said:

What I want to know, is; do you think his attitude has made people not pay much attention to what he has done over years? Is his arrogance, and confident stride too much for the masses?

The only people who care about his attitude etc are those involved with Prince fan sites and in the past, A.M.P. The rest of the general public that make up 95% of his audience could give a damn, dont care, dont know, or dont show about whats goin on in the purple hood.

LMAO at you quoting Doughboy. You's a damn fool!

EyeJester7 said:

She mentioned Michael Jackson (Another Favorite Artist of ours) How Michael obviously was more of a respectful individual, who always showed humility, and appreciation to everyone, and how that is what made him so great apart from his great music. Which is true.

Like abusing little boys or what ???