Edit - langebleu - moderator
Source: Chicago Tribune, Greg Kot, Music Critic September 20, 2012
Link: http://articles.chicagotr...ommy-james

Part I thread: http://prince.org/msg/7/387509

Now the music industry is in such a chaotic state of transition that he doesn't see much point in releasing the music he records "all the time" at Paisley Park.

Once upon a time, new Prince albums flowed like water, particularly once he dropped out of the major-label system in the mid-'90s. In both 2003 and '04, he released three albums each year through various channels. But he hasn't released any new albums since 2010.

The artist who pioneered using the Internet as a way to communicate with his fans and distribute music in the '90s, declared the Internet "over" in 2010.

His experiences with selling music through his Web sites were poorly managed and alienated many fans, so now he has no website. He says digital services such as iTunes and Spotify don't impress him.

"Remember Betamax?" Prince says with a grin, referring to the outmoded video cassette format. "That's the system we've got now in the music business. We're in a singles market again. It's crazy for me to walk into that with a new album. Young people have decided they like to listen to music in a certain way, through ear buds, and that's fine with me as long as it doesn't bother them that they're not hearing 90 percent of the music that way. But I don't have to record to eat or to get out of debt or to pay my taxes. I looked forward to the day I could do this. Freedom is an interesting thing. You have to work really hard to get free."

At one point, he turns to ask, "So what do you think the future of all this is going to be?" There are no sure answers. Nobody knows. And that's both a daunting and thrilling prospect. What excites him most, he says, is helping new artists. The 21-year-old drummer Hanna Ford is on his list of future band members. He's already jammed with rising jazz star Esperanza Spalding. He flips on video of a solo performance by the young British folk-soul singer Lianne La Havas. "She is Joni Mitchell to me, the way she tells a story, the way she puts those interesting guitar chords underneath it."

The next minute he's taking a call from his protege, Andy Allo, who will perform with him in Chicago. He moves to another room upstairs where he has two large computer screens set up, and he toggles between a video-in-progress of Allo and a video of a recent "Welcome 2" tour date in Australia. Then he dials up a YouTube video of the '70s singer Betty Davis, a gritty track called "If I'm in Luck, I Might Get Picked Up."

"I don't want anyone to fail, so if you can make money off music even though you can't sing or dance, that's genius," he says with a laugh. "More power to you. But I play Betty Davis for Andy Allo and say, 'This is what we aim for.'"

Prince has said repeatedly that he's not a great businessman, and he's taken his share of wrong turns in trying to fashion himself into a one-man music industry. But he is great at building bands, making music and inspiring people to dance. Though he's 54, he looks and moves like a much younger man. In part, he says, that's because the stress that dominated his life for much of the '80s and '90s is gone.

A new single, "RNR Affair," provides a small window into his life. It's a horn-spackled, guitar-chugging ode to "two people in love, with nothin' but the road ahead." A relaxed, sing-speak vocal rides the groove, then ascends to falsetto.

"It's a driving song," Prince says. "The world is so jagged, I like smooth waves. It's the way I live now. When Larry (Graham) first came around here (in the '90s) we had a lot of crazy people in here. Now, no one argues, no one swears, no one smokes, no one talks harsh. We all enjoy each other. You don't know what that's like till you start living like that, because for a long time I didn't. It was affecting me up here (points to his head), which in turn affected me here (points to throat). I changed the way I operate. A lot of my contemporaries didn't. That's the reason I'm still here, and a lot of them aren't."

It troubled him when people started to write him off in the '90s, when the hits dried up and he began playing smaller venues, partially by design.

"I had a former band member tell the media, 'He'll never play arenas again,'; Prince says. "Now why would someone want to go and say a thing like that?"

The singer gets defiant.

"That's like telling Michael Jordan he can't play any more. Like telling Ali he's washed up." Despite the bravado, he circles back to the topic later in the conversation. He'd like to suggest that the criticism bounces off him, that he's tougher than that. But he doesn't forget. The hurt lingers. He describes letters that the Chicago singer Mavis Staples wrote him in the '80s when they began working together on a couple of her solo albums: "They were so full of encouragement. You don't get much of that in this business."

And his eyes glisten when he recalls a few words spoken to him at the Jehovah's Witness Kingdom Hall just a few hundred yards down the road from Paisley Park, where he regularly attends Bible study.

"I had missed a bunch of meetings because I was on tour, and you know how people like to gossip and talk behind your back? Well, there was none of that," he says. "When I came back, there was one older person there who came up to me. He didn't lay a guilt trip on me. He just spoke with love and compassion, and I'll never forget what he said. 'We just miss you.'"

Rehearsal is about to resume, and he relishes the work ahead even though he's tired.

"You know what I look at when I'm stage? I look for the smile on people's faces. That's what I want, where I put all my energy."

He leans back in his chair.

"I remember those Park West shows (in Chicago) that I played when I was just starting out. I'll dream about the Park West sometime. I can see it so clearly in my dreams, that wide open look from the stage, the people right up on you. Those were life-changing shows."

And then, his heels click down the hallway toward the rehearsal hall. The band is still settling in, but the music has already started inside Prince's head.

Interesting, people seem to think Prince don't care what people say, but from this interview, it seems he cares what his former associates say about him.Great interview very insightful.

Nery nice interview

I love the feel this article gives - I feel like I know Prince a little bit more then I did 3 minutes ago! Great article.

Nice interview.

Interesting to know he uses YouTube to check out other artists. Bit of a double standard?

Dazza said:

Nice interview.

Interesting to know he uses YouTube to check out other artists. Bit of a double standard?

I was thinking the same thing!

i wonder if people on here realize prince could be talking indirectly about how hardsh everybody on here talk about him and say all the negative shit no one really shows him love on the org and when somebody like me always back him up we get talked about.

cbarnes3121 said:

i wonder if people on here realize prince could be talking indirectly about how hardsh everybody on here talk about him and say all the negative shit no one really shows him love on the org and when somebody like me always back him up we get talked about.

We're not being harsh. It's IS a double standard that he checks out other artists on YouTube, but removes his own videos. It's just frustrating that he can't see that he's destroying his legacy as the new generation won't be able to access his music. Very sad, as he's a genius and I love him. Nothing harsh about that.

Dazza said:

cbarnes3121 said:

i wonder if people on here realize prince could be talking indirectly about how hardsh everybody on here talk about him and say all the negative shit no one really shows him love on the org and when somebody like me always back him up we get talked about.

We're not being harsh. It's IS a double standard that he checks out other artists on YouTube, but removes his own videos. It's just frustrating that he can't see that he's destroying his legacy as the new generation won't be able to access his music. Very sad, as he's a genius and I love him. Nothing harsh about that.

destroying his legacy as the new generation won't be able to access his music

They can go buy it.

Should dude just cover his ears or close his eyes anytime he goes to YOUTUBE. People do look at other content on YOUTUBE.

not hearing 90 percent of the music that way.

Reminds me of the low bitrate downloads from npgmc.

Wow! A really nice interview with insight and honesty straight from the man himself. He wouldn't be human if the criticism didn't hurt sometimes or he didn't feel anger. Thanks OP for posting.

TheDigitalGardener said:

not hearing 90 percent of the music that way.

Reminds me of the low bitrate downloads from npgmc.

Too right. How can he not give the fans that 90% of his old recordings, if that's what he truly believes? Bit like using youtube, but not acutally 'using' it.

It's just Prince world that he lives in. But hey, he's worked for the right.

oceancrayon said:

"Remember Betamax?" Prince says with a grin, referring to the outmoded video cassette format. "That's the system we've got now in the music business. We're in a singles market again. It's crazy for me to walk into that with a new album. Young people have decided they like to listen to music in a certain way, through ear buds, and that's fine with me as long as it doesn't bother them that they're not hearing 90 percent of the music that way. But I don't have to record to eat or to get out of debt or to pay my taxes. I looked forward to the day I could do this. Freedom is an interesting thing. You have to work really hard to get free."

For me this is the most shocking part of the interview. Prince would consider it crazy to release an album in todays market??? Since when has the norm of the industry start to dictate how Prince would release music? At one point he would see this more as a challenge. This coming from a maverick artist like Prince.

I realize P doesn't need money. I also find it great he wants to help other musicians but really if he wanted to reach more people with Andy/Larry the NPG could attach a disc of Prince music and make aNother Power Pack, he only way NPG will move 500k is to attach P disc, even if it was live cd. Without that Andy will move say 10k-15k unless it's a miracle. We can only hope he is crazy!

Dazza said:

cbarnes3121 said:

i wonder if people on here realize prince could be talking indirectly about how hardsh everybody on here talk about him and say all the negative shit no one really shows him love on the org and when somebody like me always back him up we get talked about.

We're not being harsh. It's IS a double standard that he checks out other artists on YouTube, but removes his own videos. It's just frustrating that he can't see that he's destroying his legacy as the new generation won't be able to access his music. Very sad, as he's a genius and I love him. Nothing harsh about that.

I don't find it shocking. I'm sure he goes on youtube and various sites to see what is going on with his own work at times. Prince as an artist may not like his work on youtube but many others musicians love it. So maybe he sees both sides of the coin?

laurarichardson said:

Dazza said:

We're not being harsh. It's IS a double standard that he checks out other artists on YouTube, but removes his own videos. It's just frustrating that he can't see that he's destroying his legacy as the new generation won't be able to access his music. Very sad, as he's a genius and I love him. Nothing harsh about that.

destroying his legacy as the new generation won't be able to access his music

They can go buy it.

Should dude just cover his ears or close his eyes anytime he goes to YOUTUBE. People do look at other content on YOUTUBE.

many people do discover new music by youtube

but evenmoreso its the videos... you cant just go buy videos nor just turn on the tele and see them easily

OldFriends4Sale said:

laurarichardson said:

destroying his legacy as the new generation won't be able to access his music

They can go buy it.

Should dude just cover his ears or close his eyes anytime he goes to YOUTUBE. People do look at other content on YOUTUBE.

many people do discover new music by youtube

but evenmoreso its the videos... you cant just go buy videos nor just turn on the tele and see them easily

I wish he would think of it in terms of how he seen Napster. Instead of going after them he want to them and made a deal with them. Maybe he tried and failed? Maybe youtube is too big to care???

remember...

"From the point of view of the music lover, what's going on can only be viewed as an exciting new development in the history of music," wrote Prince. "There does not seem to be anything the old record companies can do about preventing this evolution from happening!!!" maverick

http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,618168,00.html

SuperFurryAnimal said:

OldFriends4Sale said:

many people do discover new music by youtube

but evenmoreso its the videos... you cant just go buy videos nor just turn on the tele and see them easily

I wish he would think of it in terms of how he seen Napster. Instead of going after them he want to them and made a deal with them. Maybe he tried and failed? Maybe youtube is too big to care???

remember...

"From the point of view of the music lover, what's going on can only be viewed as an exciting new development in the history of music," wrote Prince. "There does not seem to be anything the old record companies can do about preventing this evolution from happening!!!" maverick

http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,618168,00.html

unless someone has MTV 2 they arent going to see too many past videos

for me I discovered a lot of music/artist by watching MTV in the 1980s

I think he is missing a market of youngsters who are discovering 'classic' music

there was a member her on the org who said they just saw the Girls & Boys video for the

first time this week

and its still my belief that ATWIAD & Parade had his best videos

SuperFurryAnimal said:

Dazza said:

We're not being harsh. It's IS a double standard that he checks out other artists on YouTube, but removes his own videos. It's just frustrating that he can't see that he's destroying his legacy as the new generation won't be able to access his music. Very sad, as he's a genius and I love him. Nothing harsh about that.

I don't find it shocking. I'm sure he goes on youtube and various sites to see what is going on with his own work at times. Prince as an artist may not like his work on youtube but many others musicians love it. So maybe he sees both sides of the coin?

im not talking about no bullshit comments about youtube im talking about how yall talk shit about prince when he gone off the scene for a while and then when he come back with a new productt u tear it down like crazy listen 2 what the man was saying he was gone for a while from the church and when he returned they was just happy 2 see him and said they missed him it meant alot 2 him translate people yall bullshit 2 much

cbarnes3121 said:

SuperFurryAnimal said:

I don't find it shocking. I'm sure he goes on youtube and various sites to see what is going on with his own work at times. Prince as an artist may not like his work on youtube but many others musicians love it. So maybe he sees both sides of the coin?

im not talking about no bullshit comments about youtube im talking about how yall talk shit about prince when he gone off the scene for a while and then when he come back with a new productt u tear it down like crazy listen 2 what the man was saying he was gone for a while from the church and when he returned they was just happy 2 see him and said they missed him it meant alot 2 him translate people yall bullshit 2 much

When Prince puts on a show, releases music, website he sells a product to paying customers. World of difference in that and him going to church and dropping money in the bucket. I don't even have to list the fubars, you know them if you have been a fan for ever. We still believe in Prince and believe me some of the fandom has diminised but not due to the music but moreso the business mixups. He should be happy we are still here, I know people who just moved on. He is great but if he does something(like create an online experience), Prince deserves the best and so do we.