I have been a massive fan for over 20 years, I own everything he's ever released and collect bootlegs like they're going out of fashion. But I don't feel an ounce of warmth towards Prince as a human being, the way I did towards Michael Jackson when he was alive. I was hugely upset by MJ's death and found it difficult to enjoy his music for some time after, yet I know I would never feel that way about Prince if he clogged it.

Is it because Prince comes across as aloof and indifferent to other peoples opinions?? He hasn't exactly done much to endear himself to his own fanbase. It is strictly about the music with Prince, and I feel that is true on both sides. The fans love his music and he loves making it, but I feel there's little connection that exists beyond the obvious supply and demand of artist/fan when it comes to Prince as a person.

Thoughts?

Michael was the kind of guy that would hug you, Prince isn't.

[Edited 5/14/15 3:13am]

bluegangsta said:

NorthC said:

bluegangsta said:

Michael was the kind of guy that would hug you, Prince isn't.

[Edited 5/14/15 3:13am]

[snip]

Fuck, aren't you original and funny?

No.

I find him intriguing though. I wonder do many people try and approach him with the idea that they'll be the one who will change him.

Yeah, I do. But that could be helped by the fact that I've met him and felt genuine kindness, goodwill and positivity from him.

Michael was different, because for the last 20 years of his life, he was torn into, ripped into, attacked, vilified, degraded, humiliated, abused, beaten into submission and ultimately, killed.

Simply being a fan of Michael Jackson and understanding the truth about how he was being victimised led you into a position where you had to defend him. I remember being 8 years old when HIStory came out, and literally fighting people at my school who would make stupid plastic surgery jokes. I remember the tabloids making up nonsense about him here in the UK literally on a daily fucking basis. It was sick and twisted what they did to him.

Plus, as the public we literally witnessed pretty much his entire life. We saw him as a child who lacked the understanding of how cruel the world could be and the defense mechanisms to deal with them, and then had to face all those cruelties directly. To be a fan of Michael and not be emotionally invested in him would simply mean you lack empathy.

Prince doesn't need to be defended because he's a total badass. He would be the first person to cut you down if you tried to talk slick about him. He'll rip a guitar solo right in your face if you try to question him, then take your woman and leave with her And he was a fully grown man capable of defending himself before he came onto the scene.

I don't think it's about the music, because if you don't feel the heartache and pain in a song like "Comeback" or "Wasted Kisses" then you might have a problem.

In Shakespearian terms, Michael was the "tragic hero". Michael needed every ounce of support he could get, because he wasn't built to deal with the money grabbers, the abusers, the people trying to bring him down, he was like a magnet for shady people and people who only wanted to make money off him, and as a fan who has outside perspective, it was so fucking clear for so long.

Prince, for whatever his own problems are, has the street smarts to spot an opportunist and/or a manipulator a mile off, and they won't ever get close to him.

It is the human that drives the business decisions, the communications towards fans, the upholding of business deals (`CONtracts`), planning of variopus things like tours and record (re)releases, etc.

So in that case I am quite disappointed with the downward trend that has been visible for quite a few years now.

Thus I can be quite disappointed with mr Prince.

Am I emotionally invested in such case?

[Edited 5/14/15 5:18am]

[Edited 5/14/15 5:19am]

No. Only in the music.

He isnt human.

and i wouldnt really want a hug from MJ, who wasnt either.

Invested Yes
I don't think I'm emotionally invested
Prince is like a sub-culture for me

i dont think myself and prince would get on as human beings...too many differences and i prefer to just admire his music and him as an artist...

.

but if he ever passed away then i would be devastated..he has been a huge part of my life and he is a one off imo...so he does mean a lot to me as an artist...more than anyone else..

Love him like a brother. Not even sure why....just always have. Something about him resonates with me.

I was more of a fan of MJ during the Jackson Five years but as a teen it was Jermaine that I had a crush on. For some reason I cried like a baby when Mike died though.

Prince is a cutie but I've never had a crush on him. He's more of an honorary family member.

Like Militant, I've met and spoken to Prince but I felt that way about him way before then.

blackbob said:

i dont think myself and prince would get on as human beings...too many differences and i prefer to just admire his music and him as an artist...

.

but if he ever passed away then i would be devastated..he has been a huge part of my life and he is a one off imo...so he does mean a lot to me as an artist...more than anyone else..

Being able to get along with him is a different question. I'm sure there would be times I'd want to smack the piss out of him if I had to live with him.

babynoz said:

blackbob said:

i dont think myself and prince would get on as human beings...too many differences and i prefer to just admire his music and him as an artist...

.

but if he ever passed away then i would be devastated..he has been a huge part of my life and he is a one off imo...so he does mean a lot to me as an artist...more than anyone else..

Being able to get along with him is a different question. I'm sure there would be times I'd want to smack the piss out of him if I had to live with him.

I prefer worship from afar...

purplethunder3121 said:

babynoz said:

Being able to get along with him is a different question. I'm sure there would be times I'd want to smack the piss out of him if I had to live with him.

I prefer worship from afar...

In the right setting we could talk for hours but on a daily basis I imagine he is quite a handful.

i did spend a few hours in his company at the rainbow children celebration in paisley park back in 2001...he was genuinely funny and interesting...even though he was talking mainly about religion which i cant stand..i would love to have a casual talk to him but that would be enough...a religious control freak...as brilliant as he is...aint going to have much in common with me.

I do. When his love for Susannah made its way into his music, I felt that I understood his heart a little better. When he fell in love with Mayte, I was hopeful and happy for both of them. When they lost their child, my heart sank for them. When Prince went through both of his divorces, I was worried that he might never find his true soulmate.

So, I have to say that I wish Prince a great deal of happiness even if he can be a frustrating little fuck

Not emotionally invested, no ..... It's been an emotional journey trying to fight his corner through the years though and I've invested a lot of time and hard cash into the man. Yet do I give one jot about Prince without any music...no.

Not even a little. I don't think he has revealed enough about himself to get invested. I think so much of his public persona is a put-on that it's really impossible to know the man. I think he wants it that way, too.

I have to admit... yes.

It's only natural because of the amount of creative output I have absorbed from him (counting all bootleg material, live shows, aftershows, after parties).

Also I hear that he is the type who might hug you if he knew you. I think people are getting the person mixed up with the brand or the image painted by media.

I remember one original 90's primary bootleg source dude managing to get into an after party dinner thing at a One Night ALone concert and meeting him briefly, and coming away thinking Prince was so human and nice, that this guy... decided to stop with the bootleg collecting and sharing!!!

I think it wore off after a years. LOL.

Without question the answer is yes. There are several things I could say about the man but I’ll keep it simple. My existence is better off having known the man. There are less than a handful of people that I can make that statement about. Especially from the “entertainment” arena.

Prince is a very polite, smart and well-mannered individual who has studied the game, people and the ever evolving music business. He knows how 2 get what he wants and some folks can't handle his self-serving ways. I'd say his survival instincts serve him well and it has allowed him 2 thrive in a very unforgiving business longer than anyone could have predicted.

Prince understands very well that the solution 2 any endeavor starts and ends with him and his decision making. When u arrive at that type of thinking at a young age, it serves u well 4 years 2 come. The man has provided a way of thinking and living that could easily serve others as a blueprint if they were paying attention. The only other "famous" person that I can think of, who followed his own path in a similar fashion is Bruce Lee. In that regard, Prince is in good company.

[Edited 5/14/15 12:22pm]

Graycap23 said:

Without question the answer is yes. There are several things I could say about the man but I’ll keep it simple. My existence is better off having known the man. There are less than a handful of people that I can make that statement about. Especially from the “entertainment” arena.

Prince is a very polite, smart and well-mannered individual who has studied the game, people and the every evolving music business. He knows how 2 get what he wants and some folks can't handle his self-serving ways. I'd say his survival instincts serve him well and it has allowed him 2 thrive in a very unforgiving business longer than anyone could have predicted.

Prince understands very well that the solution 2 any endeavor starts and ends with him and his decision making. When u arrive at that type of thinking at a young age, it serves u well 4 years 2 come. The man has provided a way of thinking and living that could easily serve others as a blueprint if they were paying attention. The only other "famous" person that I can think of, who followed his own path in a similar fashion is Bruce Lee. In that regard, Prince is in good company.

Well said.

jcurley said:

God. Prince n MJ again. Why does anyone think Michael is a good guy. In terms of music it was sifted and rewritten simply to be sold. Nothing wrong with that bur god what to the days when people called a pop star a pop star. Mj was a good pop star he was not an artist

So do you feel emotionally invested in Prince as a human being?

babynoz said:

I'm emotionally invested in Prince's product, i.e. the music/videos/concerts that he creates. But that runs the gamut of all emotions -- like the 70s, LOVE the 80s and early 90s, then back to like in the late 90s/2000s to mostly just tolerate the 20-teens. And, some of his business dealings that fall through do make me mad!

.

As a human being though? I would not say that I am invested in Prince personally, which is NOT to say that I don't care. I want him to be happy, healthy and have a long life. Do I care if he gets divorced, or makes a ton of money, or gives to charity, etc? It's interesting to hear about but doesn't sway me one way or another. I would feel horrible if anything happened to him.

.

The news about his son circa 1996 was horrendous -- now THAT did make me take pause and think about the "man" known as Prince, and not the "product". A real man lost his real child, which only now years later -- as a dad myself -- do I fully understand the weight of. In 1996, I was 25 and only vaguely understood how much that loss meant.

.

So maybe I've contradicted myself a bit here, but I still say No I'm not emotionally invested in him. I think too many of us here are though. IMO there needs to be a disconnect between man/product that there is with other artists. I don't know a thing about Bruce Springsteen, or U2, or any artist that does not put it in their music first.

.

Also, I don't think those artists' fansites obsess over hair, or what their artist eats for breakfast . . .

Fiona01 said:

I think the difference comes from the music itself. Obviously Prince has written amazing tracks over the years, but I feel that aside from a select few songs, most of his work doesn't seem particularly personal or layered with emotional connection. I think artists releasing songs that come from a personal place, somehow communicates to their audience on a deeper level. For instance, MJ fans feel emotional ripples when they hear "Childhood" or "Morphine." They speak of inner turmoil, experience and heartfelt moments in life, which brings out a personal response from the listener.

Prince obviously HAS released some emotional tracks, such I Love You But I Don't Trust You Anymore, but over his career as a whole, I'd say there was a lack of that.

It may have been a deliberate move on Prince's part, or self-defense, but ultimately, if he withholds that connection and openness with his audience, then they will feel its absence. [Edited 5/14/15 3:27am]

Oh, really?


- Something In The Water?
- God?
- Paisley Park?
- Love Thy Will B Done?
- The Holy River?

- Anna Stesia?
- The Beautiful Ones?
- Purple Rain, for crying out loud?
- If I Was Your Girlfriend?
- Forever In My Life?
- Way Back Home?
- The Word?
- Friend, Sister, Mother, Wife?
- Papa?

...just put the obvious ones.

He made a point in the past about his sincerity, and I believe him when he says that all of his songs come from personal experience.
Proof is, since he turned Paisley Park Studios into his own Xanadu, they got less interesting.