I was watching a video by the excellent AdoreCream and part of his journey made me wonder about other fans experiences. Whilst he still liked Prince he stepped away for a number of years and then returned. Have you ever taken time away form Prince and returned? What made you return?

Whilst I have never stopped being a fan the years 1997-1998 were fairly quite years after Emancipation but before Rave.

I stopped following the music in about 1995 (I think). I came back in 2009 when MJ passed.

Caught up with all the music, educated myself (with the help of the org) and then drifted away around end 2013. Popped in once or twice up until February 2016. Then in Feb on FB I saw a video by I think Peach and Black (Australian tour) of Prince playing on the piano on his tour. Went to the concert thread et voila! I'm back.

Wasn't' 'not a fan' in the absence just busy with other things.

[Edited 3/12/16 10:45am]

From about 1998 - 2004 I kinda put him on the backburner as I was totally emersed into electronic music at the time, even though I still bought all his albums upon release.

I think every sane long term fan has taken time out at some point. Other music, interests and life in general can get in the way at times. I've been and gone a few times over the years, become disillusioned with the music, been more into other things, left this place and rejoined a couple of times too.

Always been a fan, but also busy with life and other things. How can you stop being a fan of your favourite Prince songs. If your still playing any of his songs like i do , you never stopped being a fan. Even with finding new or old music from other artists for the first time i will always go back to my favourite Prince songs.

[Edited 3/12/16 12:01pm]

TheDigitalGardener said:

I think every sane long term fan has taken time out at some point. Other music, interests and life in general can get in the way at times. I've been and gone a few times over the years, become disillusioned with the music, been more into other things, left this place and rejoined a couple of times too.

I never did and I'm pretty sane

Now my Prince listening time has consistently kept dimunishing over the years because I keep listening to more and more other things, but for the last 25 years I've always kept tuned on to new Prince releases and info, and I keep listening to Prince music on a regular basis.

Thing is when I was a teen I decided I wanted to have absolutely everything officially made available, and I've kinda stuck to this goal (even though I know I'll never achieve it entirely) ever since. Losing track, particularly now with all those temporary internet streams, whould mean that a lot of stuff would be lost for me because once it's gone, it's hard to get later.

What I can't manage to do is to keep ordering and naming all those random files properly: for this I really don't have enough time

databank said:

What I can't manage to do is to keep ordering and naming all those random files properly: for this I really don't have enough time

You are not alone. My Hard Drive is like some bizarre Hieroglyphic code upon which future archeologists will ponder over.

I take breaks from Prince all the time, but I always come back because quite frankly he is Prince and the best musician on the planet. No one lemme repeat No one can touch his genius He has made some of the most beautiful music ever created.

One way of answering the question is to say that i'll never stop being a fan of the 1978-1988 years of recordings, but i'll often dip in and out of the later material, particularly post 1995.

I became interested in Prince´s music when I heard When Doves Cry for the first time. I was twelve and I loved the lyrics and the music, and his very unique aura.

Then I heard the b-side 17 Days and I was even more hooked, and to this day I absolutely love the Purple Rain album and never get tired of it.

-

Then came ATWIAD and I loved it, too.

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I never stopped really stopped liking his music but , and this may sound a bit strange, I lost a little bit of interest around 1986-87, maybe even up until 1990 or 91 until a good friend of mine recorded a mixtape for me that I still have. I told him about some songs that I would like to have again, and the rest was his choice. The reason why I lost interest around the time Parade came out was because I first got into Prince due to my interest in RnB, Soul and Funk, and I was so involved in the early HipHop scene that I was simply too young to appreciate Prince´s more sophisticated, more pop sounding music.

I was still following his releases and would like a couple of songs on each album that came out but then came the weird clothes of the Lovesexy era and his weak attempts at Rap , and HipHop back then was such a fresh, energetic new force with Public Enemy, KRS One, Kool G Rap, all those golden age rappers that Prince´s weird and eccentric ways and forays into dance music did not really grab my attention. This also had a lot to do with the hype surrounding the Batman movie and soundtrack. It took me a very long time to appreciate that era, that album and tour back then.

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Graffiti Bridge did not really help much, either. I liked some songs, but to this day that album as a whole is not my cup of tea. I liked Pandemonium when it came out.

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Around 1991 I became hooked again, caught up on some songs or albums I had not appreciated as much as I do today, went to many , many concerts and to Paisley Park and the celebrations, and have been through the thick and the thin as far as following Prince´s career goes, and I can greatness in every era and every phase and release unless maybe HitNRun Phase one.

But I have always believed in Prince and guess I always will. I find him very inspiring even when you least expect it, and he still comes up with great songs and great tours and I think I´d even go and see him if one day he´d play at very small venues with no band.

It´s been an interesting journey so far and I think he´s a very unique artist.

I drifted away in 2012 and only just returned to being a Prince fan this year.

So it's been 4 years. But it doesn't mean I stopped listening to P entirely. Every now and again, when one of his songs was randomly selected to pay on my iPod, I bobbed along.

I downloaded "Anna Stesia" a few weeks ago because it's the first P song that got me all excited since 2012. I heard a live version first, fell in love, then downloaded the original track.

Now it's Princemania again.

1990-2000

Diamonds and Pearls drove me away and The Rainbow Children brought me back. I still do not care for a lot of the material from 1990-2000.

I'm a fan since 2008 and, well, i'm on my way to discover all his music, so it will take years for me to take a break from His Purple Majesty.

I discover Prince in 1986 and love him 'till 88. Batman and Graffiti Bridge freeze me and Diamonds & Pearls was a tombstone. I did not buy 0+> thinking Prince was gone, but after I listen it, I love 0+> a lot. I have another stop in The Hits/Come era, but again Gold Experience, Chaos And Disorder, Emancipation and overall Crystall Ball 5dcs version start again the fire.

I stop love prince in Musicology/Lotuflow3r era.

Actually AOA and the HITNRUNs project start again some interest for him.

Bohemian67 said:

I stopped following the music in about 1995 (I think). I came back in 2009 when MJ passed.

Caught up with all the music, educated myself (with the help of the org) and then drifted away around end 2013. Popped in once or twice up until February 2016. Then in Feb on FB I saw a video by I think Peach and Black (Australian tour) of Prince playing on the piano on his tour. Went to the concert thread et voila! I'm back.

Wasn't' 'not a fan' in the absence just busy with other things.

[Edited 3/12/16 10:45am]

I, like you, pretty much dropped out of Princeland after The Gold Experience in the 90s. I came back after I heard "Better With Time" on the radio and saw Him on Tavis Smiley the same week in 2009. Of course, I joined the infamous Lotusflower site and got burned... But what a wonderful treasure trove of Prince music I discovered that I never knew existed...

Hardcore from '88 - '95, then let it slip completely during Emancipation, and got back again around 2001.

I buy the albums and see him live, but still don't listen to him all the time.

House music. Got very bored when house music gave in to trance and became popular. Non-fan for ten years. Not very fan'y at the moment either. Phase 2 is good but I listen to other artists far more.

purplethunder3121 said:

Bohemian67 said:

I stopped following the music in about 1995 (I think). I came back in 2009 when MJ passed.

Caught up with all the music, educated myself (with the help of the org) and then drifted away around end 2013. Popped in once or twice up until February 2016. Then in Feb on FB I saw a video by I think Peach and Black (Australian tour) of Prince playing on the piano on his tour. Went to the concert thread et voila! I'm back.

Wasn't' 'not a fan' in the absence just busy with other things.

[Edited 3/12/16 10:45am]

I, like you, pretty much dropped out of Princeland after The Gold Experience in the 90s. I came back after I heard "Better With Time" on the radio and saw Him on Tavis Smiley the same week in 2009. Of course, I joined the infamous Lotusflower site and got burned... But what a wonderful treasure trove of Prince music I discovered that I never knew existed...

It's amazing how one video or song, even after quite long, can bring you back in full force. I also joined Lotusflower, don't remember getting burned, but didn't really see the point of it all. It's a treasure trove and a labyrinth. HitnRun II is perfect in my opinion. Happy Purple Haze Purplethunder3121. (3121, also a good album)!

ilo said:

House music. Got very bored when house music gave in to trance and became popular. Non-fan for ten years. Not very fan'y at the moment either. Phase 2 is good but I listen to other artists far more.

And techno. Pretty much moved away from it too, but I took a left back then and got into Deep House. And funny whenever I heard a standout track and looked up the artist, the vocals are always 'black' singers. There is something about the Soul they have, which was also there in original house.

I am a fan from 1983 to present 2016, I bought every album and I have witnessed 19 concerts 1987 - 2010.

I never stopped being a fan, through thick & thin...

Yes: I was/ is a fan also through thin..

I never stopped buying his music, but somewhere between Emancipation and Rave, I was starting to lose interest a bit. Part of it might've been over-saturation with Prince music, having had multiple releases per year.

I get pissed off at Prince from time to time.

Especially the way he sometimes treats his fans, that bs about gay people he spouted off a while back and all the "god and truth" horseshit. So over the years I've been less inclined and fanatical about playing his games and jumping through whatever hoops he likes to set up simply for the pleasure of handing him my money and receiving music in exchange for it.

The music always brings me back, and Lord knows he's always a very interesting cat. I'm just getting too old and have other priorities these days to "do the work", such as it is. Dude wears me out sometimes with his ego but, I realize, without the ego, he's not an artist and he's not Prince.

He can have it his way and I'll have it mine.

It's just sad that he has no idea how much money he's left on the table from people like me (especially for someone who only ever seems to talk about money) who used to be willing to gladly pony up and spend. Instead, he insists on alienating me because he's just oh special and super cool and all that shit.

thedance said:

I am a fan from 1983 to present 2016, I bought every album and I have witnessed 19 concerts 1987 - 2010.

I never stopped being a fan, through thick & thin...

Yes: I was/ is a fan also through thin..

im just like u... fan since 83-16...ive seen shows from 1986 -2002