Just out of curiosity, how was Prince viewed by the LGBTQ community in recent years? I know that early in his career he was very much embraced by the community but did things sour near the end?

He used to be pretty open minded, didn't he?

Lesbian. Gay. Bisexual. Transexual. All understood.

'Q' though? Umm.

Grog said:

Just out of curiosity, how was Prince viewed by the LGBTQ community in recent years? I know that early in his career he was very much embraced by the community but did things sour near the end?

Yes, the community reacted strongly to some quotes attributed to him and despite the usual denials it's clear he now disapproved of homosexuality as he was required to by his chosen faith. Yet I don't think of him as a virulent homophobe, more like a guy too heavily into the scriptures who believes something out of principle.

I still think he fully deserves to be a LGBTQ icon for his musical sexploration and his gender blurring ways. Prince helped many a guy or a doll gain that fuck it confidence you need to stand up for yourself.

Marrk said:

Lesbian. Gay. Bisexual. Transexual. All understood.

'Q' though? Umm.

Q is for questioning

all7even said:

Queer

[Edited 5/28/16 14:16pm]

bookwomen said:

Marrk said:

Lesbian. Gay. Bisexual. Transexual. All understood.

'Q' though? Umm.

Q is for questioning

'E' would be better. E for explorers.

Aerogram said:

Marrk said:

bookwomen said:

I like your A explaination better for LGBTQIA

I don't think Prince was as homophobic in his later years as some made him out to be. He was a guest on Ellen multiple times. Sure, that's not necessarily indicative of his personal beliefs, but he always seemed very warm and kind to her in a way that someone who is homophobic would probably not be able to be.

I always assumed he was more the "love the sinner, hate the sin" type (which is a concept I've always found incredibly patronizing).

[Edited 5/28/16 14:51pm]

I am not any of the letters but I am a Feminist and even though some of his lyrics were cringe worthy for me I never let it stop me from enjoying him.

jdcxc said:

I believe he was greatly misunderstood as far as his religious views in his later life. He disavowed the homophobic quotes attributed to him. Part of the problem was his difficult interview rules, disdain for interviews. He constantly tweaked, tricked and played with the media. And far as the JWs, I never heard that they are more homophobic than ALL religions and people who are fundamentalists in their interpretation. Prince seemed to be moving away from the strict orthodoxy he held as a new convert 15 years ago.

'Da Bourgeoise' though, pretty recently too in the grand scheme of things. some folks were mad at him at the time. I didn't understand what the heck he was up to with that one to be honest. Maybe a conquest left him for another woman. Still..

.

That thread. http://prince.org/msg/7/405024

.

[Edited 5/28/16 15:54pm]

I couldnt care less

I felt like being made very welcome into P's world by his eccentricities from 1985 until after the end of the Lovesexy-era. During that period Prince was a haven for nonconformists, free thinkers - being gay was all about that for me and it still is. Prince's aura had gotten gradualy more conformist and less interesting to me. But during his heyday, Prince was much more progressive than the gay community was (and still is) with its boring uniformity. When the SOTT-tour rolled into Dortmund, I vividly remember walking into the arena and viewing a large room full of freaks. I felt like I was belonging there. By the time of the Diamond & pearls-tour the vibe around Prince had changed completely. Gone was the playfulness, his open arms towards freaks, in came some standardised, rather strict and less funky mindset. Don't know if that was the beginning of his search for a guiding line, which he might later have found in his religious testaments. But the magic was gone forever from that moment onward for me. I found the whole Mayte-period pretty boring, but what really shocked me up until his death was his wardrobe, in which he looked to like a cross between Muamer El Gadaffi and some starndardised showbiz-type of a guy. I still liked some of his records post Lovesexy, but his ability to gather rather a lot of outcasts was being put into a flightcase once the fancy dresses from that tour went into the same direction. Having said that, I doubt whether Prince really ever was a "gay icon". He never was gay pin-up material and he never played the strict disco-way. He was probably way too eccentric for this mass of people who prefer uniformity over individuality. There's not too many people left within the "community" who remember the Stone Wall riots, which lay the foundation to what we now refer to as being the "community". It was always the brave people who led to progress. The crossdressers and transgenders way back when fought for our right to be whatever we feel like being. Prince, of course, wasn't one of them. But he was a brave man because for four years he was the only real superstar ever who didn't give a shit. He was being himself, a true individualist. I still love him for that.

sumtymes said:

Yeah the LGBTQIZVBN... people couldn't really label him "homophobe" because he wasn't. SJWs want the world at large to equate someone that doesn't look at homosexuality as natural, as someone who fears and hates. It's not true. On this site, we know, Prince didn't hate anyone. Not even Warner's execs. Prince said it himself, "I can't be played." Anyone that takes a shot at him for saying "...let a woman be a woman and a man be a man..." is only playing him/herself.

savvy said:

Yeah the LGBTQIZVBN... people couldn't really label him "homophobe" because he wasn't. SJWs want the world at large to equate someone that doesn't look at homosexuality as natural, as someone who fears and hates. It's not true. On this site, we know, Prince didn't hate anyone. Not even Warner's execs. Prince said it himself, "I can't be played." Anyone that takes a shot at him for saying "...let a woman be a woman and a man be a man..." is only playing him/herself.

Speaking of SJWs (lol), I'm surprised not even the Tumblr SJW's never called him out on anything since he died (This whole 'callout' culture they do there is gross)
I remember when Bowie died people already digging up receipts accusing him of raping a 13 year old groupie in the early 70s. God I couldn't imagine what kind of 'problamatic' shit they'll find of Prince during his time.

Honestly as a Queer woman myself being of fan of his music for 2 years, all I could say is that while I don't necessarly agree with his religious views or his supposed 'Anti' views of Gay Rights..
I don't think he seems to be the type of person to hold grudges against anyone really (or I could be wrong tho idk???).

He seems pretty chill towards Wendy & Lisa over the years or hell even people he ever worked with who might've been LGBT and might not even know about it.

Didn't he say that he had gay friends and they study the bible together like right after he was 'misinterpreted' on Gay Marriage?

[Edited 5/28/16 21:59pm]

Grog said:

Just out of curiosity, how was Prince viewed by the LGBTQ community in recent years? I know that early in his career he was very much embraced by the community but did things sour near the end?

How do you know that he was being embraced by the "community" early in his career? Any prove?

Marrk said:

EmmaMcG said:

Marrk said:

'Da Bourgeoise' though, pretty recently too in the grand scheme of things. some folks were mad at him at the time. I didn't understand what the heck he was up to with that one to be honest. Maybe a conquest left him for another woman. Still..

.

That thread. http://prince.org/msg/7/405024

.

[Edited 5/28/16 15:54pm]

I never understood what the problem was with Da Bourgeoise. What's the difference between the lyrical content of that and Bambi? Both songs have him competing with a woman for the object of his desire. The only difference is that in Da Bourgeoise, the girl is probably bisexual. She has been seeing Prince, but also another woman. In Bambi, the girl is most likely a lesbian as he says "all your lovers, they look just like you" and "let me show you what it's like to be loved by a man". So he's trying to "convert" her, which I would say is more offensive. Having said that, I don't find any of it offensive. Da Bourgeoise comes across to me as a humorous tale of Prince losing a woman to another girl, and Bambi is all about how Prince is so sexy and cool that he can "convert" this lesbian. If anyone is offended by that, then I don't know what to think.

Agree. In fact, there are no "offensive" lyrics. People who feel offended by lyrics deserve to be offended.

Marrk said: