I read an excerpt from a guy that said Prince's band members were so afraid to approach him about an issue that they would send messages through a spokesperson (another band member) rather than confront him themselves. The guy was so surprised that he carrying a gun or what?. Obviously he wasn't but still they would never approach him themselves. Why do you think this is? I'll try to find the excerpt



Found it:








[Edited 12/4/16 14:14pm]
[Edited 12/4/16 15:21pm]
[quote]
[Edited 12/5/16 11:05am]

BillieBalloon said:

he thought..what the eff is he carrying a gun or what?.

[Edited 12/4/16 22:25pm]

FragileUndertow said:

BillieBalloon said:

he thought..what the eff is he carrying a gun or what?.

BillieBalloon said:

I'm assuming this was during the 90s. I know Rolling Stone once ran a piece with quotes from the 90s-era NPG band members and after reading it I wondered how any of them managed to stick around. By the time of Musicology I definitely think Prince had mellowed out a bit (even though he still had that silly gun microphone).

FragileUndertow said:

BillieBalloon said:

he thought..what the eff is he carrying a gun or what?.

Here you go!

Well? He is considered The Godfather of music

rogifan said:

BillieBalloon said:

I read an excerpt from a guy that said Prince's band members were so afraid to approach him about an issue that they would send messages through a spokesperson (another band member) rather than confront him themselves. The guy was so surprised that he thought..what the eff is he carrying a gun or what?. Obviously he wasn't but still they would never approach him themselves. Why do you think this is? I'll try to find the excerpt. [Edited 12/4/16 14:14pm]

I'm assuming this was during the 90s. I know Rolling Stone once ran a piece with quotes from the 90s-era NPG band members and after reading it I wondered how any of them managed to stick around. By the time of Musicology I definitely think Prince had mellowed out a bit (even though he still had that silly gun microphone).

There was also an article about the airplane captain who was told all communication be done through a third party. It seems Prince was who wanted to have a spokesperson to receive and give information.

As for wondering why some of the band members stick around that long, it could very well be for many reasons such as money, fame, experience, learning...as difficult as situations be have been.

BillieBalloon said:

I'd say it's most likely due to a fear of being fired or replaced rather than actually being afraid of Prince. Obviously we don't know the details but it's possible that Prince may have hinted that anyone asking unnecessary questions or making demands he finds unreasonable would be replaced with someone more "agreeable". I suppose that scenario is possible but like I said, nobody can know for sure. And for that matter, nobody really knows how true the stories of bandmembers fearing him actually are. Could be just blown out of proportion.

So... Basically all we have here is rumours, hearsay... Might as well have a dance party here, baby!

malbena said:

And then there was that story from the Musicology bus driver who had many nice conversations with Prince. Like I said I think he mellowed after the crazy 90s period.

NorthC said:

Calm down. I'm not asking this to be disrespectful. I love the man!

FragileUndertow said:

Oh yes! forgot about that

anangellooksdown said:

Maybe he would make them an offer they couldn't refuse

BillieBalloon said:

FragileUndertow said:

Oh yes! forgot about that

Gotta wipe the fingerprints!

rogifan said:

malbena said:

There was also an article about the airplane captain who was told all communication be done through a third party. It seems Prince was who wanted to have a spokesperson to receive and give information.

As for wondering why some of the band members stick around that long, it could very well be for many reasons such as money, fame, experience, learning...as difficult as situations be have been.

And then there was that story from the Musicology bus driver who had many nice conversations with Prince. Like I said I think he mellowed after the crazy 90s period.

I agree. He seemed more open with people and fans during the celebrations onward. I wasn't a fan of his music in the 90s after the Diamond and Pearls album. Musicology was my call back!

LOL

FragileUndertow said:

BillieBalloon said:

he thought..what the eff is he carrying a gun or what?.

I think it's safe to say that the earlier Prince would be intimidating and seemed to have no problem firing people, so I'm sure it would have been scary to confront him directly back in the day.

.

According to this interview of Jesse Johnson: https://youtu.be/gIy6eB0C350 "it was hell to work for Prince"! But as Prince matured I think he mellowed and was more rational.

bigtimefan said:

I think it's safe to say that the earlier Prince would be intimidating and seemed to have no problem firing people, so I'm sure it would have been scary to confront him directly back in the day.

.

According to this interview of Jesse Johnson: https://youtu.be/gIy6eB0C350 "it was hell to work for Prince"! But as Prince matured I think he mellowed and was more rational.

He was in his early 20s with a tremendous amount of responsiblity on his shoulders and we have heard people from his camp say that WB gave him shit all the time. I am sure he was not fun to be around all the time but those people complaining were not in his shoes. Even Mark Brown said he would not have made as long as he did in the industry if he was not tough. It is a tough industry.

laurarichardson said:

bigtimefan said:

I think it's safe to say that the earlier Prince would be intimidating and seemed to have no problem firing people, so I'm sure it would have been scary to confront him directly back in the day.

.

According to this interview of Jesse Johnson: https://youtu.be/gIy6eB0C350 "it was hell to work for Prince"! But as Prince matured I think he mellowed and was more rational.

He was in his early 20s with a tremendous amount of responsiblity on his shoulders and we have heard people from his camp say that WB gave him shit all the time. I am sure he was not fun to be around all the time but those people complaining were not in his shoes. Even Mark Brown said he would not have made as long as he did in the industry if he was not tough. It is a tough industry.

anangellooksdown said:

Well? He is considered The Godfather of music

laurarichardson said:

bigtimefan said:

I think it's safe to say that the earlier Prince would be intimidating and seemed to have no problem firing people, so I'm sure it would have been scary to confront him directly back in the day.

.

According to this interview of Jesse Johnson: https://youtu.be/gIy6eB0C350 "it was hell to work for Prince"! But as Prince matured I think he mellowed and was more rational.

He was in his early 20s with a tremendous amount of responsiblity on his shoulders and we have heard people from his camp say that WB gave him shit all the time. I am sure he was not fun to be around all the time but those people complaining were not in his shoes. Even Mark Brown said he would not have made as long as he did in the industry if he was not tough. It is a tough industry.

There you have it! Imagine being twenty-something with huge recording and touring responsibilities, constant hiring of musicians and staffers, meeting payrolls, scheduled meetings with record label, interviews, running multi-millionaire studio PP, and working to constantly meet the demands of fans across the globe. Prince was ONE young man with all this responsibility and he handled it remarkably well.

Living on the road and rarely sleeping in your own bed, having bodyguard with you all the time with no real privacy, not having much time for a love life, but I think he came to understand the many sacrifices early on. Also, he allegedly felt he wasn't treated fairly by his label who extended certain other privileges to some other artists that Prince never saw... Okay, Prince went through a lot, even with the fame and fortune there were incredible sacrifices he made.

I would say that while on the stage and including rehearsals he wanted a peaceful environment to be able to focus on the music and the musicianship, to get their best work out of them and also keep down any drama. So, it makes sense that the best way to direct his band members was with very strict discipline where they talked less and and gave their best work. BTW, I would LOVE to be able to ask his drummer (JB) what his 15-year tour of duty was like!

That's not a real gun.

That was the way his microphone was designed.

musicfan77 said:

That's not a real gun.

It's not?

PRNluv2 said:

laurarichardson said:

He was in his early 20s with a tremendous amount of responsiblity on his shoulders and we have heard people from his camp say that WB gave him shit all the time. I am sure he was not fun to be around all the time but those people complaining were not in his shoes. Even Mark Brown said he would not have made as long as he did in the industry if he was not tough. It is a tough industry.

There you have it! Imagine being twenty-something with huge recording and touring responsibilities, constant hiring of musicians and staffers, meeting payrolls, scheduled meetings with record label, interviews, running multi-millionaire studio PP, and working to constantly meet the demands of fans across the globe. Prince was ONE young man with all this responsibility and he handled it remarkably well.

Living on the road and rarely sleeping in your own bed, having bodyguard with you all the time with no real privacy, not having much time for a love life, but I think he came to understand the many sacrifices early on. Also, he allegedly felt he wasn't treated fairly by his label who extended certain other privileges to some other artists that Prince never saw... Okay, Prince went through a lot, even with the fame and fortune there were incredible sacrifices he made.

I would say that while on the stage and including rehearsals he wanted a peaceful environment to be able to focus on the music and the musicianship, to get their best work out of them and also keep down any drama. So, it makes sense that the best way to direct his band members was with very strict discipline where they talked less and and gave their best work. BTW, I would LOVE to be able to ask his drummer (JB) what his 15-year tour of duty was like!

This perspective makes a lot of sense! Worded nicely!

Iamtheorg said:

musicfan77 said:

That's not a real gun.

It's not?

malbena said:

PRNluv2 said:

There you have it! Imagine being twenty-something with huge recording and touring responsibilities, constant hiring of musicians and staffers, meeting payrolls, scheduled meetings with record label, interviews, running multi-millionaire studio PP, and working to constantly meet the demands of fans across the globe. Prince was ONE young man with all this responsibility and he handled it remarkably well.

Living on the road and rarely sleeping in your own bed, having bodyguard with you all the time with no real privacy, not having much time for a love life, but I think he came to understand the many sacrifices early on. Also, he allegedly felt he wasn't treated fairly by his label who extended certain other privileges to some other artists that Prince never saw... Okay, Prince went through a lot, even with the fame and fortune there were incredible sacrifices he made.

I would say that while on the stage and including rehearsals he wanted a peaceful environment to be able to focus on the music and the musicianship, to get their best work out of them and also keep down any drama. So, it makes sense that the best way to direct his band members was with very strict discipline where they talked less and and gave their best work. BTW, I would LOVE to be able to ask his drummer (JB) what his 15-year tour of duty was like!

This perspective makes a lot of sense! Worded nicely!

I would add that in my experience with artists, they can be spoiled brats. In this case, his musians may have been young spoiled brats. They need a firm hand!

Prince so cool he simply do a walk-by instead of a drive-by.

@ HerecomethePurpleYoda¤

I added a flash to the gifs

musicfan77 said:

That's not a real gun.

That was the way his microphone was designed.

This looks real

Somebody say Gun Control (Gun Control).

btw, that Controvery pic is an real gun, not an mic gun like he had in the 90's.

[Edited 12/5/16 12:34pm]

anangellooksdown said:

Well? He is considered The Godfather of music

Considered by whom? James Brown is The Godfather.