First, let me just say how great it is that this place still exists. I grew up on the Internet while social media was not the forefront yet - and I spent a LOT of time 2006-2011 on old school message boards like this one. At some point, I had an account on here when I was younger but I don’t think I ever posted. I also have no idea what email address I used for it or the username, but I digress.

Lately, I have been very sad. I suppose the last couple of days it has gotten better - but for the last two weeks it was also like when the news of Prince’s death was fresh.

To backtrack a bit, when I was 13 I developed the first phase of serious interest in music - and it began with Prince and Jimi Hendrix in 8th grade. I was suspended from school and rented Purple Rain from Blockbuster and it felt like the movie was filmed for me. The dynamics of family, passion for love, the question of God, and the ecstasy of the sincere music blew my mind and continues to. My mom played the Very Best of Prince in the car a lot when I was even younger than that, so I was vaguely familiar with his music. Shortly after, I got a purple Tripp trenchcoat from Hot Topic and also began a love affair for purple and paisley in general. For a short little white dude, Prince taught me that was fine. More than okay.

Prince made me pick up a guitar. Though for the last two year I have struggled with repetitive strain issues with my thumbs, it was listening to Prince that made guitar playing a viable form of expression. The band I was playing with at the time of his death had two shows that weekend. I dressed up as Purple Rain era Prince (though no blackface or anything weird like that). We jammed “Purple Rain” at the end of the show over my elegy of him. They were arguably our best shows.

Prince taught me how to be a lover. He taught me about devotion. My sense of humor got a little more sly and witty after getting to know him.

When I hear the opening chords of “I Wanna Be Your Lover”, my nerves stand still every time. It takes me fucking back (swear jar, anyone?). i think it had been that for awhile even before he passed.

That whole April I had been listening to Prince again like never before. I had just broken up with my girlfriend at the time. I had just put Controversy and Sign O’ The Times back on my phone - and at work the next day...the morning papers.

My heart broke into one million pieces. Later that day, after listening to his music for hours, I finally wept at “4 The Tears In Your Eyes”. I was distraught for weeks.

When my girlfriend and I got back together later that May, we made sweet love to “Do Me, Baby”.

I just Ronin Ro’s bio on Prince. I liked it because it was critical, but honestly there were a lot of embarrassing typos and I just felt he was just trying to be too cool to care throughout the whole thing. I think reading the biography brought about these feelings. I needed to express them.

I’m not a Christian, but Prince almost makes me believe in God as He is portrayed in the Holy Bible.

I just wanted to let this all out. I also wanted to say I’m so sorry this happened. I wish he had gotten help. I’ve lost friends to drugs in my own personal life. I recently have celebrated one year of complete sobriety. I wish it was all a joke; that he was really alive and this was a big hoax. I would forgive him. God, it breaks my heart. I don't want to be sad anymore about this. I loved him so much. He was so important to my development as a person (I'm 22).

I never got to see him live but I did see a Prince cover group with my Gemini godfather, who reminds me so much of Prince, when I was 13. Purple Reign I think…

I’m sending you all my love.

Hey purplegrimace! It makes me happy that younger people like yourself are big fans of Prince. I'm 31 (born in 1986), so I'm relatively young by the standards of Prince fans. All we can do as his fans is to keep supporting his Estate (buying albums, streaming) and exposing family, friends, and anyone who will listen, to his music in order to keep his legacy alive.

Peace, be wild, and live 4 love!

206Michelle

Thank you for the touching letter.

206Michelle said:

Hey purplegrimace! It makes me happy that younger people like yourself are big fans of Prince. I'm 31 (born in 1986), so I'm relatively young by the standards of Prince fans. All we can do as his fans is to keep supporting his Estate (buying albums, streaming) and exposing family, friends, and anyone who will listen, to his music in order to keep his legacy alive.

Peace, be wild, and live 4 love!

206Michelle

I'm OG purple, I was 15 at his first television appearance, which was when I got seriously interested.

Young Prince people give me life!!

I appreciate ya'll so much.

You are taking it forward, because universe willing, you are going to outlast me and keep bringing his magic to even younger folks.. Your mission, if you should choose to accept it

His legacy has to last and last and last. Future souls need to understand how good we had it when we had him on the planet with us. xoxoxox

Grimace,

.

Congrats on your achievement of one year of sobriety! Celebrate that, and most of all, keep it going.

.

How lucky you are to be 22 and into Prince! I say that because I imagine that you still have most of his catalog still to discover at this point. For many of us, we hope for more and more unreleased music to find its way out for us to hear while listening to our favorites and maybe rediscovering some that we hadn't heard for a long time.

.

Keep hanging out here and you'll get to learn more and more about all things Prince. Time very well spent.

cant push your love of him on someone

purplegrimace said:

First, let me just say how great it is that this place still exists. I grew up on the Internet while social media was not the forefront yet - and I spent a LOT of time 2006-2011 on old school message boards like this one. At some point, I had an account on here when I was younger but I don’t think I ever posted. I also have no idea what email address I used for it or the username, but I digress.

Lately, I have been very sad. I suppose the last couple of days it has gotten better - but for the last two weeks it was also like when the news of Prince’s death was fresh.

To backtrack a bit, when I was 13 I developed the first phase of serious interest in music - and it began with Prince and Jimi Hendrix in 8th grade. I was suspended from school and rented Purple Rain from Blockbuster and it felt like the movie was filmed for me. The dynamics of family, passion for love, the question of God, and the ecstasy of the sincere music blew my mind and continues to. My mom played the Very Best of Prince in the car a lot when I was even younger than that, so I was vaguely familiar with his music. Shortly after, I got a purple Tripp trenchcoat from Hot Topic and also began a love affair for purple and paisley in general. For a short little white dude, Prince taught me that was fine. More than okay.

Prince made me pick up a guitar. Though for the last two year I have struggled with repetitive strain issues with my thumbs, it was listening to Prince that made guitar playing a viable form of expression. The band I was playing with at the time of his death had two shows that weekend. I dressed up as Purple Rain era Prince (though no blackface or anything weird like that). We jammed “Purple Rain” at the end of the show over my elegy of him. They were arguably our best shows.

Prince taught me how to be a lover. He taught me about devotion. My sense of humor got a little more sly and witty after getting to know him.

When I hear the opening chords of “I Wanna Be Your Lover”, my nerves stand still every time. It takes me fucking back (swear jar, anyone?). i think it had been that for awhile even before he passed.

That whole April I had been listening to Prince again like never before. I had just broken up with my girlfriend at the time. I had just put Controversy and Sign O’ The Times back on my phone - and at work the next day...the morning papers.

My heart broke into one million pieces. Later that day, after listening to his music for hours, I finally wept at “4 The Tears In Your Eyes”. I was distraught for weeks.

When my girlfriend and I got back together later that May, we made sweet love to “Do Me, Baby”.

I just Ronin Ro’s bio on Prince. I liked it because it was critical, but honestly there were a lot of embarrassing typos and I just felt he was just trying to be too cool to care throughout the whole thing. I think reading the biography brought about these feelings. I needed to express them.

I’m not a Christian, but Prince almost makes me believe in God as He is portrayed in the Holy Bible.

I just wanted to let this all out. I also wanted to say I’m so sorry this happened. I wish he had gotten help. I’ve lost friends to drugs in my own personal life. I recently have celebrated one year of complete sobriety. I wish it was all a joke; that he was really alive and this was a big hoax. I would forgive him. God, it breaks my heart. I don't want to be sad anymore about this. I loved him so much. He was so important to my development as a person (I'm 22).

I never got to see him live but I did see a Prince cover group with my Gemini godfather, who reminds me so much of Prince, when I was 13. Purple Reign I think…

I’m sending you all my love.

Nice thoughts.

You and I and everyone on this damn board wishes it was a hoax. It's fucking terrible. No more seeing him ever? Terrible. Well...we have each other and our memories and whatever's in the vault. So, like he said, "I'll die but I won't go away."

williamb610 said:

purplegrimace said:

First, let me just say how great it is that this place still exists. I grew up on the Internet while social media was not the forefront yet - and I spent a LOT of time 2006-2011 on old school message boards like this one. At some point, I had an account on here when I was younger but I don’t think I ever posted. I also have no idea what email address I used for it or the username, but I digress.

Lately, I have been very sad. I suppose the last couple of days it has gotten better - but for the last two weeks it was also like when the news of Prince’s death was fresh.

To backtrack a bit, when I was 13 I developed the first phase of serious interest in music - and it began with Prince and Jimi Hendrix in 8th grade. I was suspended from school and rented Purple Rain from Blockbuster and it felt like the movie was filmed for me. The dynamics of family, passion for love, the question of God, and the ecstasy of the sincere music blew my mind and continues to. My mom played the Very Best of Prince in the car a lot when I was even younger than that, so I was vaguely familiar with his music. Shortly after, I got a purple Tripp trenchcoat from Hot Topic and also began a love affair for purple and paisley in general. For a short little white dude, Prince taught me that was fine. More than okay.

Prince made me pick up a guitar. Though for the last two year I have struggled with repetitive strain issues with my thumbs, it was listening to Prince that made guitar playing a viable form of expression. The band I was playing with at the time of his death had two shows that weekend. I dressed up as Purple Rain era Prince (though no blackface or anything weird like that). We jammed “Purple Rain” at the end of the show over my elegy of him. They were arguably our best shows.

Prince taught me how to be a lover. He taught me about devotion. My sense of humor got a little more sly and witty after getting to know him.

When I hear the opening chords of “I Wanna Be Your Lover”, my nerves stand still every time. It takes me fucking back (swear jar, anyone?). i think it had been that for awhile even before he passed.

That whole April I had been listening to Prince again like never before. I had just broken up with my girlfriend at the time. I had just put Controversy and Sign O’ The Times back on my phone - and at work the next day...the morning papers.

My heart broke into one million pieces. Later that day, after listening to his music for hours, I finally wept at “4 The Tears In Your Eyes”. I was distraught for weeks.

When my girlfriend and I got back together later that May, we made sweet love to “Do Me, Baby”.

I just Ronin Ro’s bio on Prince. I liked it because it was critical, but honestly there were a lot of embarrassing typos and I just felt he was just trying to be too cool to care throughout the whole thing. I think reading the biography brought about these feelings. I needed to express them.

I’m not a Christian, but Prince almost makes me believe in God as He is portrayed in the Holy Bible.

I just wanted to let this all out. I also wanted to say I’m so sorry this happened. I wish he had gotten help. I’ve lost friends to drugs in my own personal life. I recently have celebrated one year of complete sobriety. I wish it was all a joke; that he was really alive and this was a big hoax. I would forgive him. God, it breaks my heart. I don't want to be sad anymore about this. I loved him so much. He was so important to my development as a person (I'm 22).

I never got to see him live but I did see a Prince cover group with my Gemini godfather, who reminds me so much of Prince, when I was 13. Purple Reign I think…

I’m sending you all my love.

Nice thoughts.

You and I and everyone on this damn board wishes it was a hoax. It's fucking terrible. No more seeing him ever? Terrible. Well...we have each other and our memories and whatever's in the vault. So, like he said, "I'll die but I won't go away."

Amen! Welcome to you, purple bro'. Keep yourself alive--appreciate the gift, stay sober, and strive to reach and grow.