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Thread started 01/12/20 2:52pm

littlemissG

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Has Prince ever spoke about if fame was worth the price?

I am sure the money made dreams come true, but staying in his home town makes me think he would had like to be Joe Blow sometimes. I remember a story about a tour bus drive who ask Prince he didn’t he just fly? Prince response was I get sometime when no one wants anything from me. Plus there was many Scarface’s made to reach and stay a star. An awareness that people made have hidden agendas, and critics.
What do you think.
No More Haters on the Internet.
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Reply #1 posted 01/12/20 6:18pm

Seahorsie

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Probably like so many others, you strive for something you don't yet understand all the consequences that will come with it. I think he wanted to make all the music he wanted to, in a studio he owned so that could happen practically around the clock. Also, he wanted the world to hear his music, trying to put out positive messages to try to change attitudes about many things.

I truly don't think he was all that concerned with the actual $ all his productivity brought. If he was that concerned with the money aspect, perhaps he might have had a will, or had a Revocable Trust document drawn up. Just my opinion...........

Good morning children...take a look out your window, the world is falling...
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Reply #2 posted 01/13/20 2:34am

RJOrion

Prince once told a Minneapolis reporter (Jim Walsh), "...i've been to the mountaintop, and there's nothing there..."
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Reply #3 posted 01/13/20 3:20am

PURPLEIZED3121

GOLD.

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Reply #4 posted 01/13/20 3:23am

TheEnglishGent

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Not sure if I've ever heard him speak directly but the song Cause & Effect addresses it in some manner.

If had the chance to do it all again

I wouldn't change a thing, except my next of kin
There's something on the tip of my tongue
-got a taste for sin
If you stamp your passport full of regret
You have nothing to remember but a lot to forget
Leave no enemies, leave no debt

If I could talk to myself back then right now
I'd say 'son you might wanna, stick around
Something amazing is about to go down'
If I could leave myself just 1 little note
One that husbands and fathers wrote
It say 'you need to be a superstar or grow up,
But not both'

RIP sad
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Reply #5 posted 01/13/20 7:57am

PurpleColossus

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I'm sure Prince recognized the negative elements of fame...but I also get the sense that he greatly appreciated fame because it allowed him to create his own world and focus solely on music. IMO it was also a very wise decision to stay in Minnesota, as it helped him stay true to himself (In his own unique Prince way) giggle

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Reply #6 posted 01/13/20 10:29am

ladygirl99

I think Prince knows the plus and negative side. he did complain to Dez during 1999 tour they can't do the stuff like they did before such as hanging out and stuff and the isolation but at the same time the music is what help keep him focus and just went with the flow. He was very prepared for fame since day one as he was very fierce protective with his privacy until the end which it I am afraid not always help him when he needed help.

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Reply #7 posted 01/13/20 10:55am

nayroo2002

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TheEnglishGent said:

Not sure if I've ever heard him speak directly but the song Cause & Effect addresses it in some manner.

If had the chance to do it all again

I wouldn't change a thing, except my next of kin
There's something on the tip of my tongue
-got a taste for sin
If you stamp your passport full of regret
You have nothing to remember but a lot to forget
Leave no enemies, leave no debt

If I could talk to myself back then right now
I'd say 'son you might wanna, stick around
Something amazing is about to go down'
If I could leave myself just 1 little note
One that husbands and fathers wrote
It say 'you need to be a superstar or grow up,
But not both'

LADIES N GENTLEMEN!!!

"Whatever skin we're in
we all need 2 b friends"
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Reply #8 posted 01/13/20 12:14pm

TheEnglishGent

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He also spoke/sung about it at one of the Indigo aftershows in London. I think it might even be on the Indigo Nights disc.

Talked about how things have changed and he can't even go outside no more. How he used to go to the shops for his Mom to get cigarettes and tampons. How the ladies react differently to him now etc. But inside he's still the same, something else changed.

[Edited 1/13/20 12:15pm]

RIP sad
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Reply #9 posted 01/13/20 6:57pm

PeggyO

I think I read somewhere that Wendy said Prince was immediately comfortable with fame...had been practicing for some time.

Though, during his long career, it waxed and waned and that may have caused some anxiety.

None of us regular folks can afford 'yes' men, though, and that is to our benefit in the long run.

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Reply #10 posted 01/13/20 7:47pm

Mikado

I don't think it ever bothered him to the extent it did other celebrities, especially towards the end of his life. I imagine a lot of that is down to the fact that he stayed in his hometown and didn't live full time in Los Angeles. He kept a lot of who he was and didn't feel the need to change or contort himself into something he wasn't which surely helped as well.

A certain kind of mellow.
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Reply #11 posted 01/14/20 9:54am

sulls

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Sung about it in songs like 'Don't Play Me' and 'My Name Is Prince'

"I like to watch."
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Reply #12 posted 01/14/20 11:38pm

lavendardrumma
chine

I think some of ATWIAD dealt with fame.

He appeared to like being a celebrity. Even before he was a star, he was treated special. There are also a lot of stories where he went and did things like a normal person, and he found balance by living in Minneapolis. His private life got insular and sad sounding to me, but then he also had the ability to find an Andy Allo and he could go to a club, sit in the corner and satisfy himself to some degree. Very few stars have that ability or find the balance they need to function. If he wanted more common person life, he seemed able to go pump gas or stop into the record store, and do things relatively under the radar. It seems like he built the life he wanted.

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Reply #13 posted 01/15/20 3:36am

herb4

There's a Musicology acoustic number (Prince and the Band) where he says "whatever u can't do alone, it aint worth the fame"

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Reply #14 posted 01/15/20 5:11am

leadline

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I believe his music answers that question explicity.


[Edited 1/15/20 20:33pm]

"You always get the dream that you deserve, from what you value the most" -Prince 2013
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Reply #15 posted 01/15/20 2:20pm

thx185

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I was listening to AOA today for the first time in a while. BREAKDOWN was breaking me down, such a glimpse into the man's soul. I can to the org to be in the community while feeling this close to him and found this post. So yeah - he sure did speak about it..

Listen to me closely as the story unfolds
This could be the saddest story even been told
I used to want the house with the biggest pool
Reminiscing now I just feel like a fool

[Chorus]
Keep breaking me down, down, down
Keep breaking me down, down, down
Keep breaking me down, down, down
Keep breaking me down, down, down

[Verse 2]
I used to throw the party every New Year's Eve
First one intoxicated, last one to leave
Waking up in places that you would never believe
Give me back the time, you can keep the memories

[Chorus]
Keep breaking me down, down, down
Keep breaking me down, down, down
Keep breaking me down, down, down
Keep breaking me down, down, down

Rest in peace, my friend, you're broken down no longer and free

"..free to change your mind"
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Reply #16 posted 01/15/20 2:32pm

CherryMoon57

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sulls said:

Sung about it in songs like 'Don't Play Me' and 'My Name Is Prince'


This is the first one that came to mind when I saw the thread title...

Don't play me
I'm over 30 & I don't smoke weed
I put my ass away & music I've played
aint the type of stereo U're tryin to feed
Don't play me
Don't play me
I use proper English & I'm straight
I'm in the news again for paying dues my friend
And not the type of ganda U prop in my way
Don't play me

Don't play me
I've been to the mountain top & it aint what U say
Don't play me

Don't play me
I'm the wrong color & I play guitar
My only competition is me in the past
And time & time if time existed movin ever so fast
Don't play me

U couldn't play enough of me now
2 make me feel like a star
Don't play me I already do in my car
Don't play me

Don't be mad at me
The curtain puller in the game
Maybe how U call us Niggers aint the same
It's all good when u know the only fame
Is the light that comes from God & the joy U get 2 say His name
Don't play me

Don't play me
I've seen to the mountain top & it aint what U say
Don't play me

I already got laid


[Edited 1/17/20 16:24pm]

Life Matters
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Reply #17 posted 01/21/20 1:31am

violetcrush

sulls said:

Sung about it in songs like 'Don't Play Me' and 'My Name Is Prince'


The song My Name Is Prince is more about him declaring his talent as a musician and that he is still the funkiest.
*
He had several songs about the price he paid for fame, but I think one of the best is The Sacrifice of Victor.
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Reply #18 posted 01/24/20 6:42pm

violetcrush

lavendardrummachine said:

I think some of ATWIAD dealt with fame.

He appeared to like being a celebrity. Even before he was a star, he was treated special. There are also a lot of stories where he went and did things like a normal person, and he found balance by living in Minneapolis. His private life got insular and sad sounding to me, but then he also had the ability to find an Andy Allo and he could go to a club, sit in the corner and satisfy himself to some degree. Very few stars have that ability or find the balance they need to function. If he wanted more common person life, he seemed able to go pump gas or stop into the record store, and do things relatively under the radar. It seems like he built the life he wanted.

Nah, I think it may seem like he had the life he wanted on the surface, but I think he was lonely, especially toward the end of his life. Going to clubs and sitting in a roped off section alone is quite sad to me. I don't think he often had geniune experiences with people - as in, just being "down to earth" without the pretense or being guarded. I think he did love the fame and the adoration of a crowd, so keeping up the mystical "facade" was necessary. He seemed to lose any semblance of a regular personal life once Purple Rain hit.

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Reply #19 posted 01/25/20 4:00am

Steelclawz

funny thing we all thought of a marticular song for this thread... well the song that came to me right away would be "Rich Friends"

In it he says

"Money cant buy happiness, but it'll pay for the search"

So right there is the answer to your question

[Edited 1/25/20 4:00am]

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Reply #20 posted 01/25/20 9:20am

violetcrush

Steelclawz said:

funny thing we all thought of a marticular song for this thread... well the song that came to me right away would be "Rich Friends"

In it he says

"Money cant buy happiness, but it'll pay for the search"

So right there is the answer to your question

[Edited 1/25/20 4:00am]

That's a good one. He had many songs that seemed to express the high price he paid for the fame. No doubt, based on songs like Reflection and Breakdown, by his later years he really understood some of the important things he lost along the way.

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Reply #21 posted 01/25/20 10:22am

looby

Fame or anything associated with fame is ever worth the price.

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Reply #22 posted 01/25/20 11:05am

jfenster

twisted sister---the price

rush---limelight

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Reply #23 posted 01/25/20 1:00pm

XxAxX

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Big White Mansion sad

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Reply #24 posted 02/03/20 6:25pm

Seahorsie

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And on the topic of songs where he told us about his view of fame, "Dream Factory" always comes to mind for me.

Hollyrock ain't all it seems (Lordy)

Don't get too serious, it's just a dream

Don't forget your fiends, they're all you've got (Lordy)

Listen to the story of a man I am not

Party all night, hanging out

In the streets more than I be at home

I take a pill to wipe away my doubts

But a pill can't cure my being alone

Vodka and 7 straight to my braibn

Put me under false impressions, hide all my pain

Somebody help me, I'm losing control

This is what it's like in the Dream Facory, oh!

Good morning children...take a look out your window, the world is falling...
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Reply #25 posted 02/03/20 8:25pm

violetcrush

Seahorsie said:

And on the topic of songs where he told us about his view of fame, "Dream Factory" always comes to mind for me.



Hollyrock ain't all it seems (Lordy)


Don't get too serious, it's just a dream


Don't forget your fiends, they're all you've got (Lordy)


Listen to the story of a man I am not


Party all night, hanging out


In the streets more than I be at home


I take a pill to wipe away my doubts


But a pill can't cure my being alone


Vodka and 7 straight to my braibn


Put me under false impressions, hide all my pain


Somebody help me, I'm losing control



This is what it's like in the Dream Facory, oh!


Dream Factory wasn’t Prince singing about himself though. It was written about Paul Peterson in retaliation for his abruptly leaving the camp to pursue his solo deal. The lyrics are written as if Paul is singing them -
*
“A man came up to me, smile in his eyes (Prince)
He told me I was a saint (Saint Paul)
So I'm quittin' my friends much to their surprise (Paul left)
I can't live up to the picture that they paint
Ah somebody help me, I'm losing control..”
*
I believe Paul had issues with drugs and or alcohol when he was out in LA. He’s mentioned he no longer drinks.
*
I think Prince’s songs about his own price paid for fame started with The Sacrifice of Victor, as that is around the time that the conflict with WB took off, and he had lost all of his associates from the 80’s.
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Reply #26 posted 02/04/20 6:20pm

Seahorsie

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violetcrush said:

Seahorsie said:

And on the topic of songs where he told us about his view of fame, "Dream Factory" always comes to mind for me.



Hollyrock ain't all it seems (Lordy)


Don't get too serious, it's just a dream


Don't forget your fiends, they're all you've got (Lordy)


Listen to the story of a man I am not


Party all night, hanging out


In the streets more than I be at home


I take a pill to wipe away my doubts


But a pill can't cure my being alone


Vodka and 7 straight to my braibn


Put me under false impressions, hide all my pain


Somebody help me, I'm losing control



This is what it's like in the Dream Facory, oh!


Dream Factory wasn’t Prince singing about himself though. It was written about Paul Peterson in retaliation for his abruptly leaving the camp to pursue his solo deal. The lyrics are written as if Paul is singing them -
*
“A man came up to me, smile in his eyes (Prince)
He told me I was a saint (Saint Paul)
So I'm quittin' my friends much to their surprise (Paul left)
I can't live up to the picture that they paint
Ah somebody help me, I'm losing control..”
*
I believe Paul had issues with drugs and or alcohol when he was out in LA. He’s mentioned he no longer drinks.
*
I think Prince’s songs about his own price paid for fame started with The Sacrifice of Victor, as that is around the time that the conflict with WB took off, and he had lost all of his associates from the 80’s.

Did not know that, thanks!!! But still a sad commentary in song.
Good morning children...take a look out your window, the world is falling...
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Reply #27 posted 02/04/20 6:39pm

violetcrush

Seahorsie said:

violetcrush said:


Dream Factory wasn’t Prince singing about himself though. It was written about Paul Peterson in retaliation for his abruptly leaving the camp to pursue his solo deal. The lyrics are written as if Paul is singing them -
*
“A man came up to me, smile in his eyes (Prince)
He told me I was a saint (Saint Paul)
So I'm quittin' my friends much to their surprise (Paul left)
I can't live up to the picture that they paint
Ah somebody help me, I'm losing control..”
*
I believe Paul had issues with drugs and or alcohol when he was out in LA. He’s mentioned he no longer drinks.
*
I think Prince’s songs about his own price paid for fame started with The Sacrifice of Victor, as that is around the time that the conflict with WB took off, and he had lost all of his associates from the 80’s.

Did not know that, thanks!!! But still a sad commentary in song.

Yes, it is a sad story. Prince could be quite spiteful, as we know confused
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Reply #28 posted 02/08/20 10:57am

jfenster

must i get on my knees and crawl.... must i have no image at all

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Reply #29 posted 02/10/20 6:25pm

violetcrush

jfenster said:

must i get on my knees and crawl.... must i have no image at all

The lyrics are actually..."Must I become naked? No image at all?
Shall I remain upright? Or get down and crawl?"

*

I think The Question of U was a love song to a particular woman and not about his fame being worth the price - unless the "you" in the song is meant to be fame itself, and not referring to a person.

*

He usually played the song before/after Venus De Milo, Honest Man, or UTCM, and during the Nude tour he sang it with Electric Man while humping the stage as if he's having sex biggrin So, I think that song is tied to a relationship.

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