I just love the lyrics to this song. I don't see how Prince went from having this attitude to complaining about Abraham Lincoln being a racist 150 years ago.

Here's the complete lyrics. They are fun to read and are particularly memorable and brilliant, imo...

"
G-G-Gimme the beat now!
(Face the music) {repeat sample in song}
Lead line

If the air's a little thick in this room 2night
I reckon it's the result from an onslaught of separatist rookies
Overcome by this colorful sight
Talkin' so fast that even they
Talkin' so fast that even they don't know what they mean
Of all the things 2 base a rhyme
How is it that U every time regurgitate the racist lines that keep us apart?
Thank God this ain't Monopoly
U'd make us all go back 2 start

CHORUS:
Race in the space I mark human
Race - face the music
We all bones when we dead
Race in the space I mark human
Cut me, cut U
Both the blood is red, I gotcha!

Race {x2}

Check it
Three seats over there's a lady black
Entrusted 2 her care is a little white girl
And the fact of the matter is
Before her mama or another kid at school
Tell her 'bout the fallacy that one race rules over the other
She'd be a much-better-off-left fool
If we never heard about the evils that those before us committed
Then how my dear, tell me now how my dear…
Tell me now how now would we know?
And th-th-the band say…

CHORUS
Race {x2}

Down, down with H-I-S-T-O-R-Y
And all this BS propagandi
Keepin' U from me and me from U as we grow
I don't wanna know (I don't wanna know)
Why those before us hated each other
I'd rather believe they never did
I'd rather believe (I'd rather, I'd rather believe)
That there's hope 4 a kid
And if he imitates the best
I guess that's what I'll try 2 be
And I'ma let the rest dissolve with my guitar underneath the sea

Race
Face the music {x2}

Race in the space I mark human
Race - face the music
We all bones when we dead
Race in the space I mark human
Cut me, cut U
Both the blood is red
Get it? (Race)
Got it! (Race)

Face the music
(Race) {repeat}

"I don't see how Prince went from having this attitude to complaining about Abraham Lincoln being a racist 150 years ago."



He didn't lie, he told the truth. There's nothing racist about acknowledging the truth.

People grow and their opinions may change... Prince is no different.

I dont really see that "Avalanche" contradicts anything in "Race".Maybe they're written from different veiwpoints.
Maybe He was just trying to be provocative.

I think its way too possible to read too much into song lyrics.Especially around here.

One is seperate from the other.I TOTALLY get along with every kind of person and,yet,there are some ugly truths about life.That dosn't mean I hate.It means I'm informed and aware.I take what I learned and learna nd make it part of me and go forth in the world as a man.If I respect myself enough to learn,then one can get to know me and respect that I feel confident in myself and my knowledge.Then,we can be friends.And if you are from a different background and want to know something you can ask me.I won;t be offended because you sincerely wanted to know and come to me with respect.That's better than believing racist crap or misinformation from someone who was afraid to talk to someone different than themselves.

I don't necessarily take those lyrics so literally.I think it's more a mindset.Don't wallow in the past.Educate yourself and then,remember,that every member of any group isn't bad.There's good and bad everywhere.And don't use past injustices or,hell,past glories as excuses and crutches not to move on to more experiences and a successful life.Don't blame others for your failures.Look in the mirror.And don't be afraid of people that don't look like you.There are some cool folks out there.

If someone is pigheaded and hates you for no reason...just outdance them.Coz all the blood is red.The mind,the heart,and the spirit are your playground.is it raining or is the sun shining?It's your race.

Yeah, sometimes I miss the person who wrote the lyrics to "Race" -- but that stuff he said about Lincoln was very ill-informed... and yeah, I've done my research -- there's a side to Lincoln that's been supressed but it isn't that he was a racist. Quite the opposite.

I have more of a problem with the Race lyrics than Avalanche. Race is about denying history and pretending evils never happened, which is far more naive and dangerous than calling Lincoln a racist. I think We March is an example of a positive song in this vein, even if it's not as funky as Race.

Care to elaborate @ Jaszaih ?? Like I said, he didn't lie and the truth is the truth. It's late, but I'll be checking for your answer tomorrow.
[This message was edited Wed Dec 3 20:36:23 PST 2003 by Jade]

Jade said:

The point being that in 'Race' Prince considers the idea that bringing up ancient history only serves to keep us apart:

"How is it that U every time regurgitate the racist lines that keep us apart?"

"If we never heard about the evils that those before us committed
Then how my dear, tell me now how my dear…
Tell me now how now would we know?"

While in 'Avalanche' Prince himself brings up the ancient history that Abe Lincoln should be considered a racist.

The 2 ideas clearly contradict each other. But what the hey, we all contradict ourselves sometimes and our opinions change as we get older and learn new things.

i love this song. even Mayte sounds good on it.

but can somebody explain me the line:

"And I'ma let the rest dissolve with my guitar underneath the sea"

and i don't really want to compare the song to AVALANCHE.

metalorange said:

That's one hell of a tongue-twister.

I sing along to most of 'Race'...when I get to this part I just shut up.

Jasziah said:

---
What documents did you read? Lincoln wrote about the slavery issue and he was not in love with black folks.
He really wanted to send all of the slaves back to Africa.
To be fair this would have been the attitude of most people 150 years ago with the exception of abolishnist.

metalorange said:

---
He woke the hell up

Children aren't responsible for the sins of their parents.

laurarichardson said:

I think Jasziah's talking about Lincoln having an illegitimate child with one of his black slaves, and wanting to raise the child but feeling he would never be able to. I don't know what the 'truth' is in all this - I just heard this and I think it may be what Jasziah is referring to.

Efan said:

The way I read and hear it, Race is not about "denying" history, but makes a case to avoid "reliving" history every second of the day and instead do what is right, which has no basis on what someone did in the past. What someone did 100 years ago should not affect you at all and your feelings towards yourself or someone else. Of course I don't say it as beautifully as Prince does , but that is sort of his point as I hear it.

metalorange said:

Exactly! You get it and explained it lot more clearly than I did.

Jade said:

Right on! History is the truth. And since when does Prince or any other person expected to keep the same ideas or position of any issue for their entire lives? What a ridiculous origin post. I am giving it a zero

Never heard the song "Race" before, so I can't comment on that.

BlaqueKnight:

"I think he's growing to learn that".

Yep, that's exactly the feeling I got when I listened to that song on TRC. I immediately understood where he was coming from with that

TonyC said:

Rock and Roll! Whoo Hoo!

undulatingacrobat said:

Well, some people think about things before forming an opinion and they don't change that opinion every day like changing a pair of pants.

And I don't remember anyone saying it was "racist" to acknowledge the truth or talk about Abraham Lincoln. Your "straw man" argument is laughable, or maybe you just werne't paying attention.

But in the same fine tradition, I am appalled at your earlier post where you said that slavery was great. I totally disagree with your statement and I bet others on here agree...shame on you!

Jasziah said:

I was reading J.A. Rogers' "The Five Negro Presidents" again the other day. On Lincoln it said that he was "said to be the illegitimate son of a Negro by Nancy Hanks. In his campaign for the Presidency he was often referred to as a Negro by his opponents." It goes on.

Oh, I've never heard "Race."