eatgreat said:

ok, see, theres something i can understand, "the gun is violent, he uses his words of peace into the gun", that makes sense thanks for sharing that with me, now i feel better about the whole thing.....let the love rain down, go prince

freakebear said:

Exactly. I share that feeling.

ThreadBare said:

co-sign, my thoughts exactly

The gun mic was used as part of his transformation into a more "masculine" version of himself during the rise of gangsta rap, to which time he also stop wearing lace and things.

I was shocked when I first saw it years ago, didn't like. Wasn't to crazy about it when I saw him using it during the Simucast either. It just makes me a bit uncomfortable. I'm open to enlightenment on the subject.

purpledoveuk said:

i think the person meant the R&RHOF performance. i know he used it there. and maybe on Leno as well....

on one hand, i didn't like the gun mic back in the day, and i don't like it now.

But on the other hand - it was kinda cool seeing P perform w/ it again, because I figured he wouldn't really do that anymore. What will the JW's say about it?

Mmmmh, better a colt-like gun-mic than a winchester-like-mic, what do u think?

Well, he is the baddest mf on stage - dats gangsta shit fooooo

togdog said:

yes, my bad, the person, being me, meant the R&RHOF performance, thank you for clearing that up

Anyway it ain't that serious. The first time I saw it live was when he and Nona were on Soul Train and I immediately thought he was showing how easily a mic can be used as a weapon. He was displaying that the same power that lies in a gun, lies in one's words. I don't think anyone over age 5 should be appalled at seeing a gun the way all the other media has totally desensitized us to them. I think it was a clever gesture and of course it is still a little provocative because after all it is Prince but at the end of the day it is a MICROPHONE and that is all that matters to me. I don't care if he is singing into a shoe. I think sometimes we overanalyze things to the point that we make up our own meaning when the real one is simply right in our face and it ain't that serious. I got a tech nine too and it's called my brain.

nakedpianoplayer said:

WE'VE ALL GOT OUR OWN OPINIONS & PERSONALLY I DIGGED THE GUNMIKE THINGY.
WE COULD SPECULATE 4 EVER, MY FEELINGS R THAT PRINCE MIGHT BE TRYING TO BRING ATTENTION TO THE GUN LUST PREVALENT IN U.S.A.HE DON'T PLAY AROUND,AND EVEN THOUGH ASCETICALLY THINKING ABOUT GUN'S WHILE TRYING TO ENJOY A PERFORMANCE AINT WHAT I'D PREFER , PRINCE DOES AS HE WILL; THAT'S WHAT HE'S ABOUT.YEH,DROP THE GUN LOOK SWEET & MAKE UZ ALL FEEL PEACHY KEEN;IT'S NOT A PERFECT WORLD UNFORTUNATELY

VinaBlue said:

I'M WITH YA THERE, 10 , 4 VINA.

nakedpianoplayer said:

I think he's just being creative. The mic, along with several instruments are his weapons. I think that's the whole idea of it; "The mic, as a musical weapon." Just like he said in concert in L.A.: Greg Boyer said: "...don't hurt 'em Prince", Prince says; "What, I'm bout to knock them out!" Meaning knock them (us) out with funk.

I wouldn't look into it so deeply...

Blue

I never used to like the gun mic, probably because the whole gangsta thing never worked well for Prince. I found his work with rappers and hip hop music in general always very awkward and sometimes embarrassing. Even though the gun mic was unique, to me the image of him holding the gun represented him copying trends....and copying badly. He came off like he was trying too hard and the lame rappers and dancers really destroyed his credibility.

Recently, however when I saw him twirling the new black gun mic at the RRHOF performance. I must admit. He looked kind of badass!!! I think it was the combination of the more realistic looking gun mic and the white Tony Montana style suit. It seems to work for him now. The awkwardness is gone. He didn't just have Tony's look down, he also nailed Tony's swagger and confidence. You almost expect him to start talking trash like Tony.

I don't buy that whole "the gun is violent, he uses his words of peace into the gun" thing. He's doing it because he thinks it makes him look like a badass. This time convincingly. At the RRHOF he looked like an OG.

shafto said:

Yeah, except in certain schools of psychoanalytical thought, a mic is already a phallic symbol and so is a gun. So if you're holding a doubly charged phallic image up to your mouth... not that butch.

SPRAKA said:

I agree that's probably why he uses it but I strongly disagree that it's convincing. There is nothing hard or gangsta about him and he needs to quit it. That kind of fronting just reminds me of MJ: "Who's bad?" Oooh, what a thug. It's so bad it makes me embarrassed for him.

Also, while the shiny gold gun mic seemed kind of playful and toylike, the new, more realistic model just gives me a creepy suicidal vibe. And no, I'm not saying that's what Prince feels or is trying to communicate. But watching him sing into something that looks like a gun reminds me of every movie I ever saw where someone put the barrel of a revolver in their mouth and painted the wall with their brains. Not an image I need when I am trying to enjoy his performance.
[This message was edited Sat Apr 3 9:24:08 2004 by freakebear]

freakebear said:

thank you, thats my point exactly --- think about it, if he were singing into a dick mic, we would all say, oh, he's definately gay -- you cant help but to put it together when hes singing into the barrel of a gun, its a horrible vision when you think about it.....

i dont like guns, dont like violence, and prince to me has always reminded me of a peaceful soul that loves what he does, the gun thing just puts off a different type of visual, im not saying everything he does is gonna fit everyone, nor am i saying he should change it, the only thing im saying is that its kinda sad to watch...thats all, no less, no more

freakebear said:

When I said "convincing" I meant in a performance sense. I realize Prince is probably not gangsta and hard in real life. That's not the point. I'm sure actor Al Pacino is not a hard gangsta type in real life either but in performance he is pretty good at it. All I was saying is that I find his most recent use of the gun mic more entertaining than back in the day. The image of Prince as a gun toting gangsta is certainly not something I want to see from him on a regular basis. I really like gangsta movies especially Goodfellas and Scarface. I got a kick out his look on the RRHOF because it seemed like an homage to Tony Montana. Sometimes Prince is campy and it works. Sometimes Prince is campy and it's just cheesy (My Name is Prince video).

I guess it is really subjective. You interpret the performance with the gun mic to be creepy, which is fair. Some people find the use of guns in any context to be disturbing. I don't.

I was going to bring up the points about the gun/microphone as phallic symbol too because I sometimes enjoy overanaylzing things, but generally I don't see the microphone as a dick and I have never thought about the suicidal connotations until you brought it up. I just saw the performance as campy fun. I don't take Prince's performances that seriously.

WELL
Years back, when I thought Prince was gay or bisexual, I just though... you know...
If Prince were gay or bisexual, the mic would be... something to put his preferences on stage
But as he's not gay nor bi, I supposse the mic is...
Yah, cause, he's not gay... and he's not bi...
Is he?

whatever

is
he
firing
blanks?

eatgreat said:

I remember that also....I was going to bring this up, but you beat me to it

Guns can put an end to things, IMMEDIATELY. And WOW! If it's not a 'blank,' there goes one of God's greatest gifts to modern day man: Prince and his Music.

I just plain old don't like guns or the use of fake ones. My mother was robbed and raped by two men, at gunpoint. They were cowards. Real strength and power does not come from a death sentence. I also do not think that family members of those who have committed suicide in this manner would appreciate it either.

i'd much rather think of Prince's music and wisdom and a free flowing force for good.
[This message was edited Sat Apr 3 15:07:38 2004 by mzflash]

It definitely beats the headphone mics that a lot of singers wear on stage these days. Prince probably likes it cause he can get a good grip on it. No slipping. I dunno, never thought much about it. My focus is always on the man and the music.

i just think it's a dorky-lookin contraption.

I was glad 2 c the gun myke again.

nakedpianoplayer said:

The gun mic makes perfect sense for the following reason.

It is my belief that prince's philosophy on the mic gun thing is that it is in fact, NOT promoting violence, but it is promoting the funk, promoting music as a substitute for violence.

He is shootin the funk our way instead of bullets.

I always associated the gun mic with funk, it appeared first in "My Name is Prince", and i am FUNKY. It returns now with the new album and Prince proving once again, that he is funky.

The gun mic is just a way for Prince to try to act cool by glorifying violence in our society. It is like a rap thing.

He thinks it's cool...as if...

it's a really tired bit of prop. He should have left it retired along with the "Slave" thing and the symbol.