theAudience said:

Peace Brother Rick

Budsmoker said:

"Everything that I have written, is stuff that comes from me, like George Clinton he writes sci-fi Funk, and he is great at it. He is a quintessential Funk artist. My musical intake is so much that it is hard for me to be new wave, because I come from so many different areas, every song that I have ever written came from my heart, I am not Prince, I don’t write stupid s**t. I talk about the streets, love affairs, a fire desire."

...damn, i'll miss this cat. honestly.

psykosoul said:

saq10 said:

Sincere thanks.

It's the picture of him with his kid that brought it out.


Sometimes you have to let the bullshit walk.

tA

Tribal Disorder

http://www.soundclick.com...rmusic.htm

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

I found another pic.

mochalox said:

that bastid!

What

EverlastingNow said:

I doubt this seriously. Everyone was all worried when Orson Welles died that he'd be remembered for those commercials he did before he died and that was a load of hogwash. Rick will be remembered for his classic funk. RIP.

R.I.P.

I am TOTALLY shocked to hear this. A friend of mine emailed it to me this afternoon. No matter the trouble and scandal and bad things Rick did...he was truely an original and made some KICK ass jams.

RIP Rick James

otan said:

The damage he did to his body from partying back in the day could have still been lingering, it doesnt necessarily mean he was on drugs nowdays.

I didn't want to believe it either when I saw the first postings and no link, then it popped up on Yahoo. I called my mom and the first thing she said was at least we got to see him, which was in May at the Stone Soul Picnic. He was a trip, and he was having a bit of a revival of late. He lived it rough, and in most cases that comes back on a person. I'm gonna play his station on Musicmatch. Also at 5pm PST, Kiss FM which is streamed will be playing a Rick James tribute mix. Most who don't know the music the way we do here will only focus on the negative and make stupid general comments like those that are on Yahoo. We at least will keep the music playing.
http://www.981kissfm.com/main.html

This is such sad news, and i would like to ask PURPLEPEOPLEEATER to have some fucking respect!

and this is the best headline msnbc could come up with? talk about ill...

from msnbc.com:

Funk legend Rick James, best known for the 1981 hit ''Super Freak'' before his career disintegrated amid drug use and violence that sent him to prison, died Friday. He was 56.

Look's like he still didn't like Prince.

This is part 2 (pt one was posted yesterday by someone else) from his last interview with hiphop.com


AllHipHop.com: You guys made timeless music, we always say that the type of music Hip-Hop is, when we are older we won’t really be able to enjoy it…
Rick: Hip-Hop is a replica or a refurbished version of old school. When you can’t make a hit record unless you do a Rick James album what does that tell you? On one hand I love it, but on the other hand it is taking music out of schools and kids don’t know how to play instruments. They resort to the best thing they know how, like black people surviving, taking away an art form. Can I really love that? I am pro-black, so for me to see these kids grow up in the projects and they can’t play nothing, but they can take a Rick James record and turn that around the turntable as Rap: sitting, drinking Crystal. I mean it’s a beautiful thing just as well.

AllHipHop.com: What do you think about kids not playing instruments, I am a former musician myself I used to take interest in guitar and drums…

Rick: I think it is a very sad thing, I think it’s a plot by the government, number 1 to take music out of schools. I think it is the worst thing that the government has done to the educational program. When I was growing up, you could play guitar, drums, saxophone, learn music theory, harmony all that s**t. Now, you can’t even get an instrument in high school and kids have nothing to r resort too, and that’s a very sad thing.

AllHipHop.com: Can you speak on that project that you, Kanye West and Bumpy Johnson are doing? What did you guys do together?

Rick: Well that’s a very strange thing, how that happened. My son called me up once when I talked to him, and said to me that his favorite rapper was Kanye West, and I didn’t know who the hell Kanye West was. He had introduced me to Andre from Outkast in Atlanta and I didn’t know who the hell he was either. I was wearing an Outkast shirt that I had bought, so I went over to him and we talked, I told him I loved all his records, but I didn’t know one record. This Kanye West thing my son turned me on to it too and my ex-wife, she said “Rick you have to get this album by this kid, Kanye West,” so I said “why is it so special?” Because he doesn’t look like a rapper with gold teeth, baseball hats on the side, he’s not talking about b***hes and hoes, and he isn’t shooting people. He actually has some religious connotation to his music, which really attracted me. I went and bought the album and I liked it, thought this boy had some talent, next thing I am getting a call to do a Kanye West bit. So you know God works in mysterious ways.

AllHipHop.com: So did you play instruments or just sing?

Rick: What I did is, I laid about 16 tracks of vocals, just to help with the melody. He was a very sweet kid, very humble. It was really a joy; it is always a joy watching these young kids who learned from us do what they do now. Because a lot of stuff these kids are doing, I can’t do. I hear some tracks going on, and say what was he on? I think they need to get together more often. One of the reasons why Andre and Outkast is so great is because they grew up from what he told me, on the old school. I mean he knows about the Beatles; he knows about Rick James, Jimi Hendrix; he has done his homework. Their album is one of the best rap album’s I have ever heard.

AllHipHop.com: Did you work with Andre?

Rick: We are trying to match our schedules, it’s just that he is so busy now. What he is going through right now, I went through. He is so busy I don’t even like bugging him, and we keep missing each other on the phone. He wants to work with me really bad and I want to work with him also. But if we never work together its okay, I just want him to enjoy his fame. Who knows if next year anybody will buy Outkast; and if he strays to far away from his black base, he is really going to lose it. It going to be like a Prince thing, that’s what f**ked Prince up; he was getting too white. There is a middle ground there, cause I think me, Stevie Wonder, Earth Wind and Fire, The Commodores got that middle ground, unlike Lenny Kravitz. He wants to do a black thing but he is successful with his white thing, but he doesn’t feel comfortable because it’s a white thing and there are no black people in the crowd. If you have 20,000 white people out there paying 100.00 a ticket, and all are girls, be happy! People come over to my house, musicians, and Lenny won’t touch an instrument, because he feels inferior. Think about it, its like Hootie & the Blowfish trying to come up on stage and jam with me.

AllHipHop.com: You talking about a double album, talk to me a little bit about that.

Rick: It’s going to have about 26/27 songs and it is going to be very interesting, it is going to be a lot of things that I always wanted to do.

AllHipHop.com: What kind of label situation are you working out?

Rick: I am doing my own label, independent. I want to be just like Puffy. I want to make $700 million. If I could have done it 20 years ago, I would have done it.

AllHipHop.com: I spoke to Stephanie Mills, and she kind of echoed the same thing about the entrepreneurship of rappers and she’s doing her own independent thing too. I think that is a great thing for you guys especially because people are going to get it and you guys obviously get the lion share of their money.

Rick: When I was at the BET Awards this year, I was totally happy. When I saw [Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five], it almost brought tears to my eyes. Because they were so powerful and this is where Rap started, they weren’t singing about killing people and AK’s or sticking d*cks up b***hes asses. Then, Rap was a statement, “Don’t push me cause I am close to the edge” that’s still going on.” It’s like a jungle sometimes,” some of the greatest statement ever made. The old school segment was great, and my daughter got a chance to see how powerful Rap was, she got to see the originals.

AllHipHop.com: Would you say what you did back in the day was risky? “Super Freak,” was that shocking back then?

Rick: Everything that I have written, is stuff that comes from me, like George Clinton he writes sci-fi Funk, and he is great at it. He is a quintessential Funk artist. My musical intake is so much that it is hard for me to be new wave, because I come from so many different areas, every song that I have ever written came from my heart, I am not Prince, I don’t write stupid s**t. I talk about the streets, love affairs, a fire desire.

AllHipHop.com: What’s your favorite song?

Rick: I don’t really have a favorite song, but I have favorite moments. The moments with Temptations, I have the song with all seven Temptations, in the world and a video. Those are some of my proudest moments; there isn’t another recording with all seven. Recording with Smokey Robinson was another great moment; with Chaka Khan was another great moment.

AllHipHop.com: What about Eddie Murphy [Eddie Murphy scored a hit in the 80’s with the Rick James produced “Party All The Time”]

Rick: Eddie Murphy was a boring moment… it was exciting to take a comedian who has a great voice and give him a hit record.

AllHipHop.com: People try to crack jokes on that…

Rick: They can crack all the jokes they want on Eddie Murphy. DJ’s did not want to play, “Party all the Time.” He didn’t do radio. He was already a multi-millionaire. He said, “f**k y’all,” and they didn’t want him to be a success, but his record was so strong they couldn’t stop it. You can’t stop a hit record, a bulls**t record, you can promote the hell out of it and nothing will happen. There is no music that is going to change your way of dress, the constitution, your religion, or anything like that. Matter of fact a lot of Rap music has taken black people back 900 years. Whenever I hear black people say, “N***er,” it makes me sick to my stomach. Number one, the word has nothing to do with black people, it makes me sick to hear white people scream, “N***er,” because of the derogative term that it has come to be, which it wasn’t originally. Music has taken a turn for the worst, it is an art form, but I don’t call it music.

I really can't believe this Another legend gone

Rick James was definitely 1 of the funkiest brutha's ever. Despite thier differences Prince and Rick had mutual respect 4 each others talent and music. I saw Rick on vh1's now defunked The List show back in 1998 or 99 and the show was about the top performers of all time. And i think P made the top 5 and they asked Rick what he thought of P and Rick 2 my surprise said that P was a great entertainer and artist that P was a bad boy! I thought Rick was going 2 rant about how P stole his style or something but he never did. And during a friday night Paisly Park performance back during TGE/EXODUS days(96?). Producer Dallas Austin was a special guest on stage and P joked about him producing Emancipation 4 him, but during the set P&the NPG played You&I by Rick James. Anyway RIP Stone City Brutha!

billysparxxx said:

dead or alive, i still find it funny when rick james of all people starts talking about where somebody else fucked up. too funny!

SassyBritches said:

Tabloid journalism strikes again.

"Journalist" 1-"How can we put an attention grabbing part to piss all over the guys career?"

Journalist 2-"But, the man just died."

"Journalist" 1-"Yeah, but think of the ratings!"

Rick James just never seemed to get a fair shake. the Audience has put it the best-the music is what matters.

I hope people explore his past albums now and find songs they never knew about beyond "Superfreak" and realize Rick was never a one-hit wonder or a cheap punchline.

The man will be missed by those in the know-and even more later by the ones who catch up.

EverlastingNow said:

Only for the people who are too young to know his music, or too out of the loop to care.

I wonder if Prince will give him props at tonights concert in Houston.Out of respect for the man that's the least he can do..

rick represented the pimps,ho's and hustlers during his reign from 78-83. his music was like the soundteack to that street culture. his influence runs deep on so many levels. also,wasn't he one of the first people to make a song about weed?

When I read this on yahoo.com I got a little sick to my stomach, I guess I really liked his music..

I told this 24 yr old girl he died and she didn't know who he was.. she knew "U Can't Touch This" .... needless to say I'll be making her a Rick James cd this week..

I'm glad Dave Chapelle gave Rick his props before he died..

I was lucky enough to see Rick perform with James Brown at his comeback show in 1991..

Check this link for photos..

http://www.boston.com/ae/...james?pg=3


"I was born..., a city they call Buffalo, zero degrees below..., too damn cold and funky.."

This is really sad. I am a huge Rick James fan, I loved his music.

Condolences to his friends and family, and thanks for the fantastic music Rick.

Supernova said:

True. I'm glad I was able to see him in his prime, great show. I remember LOVING the way he did Hard to Get that night, great tune!!

EverlastingNow said:

What happened to all the other posts?

I actually teared up....damn damn damn.....


This saddens me....

PhilG said:

Mos def!

don't do drugs.....

CynicKill said:

what song would he do?

Handclapsfingasnapz said:

The Love We Make...