the new song "Dani California" reminds me of a couple of songs on the "3121" cd..
which brings me to my point. The new single by RHCP is not groundbreaking, and sounds like alot of their other songs to me. Yet its getting alot of airplay on radio. The video is shown quite often on MTV.
Why is it that the Peppers are getting more play then Prince?..is it because they have a better/funnier video?...is it because they will appear on almost any MTV show?....
I just don't get it.
This isn't a knock against the Peppers, just a search for understanding

To be brutally honest with ya and this is just my opinion but RHCP caters more to the MTV crowd than Prince does these days.

plus...Prince is weird.

the chili peppers are more into being crowd pleasers than prince is. i think the band cares about its craft, but i think they also have more of an interest in catering to their fans and casual music lovers. i think prince is a far more captivating live performer by a LONG shot, but he limits his appeal with the decisions he makes...which i'm not criticizing. it's just what it is.

i will admit that i have seen the Chillis three times now at different stages of their career and i found them to be a very lazy band.

i saw them just after One Hot Minute came out and i was underwhelmed.
then i saw them just a year after Californication and they seemed to be playing a rehearsal.
the last time i saw them they played Top of The Pops in London just before the last album and it was an extended set and to be honest i still was like,"these guys don't care about audiences, do they?"

i'll get the album but i wouldn't see them again.

Prince is better value for money on cd and live.

John Frusciante and Prince should do something together. Dueling lead guitars!

I've noticed there's a huge amount of promotion going on with the Chillis. Before the single was even released, they previewed the video on Channel 4, I heard the song on the radio 4 or 5 times a day. They then went onto appear on lots of chat shows, TOTP, radio, tv, etc. They even had news items about their album being leaked 2 weeks before (didn't that happen before to them...?).

The difference with Prince is that they play the promotional game - anywhere their managers and record companies want them to go or want them to do, they go along with it. It all leads onto good charts and sales even if the music isn't anything more special than normal. Prince just isn't willing to do more than the sporadic, limited promotion.

Some movies spend a third of the budget on promotion alone. In a similar vein, I suspect behind the scenes the Chillis' record company is paying out an awful lot to give them a big push. It's certainly different when you're one of the biggest acts on a label and it's not just a one-album deal where the record company has dimishing returns of effort. Of course, it's a lot easier with the Chillis as well because they have constantly stayed hip, something which Prince hasn't quite managed.

Milty said:

Yup. He's obsessed with the numbers 3121 nowadays...

rainbowchild said:

I think the Chili Peppers are more fun and appealing than Prince. There are only some people who listen to Prince's music and dig it, others listen to it and think it's the weirdest shit they've ever heard. Whereas alot of people who listen to a RHCP like it. They have more mass appeal at the moment than Prince does.

DarlingDiana said:

i think it's more than just that. if anything, the Chillis have their share of weird ass music. i mean just check out Blood Sugar Sex Majik. there's all sorts of cooky tracks on there.

if anything, i think prince's songs are quite "normal" vs anything they have done pre-Californication.

just my humble opinion, but the Peppers haven't had protracted squabbles with their label like a certain someone has....so there was or has been no BS when compilations have been released, thus giving the Peppers the appearance of giving the public what it wants and keeping them in the public's consciousness....Prince on the other hand (to many casual and not quite as hardcore fans) comes across as the ultimate DIVA with his steadfast refusal to sign off on certain projects, delaying or outright not releasing some of his compilations.....I know I don't have to remind anyone about the Crystal Ball debacle that still has some folks frosty....Prince for the most part has stayed up and quite relevant to his more loyal fans, but not on the casual level as the Peppers have with the general public...

...I don't know....but as always, MTV plays what they term relevant to the youth...and the youth seem to dig RHCP much more than they dig Prince....black sweat notwithstanding....
[Edited 5/13/06 16:26pm]

i find that RHCP get way overplayed, i mean they are an awesome band, but i really cant take much of Tony's vocals. I really prefer Fruscie on vocals but i dont think thats gonna happen 2 much with RHCP.
But yeah cause they r soooo big i think they get way too much air play, they deserve it and all but still, radio and video shows over use them!

metalorange said:

You make a very good point there. There were advertisements for the album on iTunes dating back to February. The label, which happens to be Warner Bros., seemed to be behind it from the very beginning.

PurpleRein said:

Because it's a rock song (Remember, MTV has been trying hard to re-establish its rock roots) and its a great fucking video....

Because Prince is an old fucking man..

Maybe when Taylor Hicks wins American Idol, young America will be kinder to our Princey poo.

2freaky4church1 said:

Dog...you silly (LOL)...The Peppers are as old as the midget...Has nothing to do with that...Dude should just get off of his "old" ass and promote his album...

2freaky4church1 said:

He's only four years older than three of the RHCP's.

I love that song. It sounds very Prince-like in a way. I guess they're getting more airplay than Prince because a lot of teens are into the Red Hot Chili Peppers, whereas you don't see a lot of teenagers listening to Prince these days, so that is what they wanna hear. It would also help if Prince had continued to promote his album.

I used to be into the Chillis back in the day. Like waaaay before I even thought about Prince.

I indeed saw them a few times, before Milty saw them. I saw them first on the Mothers Milk tour, then saw them on the BSSM tour. Yes, I even seen them do the 'sock' thing on the MM tour. (Imagine if Prince ever tried that....)

Comparing them to Prince is completely apples and oranges. They came out of the post punk LA scene. They came out of the whole 'college rock' alternative scene. Prince was NEVER about 'college rock' or alternative music. They used to do heroin and party big time. Flea used to be in the punk band FEAR. Prince was never even close to any of this. For Prince, it was R&B and such.

That being said-Flea is THE MOST BADASS BASS PLAYER ever. Period. End of story. Hands freakin down. Don't even front. Take all of Prince's bass players and together they cannot hold a candle in the same ballpark as Flea. Larry too.

Also-since we're talking about the Chillis, we have to give it up for FISHBONE. One of the most criminally underrated bands ever.

2freaky4church1 said:

And Prince is 47, Anthony Kiedis is 43 going on 44 Flea is 45, point being.

Plus I love RHCP have since Mothers Milk, the new song is great, Californication and By the Way were great albums and that new single sounds good too, I am definitely getting Stadium Arcadium.

I liked the Chilis upto One Hot Minute and then gave up on them.....but the new album is awesome, a return to form.... Only, Dani California I can't stand!
And what's so great about the video? I find it very unoriginal.....

I'm about to give up on Prince if he doesn't start a tour soon for affordable prices.....haven't been impressed with his cd's in years.....also 3121.

The Chilli Peppers will always get more airplay than Prince. Prince is just too "weird" for the mainstream/MTV audience. He's a 47 year old Jehovah's Witness who looks kind of girly, wears high healed boots and a lot of make-up and sings about "workin' up a black sweat"... case closed!

toejam said:

tell us how you really feel about prince....if he had long black hair, never wore a shirt onstage, had tattoos, came onstage with just a sock on his penis, he'd be a chili pepper.

my thread isn't about one band being better or worse then Prince, just trying to understand why if their music isn't anything new from them, as people have suggested 3121 isn't anything new from Prince, why they get airplay and he doesn't. Willingness to promote seems to be a common sentiment. Leave your snarkey comments at the door

how many fucking songs can the Suck Ass Chili Peppers make with Califonia in the title should be the real question

Mazerati said:

I mentioned this be4 but there is a radiostation in my country that
plays all the latest P-singles every day!!
Fury is once again on their playlist and this a radiostation that is really well-known and is popular with the youngstrs and older rock/alternative/
funk/rap/blues crowd!

But,The Peppers have been voted nr 1 by their listeners last week,
while there is no sign from Fury!
It's like some already pointed out;the young people still love The Peppers
while Prince has an older fan-base.

Maybe it's because they have reached stardom
in '91 with Under The Bridge while P already was on top for almost 10 years???
I mean,while The Peppers still be hip in 2016???
They maybe as old as Prince,their carreer ain't!

Anyway,I have listened 2 the band since thier second album while nobody in
my town knew about them and I still think they are great!!

And I really love Dani California,it sounds familiar but I just can't stop listening 2 it.

RHCP

I really like the RHCP myself, funnily enough I was listening to Blood Sex Sugar Magik yesterday.

But I do feel they aint tried anything new in a while. I hear the new album is a little different, so maybe thats about to change.

It seems to me that most of the biggest bands in the world are "samey". U2, RHCP, Coldplay to name just a few.

Look what happened with Radiohead, a massively popular band until Kid A came out. Most people are afraid of the change, afraid to like the different "weird" stuff, as if it would be some sort of insight into their REAL character.

Prince suffers from this as well. It's only truly brave people who are willing to be associated with someone considered strange by the general populus.