Wow!

First, I don't get the Prince/Van Hunt comparison. When I listen to Van I hear Curtis Mayfield more than anything if I was forced to compare.

Secondly, he can whine and rant on his blog any way he sees fit but he could have done so without bringing up Prince at all. He didn't blatantly insult the man but he did take a couple swipes for no good reason. Why do that if you claim to have met the brotha and know that he digs you? All he had to do was state that he doesn't feel he should be compared to Prince and emphasize what he feels is unique about himself. Better yet, take it to the stage.

Third, if he'd bothered to read the org past his own name he would have discovered something interesting...Prince himself gets more crap on here than all other artists combined and he's still steppin'. Man up, dude.

Forth, I recognize and respect Van's talent even though it doesn't quite suit my particular taste, (Martin Luther's my guy), and for that I should kiss his ass? I was on the fence with Van and willing to keep an open mind but that statement won't help me decide in his favor.

Lastly, as I've mentioned on other threads, I'd like to see more civilized exchanges taking place here as opposed to resorting to the tired "fanbot vs hater" screeds...so predictable.

If I were Van no doubt I would be offended and tempted to lash out, but I would tell him the same thing I would tell anyone who ~chooses~ a public life. Everybody wants the meat and gravy that comes with celebrity but nobody wants the bones. The thing is that with almost any choice you make in life the bones will be there to deal with whether it's fair or not. Van's challenge is to find a way to deal with it in the most constructive manner possible and he could have done better with this one.

----
[Edited 1/15/08 10:14am]

I'm not a fan, but I can understand his frustration. In the past, public figures only had the media to think about, and as we all know, the media is sanitised and censored. If you're being hyped up, no-one in the media is gonna put a pin into your balloon. Witness the fawning treatment Alicia Keys was given, being called "the Beethoven of her day", "the new Stevie Wonder", etc. The internet is the opposite. It's raw and unruly which means an awful lot of shit is spoken, but an awful lot of truth is spoken too that otherwise wouldn't be heard.

However, from the artist's POV I think they should stay away from the internet because it will drive you crazy. You can't stop people talking, so it's best to ignore it, although I understand that's easier said than done. Van has every right to respond to what he read, and I don't think he has anything to be embarassed about either, though he might want to rethink the bit about fast-forwarding through Prince's guitar solos.

As for the Prince comments, I think we all know P's best days are long behind him, but so what? Ultimately an artist must be judged for their best moments, not their worst, and Prince's best moments are plentiful and ten times higher than most could ever hope to reach. Van's also wrong to say that Bob Dylan and Neil Young never made crap records. They did. He's right that Prince set out to be a star, but again, so what? That's not a crime as long as you're genuinely bringing something worthwhile to the party, and only a fool would deny that Prince did that. Basically, I think Van was just pissed and vented some of that on Prince. It probably wasn't the wisest move, but everyone knows you can't be wise and pissed off at the same time. Those two things just do not go together.
[Edited 1/15/08 9:45am]

It's the mark of a man how he acts when he's frustrated, so on that level, Van Hunt fails as well. He sure has a lot of "cool fans" on his "My Space" page though! To think, "the second coming" is relegated to posting some comments on a My Space instead of out changing the world and selling out 21 Nights in London. Maybe if I had BET, I'd be able to catch some more of his oh so meaningful music. Imagine if Prince's career was so low that he had to stoop to writing blogs on My Space calling this or that person a good songwriter. He'd never hear the end of it!

For disgrace himself and all music, I hereby state that Van Hunt's named will now and forever known to be... Van Stupid!

Fiona01 said:

Who says that people aren't seeing past? Wrong is wrong...what's wrong with calling it as you see it?
Next CD he puts out, I'm still buying. When he's in town, I'll try to get there...it doesn't change his music, but I do think slightly less of him as a person.

Bad move Mr. Hunt. The initial plan was to buy your latest album. The plan has changed now: I'm gonna download it and burn it on a CD-R.

Oh, and btw: from now on I'll call you Van Cunt.

Some of you mf's are ridiculous, for real

You express yourself very eloquently !

midnightmover said:

CalhounSq said:

This really wasn't necessary to say.... but I'm glad you did.

My, he wasn't very happy, was he? Understandable, but a dignified silence might have been a better idea.

violator said:

I know, right? It's just reached the point of goofy, like mf's gotta pick sides or it's a contest or something. Both are in a small pool of artists I call my "favorites", I appreciate them both. I just don't understand getting all fired up in defense of P who, while brilliant & a legend & the whole thing, has clearly been coasting for years now... & getting all vile against a dude who is undoubtedly talented, though he may not be your cup of tea. It's just dumb... Everybody's got room to grow, even Prince... muthafuckas

vivid said:

yes I can understand why an artist would be outraged by what they might read about themselves, but imagine Prince trying to respond to every comment about Planet Earth being unlistenable, worthless, utter garbage, shit sandwich...

It would drive a person nuts. I think VH's initial comment about not giving it any energy would be the best thing for his own sanity.

CalhounSq said:

Yes of course, naughty naughty.


[Edited 1/15/08 12:13pm]

NDRU said:

You're right. If he had left it at that, it would have made him seem the better person...and above it all. Having said that, I kinda like that he showed his human side.

I know it seems like a double standard, but it's really not, because there are very fine lines here. If he were "on top" and on all the mag covers etc...then it would have come across as wrong, but since he's now "underdog", he can get away with it. He really has been overlooked, but his time will come. He just needs a bit of patience.

The only problem is that he slighted Prince. And it didn't have to be Prince, it could have been any artist of that status. It still would have been wrong if he claims to like the person.

wonder505 said:

Good post, but I really don't think he was saying that. I don't think Van thinks for a minute that his best moments are anywhere near as good as Prince's. I think he was just saying he aspires to be a consistently great songwriter in a way that he doesn't think Prince is.Some may say it's just semantics, but I think there's a clear distinction. (FWIW, through their first 3 records, I definitely think he's on the right track. Of course, time will tell.)


13-14 as far as I'm concerned.

CalhounSq said:

CalhounSq said:

For whatever reason that made me feel fuckin ill inside....



....but in a sexy way.

Dance said:

....now i wanna hit that.

who the fuck is Van Hunt?

CalhounSq said:

Serena said:

You've probably seen him, and heard his music before, here's a pic:

bsk3601 said:

Hey look, it's not about picking sides, or about "fanbots" who can't stand the thought of anyone saying anything negative about Prince. The thing that pisses me off is that Van Cunt (yeah it's childish) starts taking shots at Prince because of what a few anonymous internet music critics said about him that hurt his pride.
Why did he have to dog on Prince? Yes, he has every right to, but it just doesn't make sense.
If Prince had said this shit about Stevie, I would have felt the same about Prince as I do Cunt, I mean Hunt.
Fucking no talent poser.

babynoz said:

I totally agree with this.

I had no clue about who he was but now I feel that despite the fact that some songs of him I just listened to where cool, I will not pay interest to his music.

Luckily I had not read a prince interview when I began buying his CDs

Dear Diary,

I like to visit Prince.org a few times a week to stay up to date on current Prince info and read about other artists. While doing this I always notice these same pricks on there all the time. Some of them have even accumulated over 4 or 5,000 posts! Believe it or not, on a site devoted to Prince.
Yet, these pricks seem to possess this holier than thou attitude. They love to call people on a PRINCE site "fanbots", "prince fags", "zealots", "blind worshippers' and all kinds of cute little names if they happen to actually talk highly of Prince on this PRINCE devoted site. I think it makes them feel "cool" or something. They tend to hang out in the Music: non-Prince section because somehow I think they believe it makes them more knowledgeable or hipper than the people in the Prince section.

You are on a fucking PRINCE site! Wake up. If you are tired of hearing how great Prince is go bury yourself on another music forum. I know that I personally won't miss your arrogant ass.

BlaqueKnight said:

Accujack said:

I'm sorry, what shots did he take @ P exactly?

CalhounSq said:

My take from Van Hunt's rant is that he is indirectly saying that Prince is not a great songwriter. If that's not how you read it then, oh well. That is what I get out of it, and that is taking a shot at Prince.

Accujack said:

well if that is how Van Hunt feels its his right. I think his point is that his strength as a songwriter is not that of Prince especially from the last decade. I don't have a problem with it, it's just that if I was a musician I would not voice that publically, even if its true, it just doesn't seem proper or appropriate somehow, perhaps with my musician friends I would discuss but not venting like that in a public forum, be it Van Hunt or Prince or any musician, I just think doing that is kind of tacky.

Imagine you invite somebody to your house to jam and hang out, then you see that person you invited venting on myspace saying how your songwriting is wack and then you scroll down and read all these comments of folks agreeing with him how your songs in the past ten years suck. Gosh.that wouldn't sit too well with me....even if it was true.
[Edited 1/15/08 16:14pm]