On 4/23/2016 3:19 PM, Je�us wrote:
> On Sat, 23 Apr 2016 07:27:40 -0300, wrote:
>
>> Ditto. I recall all the fuss at the time of Purple Rain and his
>> announcement that in future he would be known just as 'Prince'
>
> I think his various names throughout his career went something like:
>
> Prince Rogers
> Prince
> Symbol
> The Artist Formerly Known as Prince
> Prince
>
>
He BROKE the stranglehold labels had on artists, making them virtual
slaves to the suits.
He was a great person.
http://blackgrooves.org/slave-trade-...usic-business/
From hits like Purple Rain to near disasters following a name change to
an unpronounceable symbol, music risk-taker Prince has surprised fans,
the music industry, and the entire world with his stunts. Despite heavy
setbacks, such as album failures that left him on the verge of
bankruptcy and a controlling contract from Warner Bros., Prince never
ceased doing what he loved most: making music. Slave Trade: How Prince
Re-Made the Music Business is a documentary that takes viewers back to
the late "70s, highlighting all the twists and turns of Princes career
through the present day. The film focuses on the artists strong
disagreement with his record label, Warner Bros., and how his oppression
from their contract drove him to lead a revolution of the music business.
Prince has always been a daring character, and the film shows him
pushing boundaries at every opportunity. True to his style, Prince
recognized that his label, Warner Bros., was paying other artists like
Madonna and Michael Jackson more than him, so he demanded change. After
expressing how he deserved to have a $100 million contract that exceeded
those of his competitors, Warner Bros. took the bait and saw this as a
way to trap the artist by requiring him to sell 5 million copies of each
of his next four albums. Prince was up to the challenge, releasing the
commercial hit Diamonds and Pearls, but unfortunately fell short on his
next project, Love Symbols, selling only 1 million units. Still, the
artists stubborn attitude saved him from disaster as he took matters
into his own hands and went on an intimate tour of the U.S. to promote
Love Symbols. Little success followed, but still Prince kept producing
new music, the crux of his problem.
As the new decade approached and gangster rap dominated the music scene,
Prince never faltered and produced yet another album through a side
project Gold Nigga, trying to incorporate this new sound. Warner Bros.
refused to market the album, claiming the music was bad. Not
surprisingly for Prince, he directly violated his contract by promoting
the album on his own through telephone calls and booths at his concert.
Warner Bros. was furious and in a move of final retaliation, Prince
changed his name to the hieroglyph from Love Symbols, severing his ties
with Warner Bros. and the €ścorporate entity€ť of Prince. Rock bottom was
on the horizon, but still €śthe artist formerly known as Prince€ť made
music, releasing the single €śThe Most Beautiful Girl in the World€ť
without any corporate help, just private support. Warner Bros. execs sat
back and were ready to laugh at the destruction of his career, but were
promptly slapped in the face with surprise when €śThe Most Beautiful Girl
in the World€ť became a worldwide hit. With renewed confidence, the
artist pushed the envelope farther than ever before when he proposed the
idea of releasing a €śPrince€ť album and a €śLove Symbol hieroglyph€ť album
on the same day to see which one fans would buy; the old Prince or the
new Prince. In perhaps a wise choice from the label, the idea was shot
down and from that point on in 1995, the artist formerly known as Prince
began to appear in pubic with the word €śslave€ť scrawled across his face;
that is, a slave to the music business.
With tensions at an all-time high between artist and label, The Gold
Experience in 1995 became the last album released under the contract.
While the album was musically impressive, even more so than Diamonds and
Pearls, both Warner Bros. and Prince suffered losses due to the hatred
between employee and employer that negatively influenced the public.
Finally free from his corporate chains, Prince began to promote himself,
reaping all the benefits of his shows with the New Power Generation.
Prince really began to turn the tides of the music business when he
started selling his latest compilation of songs, Crystal Ball, online
and direct to his customers. From then on, he began to favor new
industry models, supporting Napster and the like. Prince ebbed away for
some years but burst back onto the scene on the 2004 Grammy stage with
the queen of R&B herself, Beyoncé. Fans realized how much they missed
the eccentric guitarist/vocalist and rushed to purchase Musicology,
which sold 85 million copies, marking his best success yet. Three years
later he was on another world stage, performing at the Super Bowl and
once again becoming a household name. Slave Trade concludes with scenes
of Prince working on his project with the up-and-coming girl group,
3rdEyeGirl (Plectrumelectrum, released in September 2014).
Before this documentary, I had no knowledge of Prince or his music. All
I knew was that he was a great guitarist, wore makeup, and my mother
loved him. So, as a total newcomer to his career, watching Slave Trade
was like an atomic bomb of information about this legend. My mouth was
continuously dropping open in surprise and disbelief at all the risky
moves Prince made, and kept making, even when things were turning sour.
I am astounded by his career and his relentless passion for making music
that makes him proud, not what will sell.