PRINCE

Biography

ICONIC GENIUS

Prince was an iconic musician because his style of music included classical, rock, reggae, blues, jazz, rhythm and blues, alternative, funk, and gospel. Prince's performances displayed not only his passion for music but his passion for the human soul.

Prince was born Prince Rogers Nelson, June 7, 1958. His parents were Jobn Nelson, a lyricist and pianist, and Mattie Shaw, a jazz singer and social worker. His parents,both of African-American descent, were from Louisiana. They separated during his youth, and due to probelems with his step-father, he ran away from home and stayed with a family called the Andersons. Prince became fiends with the Anderson's son, Andre Anderson (Cymone). He became friends with Charles Smith, and soon they joined together to form a band called Grand Central. The band later was named Champagne and was soon dissolved. At age 18, Prince started working on high quality demos and soon became succssful after signing a record deal with Warner Brothers Records. Prince was the youngest producer associated with the label and made his debut on the record label with his 1978 album, "For You." Later, on the label he released "Why you Wanna Treat Me So Bad?" and "I Wanna Be Your Lover"on the 1979 album. Because the album was sexually explicit, it brought Prince the reputation of introducing explicit material into the music industry. Prince did not become popular until he released his single "1999." The "1999" single was noticed by M.T.V. viewers and catapulted him into the musical maintream. Then, two more singles, "Delerious," and "Little Red Corvette", were featured by his new band, The Revolution. In 1984, Prince released his most popular song "Purple Rain". Prince's father helped him co-wrote the chord sequence in "Purple Rain", making it one of the most popular songs the world has come to know. Prince wrote, produced, and composed all of his music. On most of his albums he played all the instrumentshimself, except for brass instruments.

Prince's songwriting skills provided hits for Sinead O'Connor, Jordan Knight, and Chaka Khan, and sold 100 million albums worldwide during his lifetime. Prince died at th age of 57 at his Paisley Park and is sorely missed by his fans. His estate is worth about $300 million and his vault has enough songs to fill another century. Since Prince has no will his music may never be released from the vault. Prince's music is an inspiration to entertainers today and generations of the future.

Prince was a dynamic performer, he employed many female musicians, he believed in the freedom to create, he was passionate about his music, he supported many charities, and he taught individuals to believe in themselves and to not be afraid to make a positive mark on the world; and these attributes are just a few of his wonderful gifts to the world.

Timeline of Prince

• 1958: Prince Rogers Nelson is born June 7, in Minneapolis, MN.
• 1976: Signs a three-record, $1 million contract with Warner Bros,
• 1978: Releases "For You." It reaches 163 on the charts and does not produce any hits.
• 1979: Writes and records "I Wanna Be Your Lover." It becomes a Top 40 hit, spending two weeks at number one on the R&B sinles chart and hits No. 11 on the Billboard.
• 1982: Releases the album, "1999," It sells 3 million copies and brings Prince to worldwide fame. The album also features the hit single "Little Red Corvettte."
• 1984: Releases the album "Purple Rain" and he stars in the movie "Purple Rain."The album sells 13 million copies in the U.S. and produces two No.1 singles, "Lets Go Crazy" and "When Doves Cry". The album wins a Grammy and an Academy Award. The album and the movie both hit number one in the same week.
• 1986: Begins the construction of Paisley Park, a 55,000 square foot complex outside of Minneapolis where he lives and works.
• 1989: Writes the soundtrack for the movie "Batman." The soundtrack sells two million copies in the U.S.
• 1993: Begins a feud with Warner Bros.,which wants him to release fewer albums and does not let him out of his contract. Prince changes his name to a symbol and appears with the name "SLAVE" written on his face. His name is now known as "Formerly Known as Prince."
• 1995: Leaves Warner Bros.contract and releases 10 albums worth of material.
• 1996: Marries Mayte Garcia. That same year, their seven-day-old son, Amiir Gregory Nelson, dies from Pfeiffer syndrome, a genetic skull condition.
• 2000: Divorces Mayte Garcia and changes his name back to Prince.
• 2001: Prince, raised as a Seventh Day Adventist and later a Baptist, becomes a Jehovah's Witness. In the same year he marries Manuela Testolini, whom he met while working for his charitable foundation.
• 2004: Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
• 2006: Releases album "3121," which hits No. 1. Renames a Las Vegas club "3121" and performs there twice a week for fans paying $125 a piece. Wins a Golden Globe for
  "Song of the Heart, which he writes and performs for the animated film, "Happy Feet." Divorces Manuela.
• 2007: Performs "Lets Go Crazy" at the Super Bowl halftime.
• 2010: Performs a recordbreaking run of 21 concerts in London.
• 2015: Releases his final album "HITnRUN Phase One" on the Tidal streaming service. Eight days later, on Sept. 15, it comes out on CD.
• 2016: April 7, postpones two shows scheduled for the night at Atlanta's Fox Theatre due to the flu. Reschedules them for the following week.
• 2016: April 14, performs two makeup shows to sold out crowds at the Fox. Hours later, was taken to the hospital after an emergency landing in Moline IL.
• 2016: April 21, Prince is pronounced dead at his Paisley Park Residence at 10:07 a.m.