I just came home from a conference when my nanny’s daughter told some of my family members who were home at that time, April 21, Thursday, that Prince died. I was in shell-shocked. How could Prince die when I have not heard in the news about substance abuse, drugs and all that kind of stuff. After confirming from the news that the rock musician icon died, I felt a heavy heart inside me. I wept.
Prince, The Total Package
I remember back in my good ‘ol days, the’ 80s….the first time I heard “Little Red Corvette” on TV I already thought it was catchy. Then came “1999”…followed by “Purple Rain”. I glued myself every weekend to listen to Casey Kasem’s America’s Top 40, hoping that Prince single would be number one. I penned list of all Top 40 songs at that time every single week. I was around 14 years old. This was how it was when you are a music enthusiast and grew up loving a musician. Growing up in a musical family… my uncle who used to repair jukeboxes in the ’70s and early ’80s made me more inclined to music. I was a big big 80s baby and Prince was part of my life growing up. I would play his vinyl albums at our living room danced to “Controversy“, “Let’s Go Crazy“, “When Doves Cry“, “Little Red Corvette“, etc. When I got tired, I sat and read the back of the album cover. Prince to me is a total package … fashion icon, edgy, a great guitar player (Rolling Stones named him as one of the top guitarists of all time), mentor, lyricist, artist, activist – fought for his right as an artist, humble (he declined a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame) and he even his own color “purple” as Jimmy Fallon mentioned during a Prince tribute on Saturday Night Live. Prince Rogers Nelson was way way ahead of his ’80s generation. He ruled his generation even when his name wasn’t on the record. He used fictitious names.
One of my fave musicians/artists of all time
The Emotional Impact
As a music buff and found out that one of your favorite artists passed away, you refused to accept the truth in the beginning and then you finally accepted it with a heartache. Why is this? Because when you hear their songs … boom… it’s give you emotions and you are sent back to those times when you were young, happy, heartbroken, or mending a broken heart. It also gave you motivation and for others it made them go through their lives. It’s just like a psychologist you never met but speaks to you in sweet melody and lyrics. Prince was like my psychologist talking to me from a vinyl album.
As I end this write-up… I say no one can match Prince – his baroqueness of fashion, his spirituality and his exceptional talent. Prince remains as one of the most influential artists of our generation.
Speak Your Mind