Remembering Prince: A True Artist
25th of April 2016
The 21st of April has been a date that I will remember for a sad reason. My mother passed away on that date back in 2014. Now, in 2016 on that date, Prince Rogers Nelson passed away (better known as Prince). No, I did not know the man personally. However, every time I listened to his music, I felt it. I'm sure he had his own meaning while writing it, but we all have our reasons for feeling it.
I started to get into Prince around 1989 when Batman came out in theaters (the Michael Keaton version). I got the soundtrack, and I loved it. Prince was different for me because I was into the hair scene. Prince was a true artist that combined every genre of music and blended it all together producing a joyful sound. He played 20 if not more instruments, and he did more than music. He starred in two movies, Purple Rain and Graffiti Bridge. I saw Purple Rain for the first time in the theater this past Sunday. I couldn't see it in theaters in 1984 when it came out because I had responsible parents. I was only 5 or 6 when it came out.
I know some say that "he was just another singer." Wrong. He was an artist. He wrote his own music. He wrote songs for other artists. He played multiple instruments. He did more than just sing. He related to every one of his fans, and his fans related to him and his music. Prince was a very successful artist that didn't need controversy to get a fanbase. Sure, he had controversy, but it wasn't anything different from what other artists during the 80s were facing. He got his notoriety from his hard work and his talent. Nowadays, it seems controversy gets someone fame. Not with Prince. He was an amazing performer whether it was on the silver screen or on stage. I always sang Prince at karaoke, but I could never nail it like he did. Who could though but the man himself. I loved singing "Kiss" and "Purple Rain." Now, I wasn't the greatest singer, but it sure was great singing them. He was often imitated, but he was never duplicated. The 80s produced a bunch of cookie cutter groups, but Prince was never a cookie cutter. He was the cake that was very well decorated and can only be done once. My generation has been defined by much of Prince's work, and I'm grateful to be apart of it.
