prince has still been effecting me.
i cannot believe he died the way he did.
i always thought prince would live to be like 100.
120,
tops.
like rose nyland,
he would do random pop ups in his old age and be gone like a ghost.
57 is just way too young.
it makes me sad all of our black legends died so lonely…
mj on the floor
whitney in a tub
prince in an elevator
as i read up on prince since thursday,
one thing i really admired is his giving nature.
he was very mysterious,
but behind the scenes,
he gave so much of his money and shoulder to those in need.
his good friend,
tamron hall,
said he didn’t want others to know how he helped other animals.
i guess he took a page from matthew 6:
Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
“So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
check me out quoting the bible.
here are some other things i have learned about prince:
-he supported his friend van’s “rebuild a dream” charity and the yeswecode initiative,
which helped trained 100,000 young adult cubs for high paying tech jobs
-made toni braxton open for him when he found out she was having financial troubles
-he joined forces with tidal to raise 1.5 million dollars for black lives matter
-he donated 250,000 to eau claire promise zone,
an organization in columbia, s.c o help preschoolers and their struggling families
-when he got his big break in new yawk,
he promised to give 1 million dollars to the harlem children zone.
-he also donated 250,000 to keep the doors open at the uptown dance academy here in harlem when they were about to lose their space in 2014
-when lauryn hill got in trouble,
van is quoted as saying on cnn:
“[Prince] had found out that Lauryn had gotten in some trouble and the first thing he wanted to know was, ‘where are her kids and what can we do to help’.
“This is just how he was. I guarantee you, anybody struggling, anywhere in the world, he was sending checks, he was making phone calls.
“But he did not want it to be known publicly and he did not want us to say it. But I’m going to say it, because the world needs to know that it wasn’t just the music.
“The music was one way he tried to help the world, but he was helping every single day of his life.”
X SEE MORE HERE
seriously…
when i hear/read/see stuff like that,
it makes me cry.
tears are literally running down my face.
i love to hear when people help others and are selfless.
i like flashy things,
but when i hear someone has a good heart,
that really impresses me the most.
prince was a silent angel.
he was a creative force who took a stand for his music and others.
everyone who i have spoken to,
who attended a prince concert,
says he was amazing live.
i’m upset i didn’t get to see him perform.
he has inspired me to be this way.
i really admire how he kept his personal life quiet,
dressed and acted how he wanted,
could take your vixen as “feminine” as he was,
but he was doing so much for so many behind the scenes.
that is the part that makes me smile even though he is gone.
he wasn’t some artist who wanted shine.
he was more than that.
now i understand why he was so good at throwing shade:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4k-d88BEsI
when all your shit is together,
you can do that.
lowkey: i bet he walked up to the pearly gates like this…
The man was brilliant and unafraid. He was focused on gender bending 30 years ago when it was far from a safe thing to do. “Am I black or white, am i straight or gay…controversy”. Singing that in the early 80’s could have been career suicide but he didn’t care. Hell there were people coming against Prince and his lyrics and he didn’t stop. The guy also played, sang, produced, and arranged his own music. How many artist do that today? In my mind, he is underappreciated.
Whenever rankings come out of the greatest artist of all time, they usually have white artist at the top. I would argue Prince is as talented and influential as any artist that ever lived. His legacy doesn’t have to take a backseat to anyone. I wish the black community would do more to fight for the legacies of MJ, Whitney, and Prince. They are every bit as good as the Beetles or the Rolling Stones.
^i LOVE this comment BB.
very intelligent.
^^ Preach!
Oh my god this hurts me so much reading all of this. Prince was one of a kind, his songs, his looks, his clothes, his voice, everything seemed so authentic, he didn’t have to put on like some artist do today, nothing seemed forced. That voice of his was like no other, there he was this lil small frame dude that could belt so much power out, he could go from soprano to tenor with no problem. Jamari, I thank you for doing the diva of them all entry a month ago, because I looked on YouTube and they had Prince shady moments and it had me so weak. I’m also really sad that our legends died young and alone. I miss all three of them, they touched my life with their music. Michael, Whitney, and Prince all shared similarities with each other. They cared for and helped others in need with no fan fare, had talent like no other, and from stories just seemed like they were so humbled and never had big heads. I miss all three of them.
^its crazy how madonna is outliving everyone she started with.
You know J, I was thinking that the other day. The superstars of the 80s-90s were passing away one by one, and I was like oh damn, who’s next Madonna?!
Think about it though, Prince, MJ, Whitney, Madonna…all ruled the music industry for decades. The thought frightens me.
Don’t forget about janet as well. I wonder how these music icons must feel.
I never got the chance to see either Whitney or Michael but was fortunate enough to see Prince in concert twice and he was amazing. I never knew about his charitable side, but I am not surprised. I am more surprised that he actually fooled with industry people, so many artist have come out with their own stories and some of them, I admittedly have given the side eye, like Prince actually fooled with you, but I guess we will never know what goes on behind the scenes because I said the same thing when Whitney died. This is going to be a loss that will take a moment much like Whitney and Michael to wrap our heads around. The good thing is he was still in his prime both musically and vocally and he has literally thousands of unreleased songs. We have new music for centuries to come. This estate will probably be one of the most profitable in all of history even surpassing MJ and the Beatles. Rest In Purple, your Royal Badness.
You know Tajan, I was thinking the same thing. People coming out with stories about these deceased entertainers, and I say to myself, yeah right.
Damon Dash REALLY gets the side eye from me when he speaks about Aaliyah. He was on the radio talking about they were going to get married after she died. I was like dude stop trying to make the moment about you.
To me when people do that, it comes across as them trying to get some attention. But that’s just me.
Prince was definitely one of a kind. I know it might seem cliche, but THERE WILL NEVER BE ANOTHER PRINCE!!
^110%
this DEATH hurts more than MJ and Whitney… they will never be another PRINCE. I can believe he is gone before George Clinton.
The TRUE musicians and artists are leaving us as each year passes. The artists of today cannot hold a candle to the artists of yesterday. They look to them as inspiration, but they fall flat.
I also heard that he sent money to the family of Trayvon Martin as well. I love when celebrities give without fanfare. When you do it, with cameras present and all, it doesn’t seem genuine. It’s like you’re looking for attention/acceptance…and that’s not what giving is about. You have to do it from the heart, and involving fanfare ISN’T from the heart. Prince operated like I would, giving in secret is just what I would do.
^i completely agree c!
this is why they won’t be another prince.
he has sealed his legacy as someone who can’t be re-made.
I may not know all of princes music but no an deny this mans talent. It doesn’t surprise me that he was so giving a lot of the times it’s the ones who are quiet abou things that tend to be the truly nicest people.
^its funny that the quiet ones run much deep than the loud mouths who have to boast and brag about everything.
His persona is a phenomenon to me! How did he manage to escape the “confines” of what it means to be masculine/feminine? Maybe he didn’t, idk, I’m sure a lot of people wrote his off as gay/bi etc. and to this day, I am not sure of my opinion on that, but he seemed to have managed to walk that line in an interesting way. He was certainly great at making a statement about that in a silent way. He was one of the few that were good at the “allure of mystery” and he played that very well.
I can respect that, and some of the things he represented, whether it was intentional or not, but I believe it most definitely was. He knew what he was doing. It is sad that he died the way he died. Way too young. I need to reacquaint myself with more of his music. I know his classics, but not his whole body of work. Truly an original!
^he truly was!
there aren’t a lot of superstars anymore.
we have big stars,
but no one knows the art of mystery anymore.