Prince was an influential African American musician known for his innovative style and creative control over his work. Some of his most famous albums included 1999, Purple Rain, and Sign o' the Times. Throughout his career, Prince pushed boundaries with his sexually explicit lyrics and helped launch the careers of many other artists through collaboration. He changed his name to an unpronounceable symbol in 1992 before changing it back to Prince after fulfilling his contract with Warner Bros. Prince won numerous music awards and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility.

1. The Power of PurpleHistory (and Future) of one of African-Americans’ Greatest Musicians Known to Man

3. Prince Rogers Nelson was born here on June 7, 1958 to John L. Nelson and Mattie Shaw.Prince was named after his father’s stage name.

4. While in high school, Prince formed a group with his cousin and friend. They would later have Morris Day join them. It would be the beginning of Prince’s musical career.

5. Released in 1978, Prince’s debut album, For You, featured the songs “Soft and Wet” and the entire album was produced, arranged, composed, and performed by Prince.

6. His second album, Prince, had minor hits with songs like “I Wanna Be Your Lover” and “Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad” but he would not get the cult following until his next album.

7. Dirty Mind, released in 1980, was an album that was, for its time, very controversial. With songs about incest and oral sex, it rubbed a lot of people the wrong way, but his contract with Warner Bros. gave him complete creative control, something that most artists of that time did not have.

8. Controversy was a continuation of the Dirty Mind album with songs about mutual masterbation and sex. Do Me, Baby! Showcasedhis vocal range and became a hit.

9. This album was the one that would make Prince a breakout artist with hits like “1999”, “Little Red Corvette,” and “Delirious.” It would also start a rivalry that would last for the next 27 years.

10. Prince was the first black artist to have a video played on MTV. Michael was actually the 3rd. The feud began around Off the Wall and 1999.James Brown Passing the Torch

11. This album would be Prince’s most successful to date. It has sold over 13 million albums and is ranked in many magazines as one of the better albums of our time.

12. The song you are listening to, “Darling Nikki” was, at the time, too sexual in nature. Tipper Gore founded the Parents Music Resource Center after listening to this song and therefore, Prince is responsible for each and every sticker like this on your CDs.

13. A.T.W.I.A.D. received no promotion whatsoever, but still did well with “Raspberry Beret.”Prince went through an image change with this album, but also changed the way he recorded music. It would lead to his best work to date. “Kiss” is the single.

14. Sign o’ the Times is considered by most Prince’s best album to date. Released in 1987, the album musically was different from what we had been experiencing from Prince and lyrically, it showed us that Prince cared about things other that sex. He touched on issues that effected the world.

15. Prince changed his name to this unpronounceable symbol in 1992. This name change was brought about because of his unhappiness with his record label.This symbol is a combination of the Female and Male Signs. Prince had it copyrighted to be the Love Symbol #2.He would change his name back after he had fulfilled his obligations with Warner Bros.

16. Album marking his freedom from Warner Bros.First album released using his name instead of the symbolUnique, 4 song instrumental album, where each song was exactly 14 minutes long.

17. Prince often used different monikers to separate himself from music of his own or others because he said that he was tired of seeing his name. These names included Jamie Starr, Joey Coco, Paisley Park, Alexander Nevermind, and Christopher.

18. Just a few of the many artists that have worked with Prince. Others include Kate Bush, Sinead O’Conner, Mazarati, Jill Jones, Tamar, Bria Valentine. Mavis Staple, Tevin Campbell, Mad House, and countless others.

19. Prince Filmography

20. Prince married Mayte Garcia on Valentine’s Day, 1996. They had a son that died shortly after birth and they were divorced in 1999.Prince married his second wife, Manuela Testolini on New Year’s Eve, 2001. She filed for a divorce in 2006.

21. Prince’s latest album, Lotusflow3r , was released on March 29, 2009. It was unique in that it was a 3 CD set that included 2 Prince CDs and one CD by Prince protégé Bria Valentine. It was sold exclusively at Target.

22. TextPrince has won 7 Grammy Awards, 1 Golden Globe, 1 Oscar Award, and was one of the few people that were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in their first year of eligibility. (Class of 2004)