[...]

I used to have an appartment in Paris and I loved to stay there to write and compose. That place was greatly inspirational for
me. However, in this appartment, I used to hear young people that would come and sing older songs under my window. Inside I
lived with a new inspiration but outside they were stuck with the old. One cannot expect that I will provide them with outdated,
rehashed stuff. What I gave in the past was the best of what I could give at that time. I cannot and I do not want to reproduce
it...

My guitarist, Rev. Scott, is from Washington, DC. He loves go-go. We included some in the latest album because he really
liked it. It's not complicated for me to juggle with music. Once again, people need to know that Purple Rain is over! People
often get stuck in one single style. I love what Björk does and I couldn't tell you what it is. I like the mysterious side of the
Cocteau Twins. I love what moves the heart. There are different languages. There shouldn't be any categories in music.

[...]

What we need to remember about Hendrix is that he was only an instrument of God, creating something that people shared.
Music is a documentary of life. I, too, am trying to bring everyone together. It's our being all together that gives things their
value. All my texts are an invitation to come together, to live together. But I do not fully trust words. Music is my best language.
When I decided to give up my name, "Prince", I asked myself who I was now. Well, I'm an instrument of God whose function is
to bring everyone together. All of a sudden, I was free, out of the trap in which I was falling. Today, I ask myself no more
questions, I'm happy. I do not think of death. We often think of it because we were warned that we would die one day. But
children wake up happy every day because they are not aware of it. It's this awareness of death that enables us to construct our
memory. Otherwise, nothing would really matter. Man always wants to control things. He doesn't like it when they escape his
control. He even wants to control life and death. All I do is that I live with the view that there is an enormous amount of things
left to do, to learn and to sing. We are all children of God, period. Democracy is People's Law. Do we really want to live under
this Law? The Law of Jesus existed before the Law of Mankind. Jesus speaks of love, passion, freedom. Men only speak of
war.

[...]

The development of the Internet is not complete. It has already enabled me to reach a great number of people, with no
middlemen. The network is not as efficient as traditional record distribution yet, which is massively regulated and controled by
the majors, but that could very well change. The Internet also enabled me to make people learn more about Chaka Khan and
Larry Graham, who are on my label, whereas a major would have focused on me exclusively. I asked myself questions
regarding the price of music. When I released my triple-album, I thought it would be better if I sold it at a very low price. It
would probably prevent the proliferation of bootlegs. My experience with Warner made me realize how useless the middlemen
are -- all these people who take a bite while they haven't participated in the creative process in any way. To me, record
companies provide a distribution service. This has nothing to do with music, which they should stay clear from. One day, the
artist dies and has no control on his own work. Recordings go from hand to hand. That's why it needs to be controled.

[...]

Sheila E. is the best drummer I know. Rhonda has a very strong intensity, sensitivity. Jaco Pastorius, for instance, was an
excellent bass player, but he didn't have such an approach. My music needs to be as funky as possible. And then, women are
more sensitive to the music if they know there are women in the band.

[...]

Copyright © 1998 Rage magazine