Born and raised in Minneapolis, Prince signed a record deal with Warner Bros. Records at the age of 19, soon releasing the albums For You (1978) and Prince (1979). He went on to achieve critical success with the influential albums Dirty Mind (1980), Controversy (1981), and 1999 (1982). His sixth album, Purple Rain (1984), was recorded with his new backing band the Revolution, and was also the soundtrack to the film of the same name in which he starred. Purple Rain garnered continued success for Prince and was a major commercial achievement, spending six consecutive months atop the Billboard 200 chart. The soundtrack also won Prince the Academy Award for Best Original Song Score. After disbanding the Revolution, Prince released the album Sign o' the Times (1987), widely hailed by critics as the greatest work of his career. In the midst of a contractual dispute with Warner Bros. in 1993, he changed his stage name to the unpronounceable symbol logo. Hollow circle above downward arrow crossed with a curlicued horn-shaped symbol and then a short bar (known to fans as the "Love Symbol") and was often referred to as The Artist Formerly Known as Prince (or TAFKAP) or simply The Artist.
After signing with Arista Records in 1998, Prince reverted to his original name in 2000. Over the next decade, six of his albums entered the U.S. top 10 charts. In April 2016, at the age of 57, Prince died after accidentally overdosing on fentanyl at his Paisley Park home and recording studio in Chanhassen, Minnesota. He was a prolific musician who released 39 albums during his life, with a vast array of unreleased material left in a custom-built bank vault underneath his home after his death, including fully completed albums and over 50 finished music videos. He also released songs under multiple pseudonyms during his life, as well as writing songs that were made popular after being covered by other musicians, most notably "Nothing Compares 2 U" by Sinรฉad O'Connor and "Manic Monday" by the Bangles. Estimates of the complete number of songs written by Prince range anywhere from 500 to well over 1,000. Released posthumously, his demo albums Piano and a Microphone 1983 (2018) and Originals (2019) both received critical acclaim.
Prince sold over 100 million records worldwide, ranking him among the best-selling music artists of all time. His awards included the Grammy President's Merit Award, the American Music Awards for Achievement and of Merit, the Billboard Icon Award, an Academy Award, and a Golden Globe Award. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2004, the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2006, and the Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame in 2016, and was inducted twice into the Black Music & Entertainment Walk of Fame in 2022.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_(musician)
Studio albums
For You (1978)
Prince (1979)
Dirty Mind (1980)
Controversy (1981)
1999 (1982)
Purple Rain (1984)
Around the World in a Day (1985)
Parade (1986)
Sign o' the Times (1987)
Lovesexy (1988)
Batman (1989)
Graffiti Bridge (1990)
Diamonds and Pearls (1991)
Love Symbol (1992)
Come (1994)
The Black Album (1994)
The Gold Experience (1995)
Chaos and Disorder (1996)
Emancipation (1996)
Crystal Ball (1998)
The Truth (1998)
The Vault: Old Friends 4 Sale (1999)
Rave Un2 the Joy Fantastic (1999)
The Rainbow Children (2001)
One Nite Alone... (2002)
Xpectation (2003)
NยทEยทWยทS (2003)
The Chocolate Invasion (2004)
The Slaughterhouse (2004)
Musicology (2004)
3121 (2006)
Planet Earth (2007)
Lotusflow3r (2009)
MPLSound (2009)
20Ten (2010)
Plectrumelectrum (2014)
Art Official Age (2014)
HITnRUN Phase One (2015)
HITnRUN Phase Two (2015)
Posthumous releases:
Piano and a Microphone 1983 (2018)
Originals (2019)
Welcome 2 America (2021)
Prince also released two albums credited to Madhouse, three albums credited to the New Power Generation, and one credited to the N.P.G. Orchestra:
Madhouse:
8 (1987)
16 (1987)
The New Power Generation:
Goldnigga (1993)
Exodus (1995)
Newpower Soul (1998)
The N.P.G. Orchestra:
Kamasutra (1997)
For Serbian singer Princ, please use Princ.
Empty Room
Prince Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
How am I gonna fill U?
How am I gonna fill this empty room?
Love is strong, however long
We should've been 4ever
How am I ever gonna fill this empty room?
By the bathroom window
How am I ever gonna get U off my mind?
In my bed, in my head
Every word U've spoken
Now how am I gonna fill this empty room?
Lonely hearts, worlds apart
Why should they be broken?
When we could be somewhere makin' love
Love is strong, however long
We should've been 4ever
Baby, why did U leave me all alone?
Why'd U do it?
Barren walls, tears fall
What's the use in cryin'?
I gotta find a way, find a way 2 fill this empty room
The song "Empty Room" by Prince explores the singer's longing for his lost love in an empty room. The first stanza questions how to fill the void created by the absence of his lover. Prince laments their lost opportunity for a forever love in the second stanza. He sings about finding a strand of his lover's hair, which reminds him of her and intensifies his heartache. The third stanza looks at the memories that haunt his bed and head. In the fourth, he expresses the pain of separation and suggests that it is possible to mend things and make love in another place, which is a recurring theme of Prince's music.
The chorus connects the theme of the song by expressing how love should overcome distance and be eternal. The last verse closes the loop with a note of determination to find a way to fill the empty room, regardless of what happened in the past. Prince's lyrics reveal a deep sense of vulnerability that allows the audience to empathize with him. The pain of losing love and the search to find oneself again is a universal theme expressed beautifully in the song.
Line by Line Meaning
Empty room, empty room
The space is empty and there is nobody in it
How am I gonna fill U?
How can I replace your presence in this empty space?
How am I gonna fill this empty room?
How can I make this room full of life when you are no longer here?
Love is strong, however long
Love can endure for an indefinite period, no matter how long it takes
We should've been 4ever
We deserved to be together forever
How am I ever gonna fill this empty room?
The absence of your love makes me unable to occupy and enjoy this space
Found a strand of your hair
I stumbled upon one of your hairs
By the bathroom window
It was near the bathroom window
How am I ever gonna get U off my mind?
How can I forget about you and stop thinking of you?
In my bed, in my head
You linger in my thoughts even as I go to bed
Every word U've spoken
I remember every syllable that you ever uttered
Now how am I gonna fill this empty room?
The emptiness of this space is more pronounced because I keep hearing your voice inside my head
Lonely hearts, worlds apart
We are separated and our hearts are full of loneliness
Why should they be broken?
Why must our hearts suffer the pain of separation?
When we could be somewhere makin' love
If we were together, we would be happily making love
Baby, why did U leave me all alone?
I feel abandoned and I'm wondering why you left me in this empty room by myself
Why'd U do it?
I don't understand the reason why you chose to walk away from me
Barren walls, tears fall
The walls of this room seem empty and lifeless, and my tears keep flowing
What's the use in cryin'?
I wonder if there's any value in shedding tears over you and this empty room
I gotta find a way, find a way 2 fill this empty room
I need to figure out how to move on and make this room alive again, even without you
Contributed by Aubrey A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.