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 Sinéad 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)
N·E·W·S (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.
Housequake
Prince Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Tell me who in this house know about the quake?
(We do)
I mean really, really
If you know how to rock say 'yeah' (yeah)
If you know how to party say 'oh yeah' (oh yeah)
But if you ain't hip to the rare house quake
Shut up already, damn!
Housequake
Everybody jump up and down
Housequake
There's a brand new groove going round (housequake)
In your funky town (housequake)
And the kick drum is the fault
You gotta rock this mother, say (housequake)
We gotta rock this mother, say (housequake), unh unh
We're gonna show you what to do
You put your foot down on the two
You jump up on the one
Now you're having fun, huh
You're doing, the housequake
Yeah
Question,
Does anybody know about the quake? (yeah!)
Bullshit!
You can't get off until you make the house shake
Now everybody clap your hands
Come on
Let's jam y'all
Let's jam
Don't wait for your neighbor
Green eggs and ham
Doin' the housequake
There's a brand new groove goin' round
In your city, in your town, housequake
And the kick drum is the fault
Housequake, (housequake), housequake
You gotta rock this mother
(You gotta rock this mother)
Housequake, housequake
You gotta rock this mother down
Come on
Housequake, unh, housequake
Now that you got it, let's do the twist
A little bit harder than they did in '66
A little bit faster than they did in '67
Twist little sister and go to heaven
Come on y'all, we got to jam
Before the police come
A groove this funky is on the run
Hey yeah unh!
Shake your body 'til your neighbors stare at cha!
Quake, quake, quake, quake, quake, awh ooo, quake
Housequake
Everybody, everybody jump up and down
Housequake
There's a brand new (groove) groove that's going round
Housequake
In this city, in this funky town
Housequake
And the saxophone is the fault
Check it out
If you can't rock steady
Shut up already
Damn, you got to get off!
You know what I'm talking about?
On the one y'all say, housequake
Top of your body, let me hear you shout
Say, housequake
My lord, (housequake)
My lord, (housequake)
Bullshit
Louder, say it (housequake) oowoo
Shock-a-lock-a, boom!
What was that? After shock!
Everybody, everybody
You gotta rock, you gotta rock
Come on
We're gonna shake, we're gonna quake
'Cause we got the baddest groove that we could a make
We on then two, y'all
The drummer's gonna tap
We gonna see if we can rock this mother to the max
And that's a fact
Housequake
Come on say it (housequake), woo, come on
You can't follow it
We got the baddest jam in the land
Everybody shut up, listen to the band
Housequake
Shut up already, damn
"Housequake" is a classic dance party song released by Prince in 1987, featured on his double album, "Sign o' the Times." The opening lines of the song try to get everyone's attention and invite them to participate in the new dance sensation that's hitting the streets called the Housequake. Prince goes on to ask the crowd to show some enthusiasm by shouting out their agreement to be a part of the groove. The song's exhortation continues as Prince tries to get everyone to get into the Housequake, explaining how it's done, and not to be left behind.
The lyrics encourage everyone to jump up and down, shout, and clap their hands. They emphasize how everyone needs to be in sync with each other to make the Housequake work. Prince's lyrics are very upbeat and energetic, and the song has an overall party atmosphere. The rhythm and beat are catchy and make you want to get up and dance, making "Housequake" a timeless party classic.
Line by Line Meaning
Shut up already, damn!
Stop talking and pay attention to what's about to happen.
Tell me who in this house know about the quake?
Who knows how to dance to this new beat?
(We do)
We know how to dance to it.
I mean really, really
I'm serious about this.
If you know how to rock say 'yeah' (yeah)
If you can dance to this type of music, say yes.
If you know how to party say 'oh yeah' (oh yeah)
If you can have fun to this music, say yes.
But if you ain't hip to the rare house quake
If you don't know how to dance to this new beat,
Housequake
Let's dance to this new beat.
Everybody jump up and down
Let's all start dancing and jumping.
There's a brand new groove going round (housequake)
This new type of music is catching on and spreading fast.
In your funky town (housequake)
This new music can be heard all around town.
And the kick drum is the fault
The fast-paced drum beats are what's responsible for this new groove.
You gotta rock this mother, say (housequake)
You have to dance and enjoy this new beat.
We're gonna show you what to do
Let me teach you how to dance to this type of music.
You put your foot down on the two
Start dancing by putting one foot down when you hear the second beat.
You jump up on the one
Jump up when you hear the first beat.
Now you're having fun, huh
Dancing to this type of music is fun, isn't it?
You're doing, the housequake
You're now dancing the new housequake style.
Does anybody know about the quake? (yeah!)
Who knew this type of music would be so popular? (Everyone)
Bullshit!
That's not true!
You can't get off until you make the house shake
You have to dance along and make the house shake from your movements.
Now everybody clap your hands
Let's all clap in unison along with the rhythm of the music.
Let's jam y'all
Let's dance, everyone!
Don't wait for your neighbor
Don't be shy to dance and let loose.
Green eggs and ham
Let's dance like we're partying with Dr. Seuss.
There's a brand new groove goin' round
This new music is really catching on.
And the kick drum is the fault
This type of music is characterized by its fast and rhythmic drums.
Now that you got it, let's do the twist
Now that you understand how to move to the new music, let's start dancing.
A little bit harder than they did in '66
Let's try dancing the twist with a little more energy than they did in the '60s.
A little bit faster than they did in '67
Let's dance the twist a bit faster than before.
Twist little sister and go to heaven
Dancing to this music will transport you to a heavenly state of mind.
Come on y'all, we got to jam
Let's dance and groove to this funky beat.
Before the police come
We better dance before the noise complaints start to come.
A groove this funky is on the run
This type of music is so good that it's practically running away from us, and we have to chase after it by dancing.
Shake your body 'til your neighbors stare at cha!
Keep dancing and moving until your neighbors are forced to pay attention to you.
Shock-a-lock-a, boom!
Let's all dance together in perfect synchronization.
What was that? After shock!
That impressive dance move was even better than we expected!
Everybody, everybody
Everyone, let's dance together!
You gotta rock, you gotta rock
You have to move and dance to the rhythm of the music.
We're gonna shake, we're gonna quake
Let's dance and move to this music as much as we can.
We got the baddest groove that we could a make
Our rhythm and beat are the absolute best - we made it ourselves.
We on then two, y'all
Let's start the dance moves on the second beat.
The drummer's gonna tap
Listen for the drummer's beat to keep up with the dance moves.
We gonna see if we can rock this mother to the max
Let's dance so hard that the entire house shakes.
And that's a fact
It's true - if we all dance together, it's going to be an amazing experience.
My lord, (housequake)
This is so amazing, my lord!
Bullshit
You're not being truthful.
Louder, say it (housequake) oowoo
Everyone, let's cheer loudly and continue saying housequake together.
Housequake
Let's dance and rock the house!
Come on say it (housequake), woo, come on
Let's keep cheering and saying housequake together!
You can't follow it
This music is too fast and intense to keep up with.
We got the baddest jam in the land
Our music is the best out there.
Everybody shut up, listen to the band
Everyone needs to stop talking and instead listen to the amazing musicians.
Housequake
Let's dance and rock the house once again!
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Prince Rogers Nelson
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind