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.
The truth
Prince Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I kinda kinda go hard Neck ass
You know
Free my brother flip, Free block boy
Coming home soon
But I can’t say that it’s true
Say you can call me what you want but I can’t say that it’s true
Cause all the dirt that I done did, I had to change how I move
And yes I hang with the goons
And I won’t let yo ass around me you can’t play by the rules
And you can call me what you want but you can’t show me no proof
Cause all the dirt that I done did they want my name on a tomb
I got some killers with me now they don’t play by the rules
And the ones that I grew up with they done changed man they fu
And my bitch left the other day cause I wasn’t changing my mood
But I don’t need no one around me y’all can all leave it’s cool
Cause I done been through too much shit all this pain that I went through
And I don’t got no one to talk to, put my heart in the stu
And I don’t want you around unless you riding for me
And I don’t want you no more because you lied to me
I lost my granny broke down bad shit I could hardly breathe
And all them times that I left you I could hardly leave
& it’s okay with me cause I see that it’s okay with you
And you can go shit you can leave and there ain’t no chasing you
And I don’t need no one to talk to, ima stay in the booth
That’s on my son that’s on my kids bitch I am never gon lose
And I can see you don’t care
Shit all the proof is right there
Because you still ain’t here
But bitch I’m facing my fears
And I don’t love you no mo
And I can’t trust you no mo
And I don’t want you, you hoe
Because my heart too froze
And yes my heart too cold
And I’m still never gon fold
Not for no bitch or no hoe
Trying get rich for my bro
I got my kicks in the do
I got the stick for the pole
And I can see she a hoe
So ima fuck on the flo
You can’t tell me about pain
Cause I done went through like everything
I done walked in the rain
I seen my own homie change
I seen the real turn to fake
Then try to smile in my face
Like I ain’t know they a snake
But you can’t eat off my plate
You gotta go get yo own
You can’t depend on nobody
You gotta get it you grown
And them boys said that they robbed me
Man we can get it, it’s on
And i don’t talk on the phone
I used to walk into homes
And if we stalk him he gone
Don’t need no hook for the song
Fuck a job cause we on
Fuck all that pain did me wrong
Think that they took this shit wrong
Cause I ain’t sad hell nah
I’m jus stating my feelings
Got paper stacked to the ceiling
Got haters mad cause we chilling
And we still winning bitch
Hell nah you can’t get it
They say shit on em I did it
I take the profit then flip it
I had to double my digits
I catch a body I’m dipping
Then clean the pole and I ditch it
They say prince cash he the sickest
Bitch
And out the ville I’m the illest
Yeah I said it Pussy
In Prince's song "The Truth," he poses the question of how we can know what is truly true in the world when so much of what we hear is a lie. He wonders aloud what would happen if we were given all the answers and stopped questioning them - how would we know if the information we were receiving was factual or not? He criticizes the idea that everyone has the right to love and lie, but notes that the choices we make are difficult and have lasting consequences. Prince also probes the idea that time's purpose may simply be to instill fear in us all and that the end of the journey is clearer than we realize. He asks us to question what we stand for and who we save, and implores us to strive to give more than we take.
In the song, Prince is calling for an ultimate truth and challenging society to be transparent and honest. He speaks of the fear and insecurities that prevent us from knowing the truth and highlights that there is often an imbalance in life that leaves us taking more than we give. Overall, the song serves as a commentary on the human experience, and Prince suggests that we should all keep searching for truth and strive to be more transparent while making difficult and meaningful choices.
Line by Line Meaning
What if half the things ever said
What if a significant amount of statements that have been made in the world are not true
Turned out 2 be a lie
Actually end up being lies
How will U know the Truth?
How can you discern the truth from falsehoods
If U were given all the answers
If you had an explanation for everything
And U stopped 2 wonder why
And you no longer question why things are the way they are
But how will U know the Truth?
But how can you verify if what you've been told is true
Everybody's got a right to love
Everyone is entitled to their own romantic desires
Everybody's got a right to lie
Everyone is allowed to deceive or withhold information
But the choice U make ain't no piece of cake
But deciding whether to tell the truth or a lie is a difficult decision
It ain't no motherfuckin piece of pie
It's not an easy matter
What If time's only reason?
What if the sole purpose of time is to scare us
Was to give us all somethin' 2 fear?
Is to create panic or worry within us
And if so y'all, the end of the journey's so clear
If that were the case, it's obvious where we're all heading
Questionaire, What did U stand 4?
Survey question: What did you represent or symbolize?
Questionaire, Who did U save?
Survey question: Who or what did you rescue?
When it gets right down to, wait a minute
When you really consider it, hold on a moment
When it gets right down to the nitty of the gritty
When it comes down to the gritty or difficult details
When it gets right down to it U take more than U gave
When everything is taken into account, you've taken more than you've given
Mmmm oh
An expression of contemplation or emotion
Gotta tell the truth y'all
It's essential to always speak the truth
Gotta tell the truth
You must be honest
If there was just one day
If there existed a single day
That everybody tell the truth
On which everyone spoke the truth
We'd all trade bank accounts & move to back to Neptune
We'd all be so disillusioned that we'd give away our material possessions and leave the planet
Lyrics © O/B/O DistroKid
Written by: Corey Wyatt
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind